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Dallas Stars Daily Links: Stars Search – The Next Head Coach

Posted on by Kathleen Tibbetts

The Dallas Stars have a fairly consequential to-do list for the 2022 offseason, and Job One is identifying the next leader behind the bench. Where will the Victory Green Gang find their next head coach, and what will they face once they get here?

The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf talked with Nill about the Stars’ future – including the major task of finding a bench boss who can help define it:

“…When I was with the Detroit Red Wings, we were known as an offensive juggernaut but until Scotty Bowman came in and implemented the defensive system and really take guys into realizing what you had to do to win as a two-way game, we didn’t start to win. Then, all of sudden, we started to win.

“It’s a fine balance. We’ve had some success both ways. Now you’ve got to find that balance. Do we need more offense? Yes, and I think if you talk to 85 percent of the teams, GMs and coaches across the league, they’ll all say the same thing. It’s hard to score and everybody’s looking for it. That’s something we’re looking at internally and externally. We’ve got to get better but we have to make sure we don’t lose that structure either or you’re not going to win.”

What are the odds that Nill will look overseas for a talented leader?

“You do have to be careful. [The NHL is] not an easy league to just come in and not know the league and have success. First of all, you’re dealing with professional hockey players. They know how the game’s got to be played and if you’re a coach that comes in and doesn’t understand that, they’re going to figure it out pretty quick. It’s knowing the rest of the league.

“There is risk involved in that but that’s why you go through this process. Some of these guys may not have been in the league but have they been exposed to it in different ways? How much have they analyzed it? What’s been their experiences? Have they coached at different levels of play where there have been lots of NHL players or NHL style of play? It’s a big combination of all of those things.”

There’s much more behind the paywall. [The Athletic DFW]

Stars Stuff

So, there’s also this. Thoughts?

The Stars’ former communications guy has even brought the odds. (I know this only means that people have been betting on Jere Lehtinen, and yet. And still.)

Around The Leagues

About Last Night…In Playoffs Action

The Tampa Bay Lightning are one game away from locking up the Eastern Conference Final – yet again – after last night’s 3-1 victory over the New York Rangers.

Can Jacob Trouba get supplemental discipline for a missed hit? The defender’s naked attempt to elbow Ondřej Palát in the head has earned him the bad kind of attention.

Whether or not you can ever root for a fellow inmate of the #MurderDeathKill Division, the Colorado Avalanche’s sweep of the Edmonton Oilers could make for pretty good TV.

We all know there’s much more of this going on than ever gets reported. This is a story worth keeping an eye on.

Wayne Gretzky has been retired for 23 years, and he’s still breaking records. Go figure.

Finally

This might – might – be the kind of season-ticket-holder bonus you’d be interested in. Enjoy.

Talking Points