And no, I don’t mean that title in reference to hordes of Blackhawks fans showing up tonight. Which I hope isn’t the case. Rather, I mean what is up with the scheduling? Harrison Mooney had the most rational explanation for scheduling issues that I’ve yet seen, but still. This stretch is tough. The Stars played three games against the Eastern Conference, and now swing through Texas for one game en route to a couple in the Northwest. One game. Sure there might be a star painted under the ice, but I’m still calling this a road game.
Which would be a great thing, seeing as how the Stars have been dominant on the road this past week. And by dominant I mean they won. And they were dominant at times. It happened.
The proof is this: People who aren’t Dallas Stars fans… noticed. This is what they say, and by ‘they,’ I mean the NHL beat writers here on SB Nation.
In terms of Dallas, the Stars have played really well lately. The team is ushering in a new era that will be led by manager Jim Nill, coach Lindy Ruff, captain Jamie Benn and superstar in the making Tyler Seguin. The guidance of Ray Whitney certainly can’t hurt and the promise of Alex Chiasson and Valeri Nichushkin appears as bright as the team’s original namesake. And goaltender Kari Lehtonen has been a fantastic foundation when injury hasn’t hampered his availability.
While it might be a small stretch, the Stars have been an entertaining team to watch this week. It’ll be interesting to see what they’re capable of this year. [SB Nation]
‘An entertaining team to watch.’ I love seeing things like that written about Dallas by Dallas writers. I love it even more when it’s written by someone who covers the Flyers. Although maybe I shouldn’t read too much into it. I mean, any team looks good compared to his.
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A couple of previews for tonight’s game, in case you like perspective. [Stars Inside Edge] [ESPN]
Jamie Benn claimed early on he was going to lead by example. Safe to say he’s doing a pretty good job of that so far. [Stars Inside Edge]
What to do about the Stars powerplay? Nothing? [Sports Day DFW]
Razor’s cockles got warmed. [Razor with an Edge]
First it was the Flyers, hitting reset and firing their coach. Then yesterday the Panthers torched the majority of their coaching staff. Who’s next? Sabres? [Puck Daddy]
Some thoughts on the importance of depth with successful NHL teams. Apologies for making that sound really boring. It’s a decent article. [Weekes on the Web]
No more Vegas for Ilya Bryzgalov. The guy wasn’t content with the $23 million he’s getting paid to not play for the Flyers, so he signed a contract for some amount of money with Edmonton. [Puck Daddy]
So it’s the NHL Power Rankings, which can sod off. But it is interesting to note that the top 5, and 8 of the top 9, are all Western Conference teams. Something’s gotta give. [NHL.com]
And lastly, what can I say about this one? It’s Down Goes Brown. But that video of Corey Perry getting checked into the Rangers bench twice in a row is hilarious. [Grantland]