Dallas Stars Daily Links: Yes, The Stars Really Did Give Away A Home Game To The Habs
How do you lose in your own barn to the literal worst team in the league? Plus, hockey celebrates Willie O’Ree Night, Ovechkin moves up the leaderboards again, and more.
What happens when the Dallas Stars fire 51 shots at a third-string goalie? Trick question: The answer is always that the Victory Green Gang makes the backup look like a Vezina candidate.
And last night, that third-stringer was a member of the worst team in the NHL, and the Stars gave away a game to the Montreal Canadiens on their own ice. With so many soul-destroying moments to choose from, The Dallas Morning News’ Matthew DeFranks had his postgame work cut out for him:
The Stars were, unbelievably, the better team offensively. If only their finishing had polish.....
They rang four posts, including Radek Faksa’s shot in the first period that bounced off both posts and Ryan Suter’s that clanged off the iron with a chance to trim the lead to one in the third period. In the second period, Roope Hintz and Michael Raffl were each wide open in the slot, but the puck bounced off Hintz’s skate and over Raffl’s stick.
But if you think Rick Bowness is going to blame the system, well, you haven’t been paying attention:
“The mistakes we made ended up in the back of our net because just bad puck management, it’s as simple as that,” Bowness said. “They capitalized on every chance they had and we didn’t. It could have been 7-5 very easily. The kid in the net was outstanding. We’ll go from there.”
The Stars finished with 51 shots on goal. It was the first time all season that Dallas fired at least 40 shots on goal, which can be either an indictment of the team’s ability to produce scoring chances across the last three months, or a verdict on its shooting skill Tuesday night.
Matt has more. [SportsDayDFW]
Stars Stuff
With Braden Holtby and Denis Gurianov back on the ice, players are on the move again.
The Dallas Stars have reassigned goaltender Anton Khudobin to the Taxi Squad and reassigned forward Ty Dellandrea from Texas to the Taxi Squad.
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) January 18, 2022
Around The Leagues
#Death Notes
- Cole Perfetti got his first NHL goal, but the Winnipeg Jets fell to the Washington Capitals 4-3 in overtime. [Arctic Ice Hockey]
- And the Nashville Predators lost a 3-1 slugfest to the Vancouver Canucks on Juuse Saros’ night off. [On The Forecheck]/
It was a long time coming, but last night the Boston Bruins finally retired No. 22 in honor of Willie O’Ree.
Right where it belongs.#NHLBruins | #Willie22 pic.twitter.com/AlJ60HYcgi
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) January 19, 2022
All of Boston got in on the celebration, from City Hall...
City Hall is lit up in gold tonight to honor Willie O'Ree—who became the first Black @NHL player on this day in 1958. #Willie22 pic.twitter.com/sirDQ6tz2H
— Mayor Michelle Wu 吳弭 (@MayorWu) January 18, 2022
...to Fenway Park.
Tonight Fenway Park goes gold for Willie O’Ree who, on this date in 1958, made history with the @NHLBruins and became the first Black player in the NHL.
— Red Sox (@RedSox) January 18, 2022
Tonight, his No. 22 will be raised to the TD Garden rafters. #Willie22 pic.twitter.com/U4qxVfGgch
The San Diego Gulls found an amazing way to honor O’Ree, too.
Tonight, Willie O'Ree receives the ultimate honor - the @NHLBruins lifting his number to the rafters of TD Garden.
— San Diego Gulls (@SDGullsAHL) January 18, 2022
Before the festivities, we joined with the @NHL to present our favorite former Gull with a truly special gift - his game-worn jersey from his time in San Diego! pic.twitter.com/vMHukoZjMK
With everything else going on, you can be forgiven for missing this.
Ovechkin's 757th goal was also his 1,375th point, putting him ahead of Mike Modano for 24th on the career scoring list https://t.co/7i3RS6UWxk
— Hockey Night in Canada (@hockeynight) January 19, 2022
Jason Robertson didn’t make the NHL All-Star Game’s Last Man In roster, but clearly he needs to be protected at all cost anyway.
Fans select @RealStamkos91, @43_Kadri, @MikaZibanejad and @troyterry1997 as 2022 #NHLAllStar Last Men In.
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) January 18, 2022
Jake Guentzel to replace Zibanejad, who cannot attend due to personal reasons.
Full Release: https://t.co/9vMOCgTmoR pic.twitter.com/9jFZnPWYDl
Greetings From Beautiful Boise
It seems like a good time to catch up with the Idaho Steelheads, currently ranked No. 2 in the ECHL’s Mountain Division.
WEEKLY: The Steelheads split their six-game stretch with the Grizzlies and now head into the back end of their six-game road trip in Rapid City.#FeelTheSteel https://t.co/4DbbUQp97M
— Idaho Steelheads (@Steelheads) January 18, 2022
Finally
How about “go to hell”? Is that an option?
Goal or No Goal? pic.twitter.com/jqhhbYsH2T
— The Hockey News (@TheHockeyNews) January 19, 2022