In Jimmy Buffett’s song “Trying to Reason With Hurricane Season” there’s a lyric that seems to sum up this Dallas Stars season: “Yes, it’s quite insane, I think it hurts my brain.”
That’s where we are at. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
There’s not much to expound upon concerning the Stars today. They’ve been floundering much of the year. A lack of a consistent winning streak will be just one marker that people break down in the post-morteum of the 2016-17 season.
I’m quite jealous of the Carolina Hurricanes in that regard.
Carolina is in the midst of a 9-0-4 streak. They’ll look to tack on win number 14 tonight versus the Stars that got owned by the Boston Bruins on Thursday night. The same team that hasn’t won more than about three games in a row this season, if that.
And they have a lot riding on the line.
This streak has helped Carolina sneak into the playoff discussion in the East. Sitting four points behind Boston for the last Wild Card spot and a game in hand, the Hurricanes have a chance to close the gap as they come down the stretch.
Dallas, on the other hand, is already out of the playoffs — and quickly running out of time to put together a stretch of winning hockey this season, too. With just five games remaining, the last three of which are at home, and more injuries sustained in that Boston losing effort, expect a fairly younger lineup tonight for the Stars.
And hopefully Stephen Johns finds his way out of Lindy Ruff’s doghouse. It’s the end of the season and the team has to be able to evaluate what these young guys can do in preparation of the offseason. Even if they make mistakes, it’s important to know whether they can learn and adjust accordingly.