2013-14 Season Preview: Dallas Stars
LAST SEASON
Regular Season: Like the Flames, the Stars cleaned house of some older veterans and started a youth movement. The Stars are a little better off, having brought in some established players who have NHL pedigree, including Tyler Seguin.
Playoffs: The Stars finished 11th in the Western Conference, 7 points out of the playoffs.
Apr 27, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; The Dallas Stars salute their fans after the game against the Detroit Red Wings at the American Airlines Center. The Red Wings shut out the Stars, 3-0. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
CHANGES
Out: F Loui Eriksson, F Erik Nystrom, F Tom Wandell, G Richard Bachman
In: F Shawn Horcoff, F Tyler Seguin, F Rich Peverley, D Sergei Gonchar, G Dan Ellis
Ready To Make The Jump: F Valeri Nichushkin
BIG 3 FACTORS
1. Old Dogs: Despite trading Brenden Morrow and Jaromir Jagr at the trade deadline, the Stars still have older players in the form of Ray Whitney, Sergei Gonchar and Shawn Horcoff. There is a big gap between those players and the young up and comers.
2. Seguin: The Stars’ big acquisition, they traded one of their best players for the young star who could turn out to be great but fell out of favor in Boston with off-ice issues. If he can get his head on straight he could lead the Stars resurgence.
3. New Guard: A rookie GM in Jim Nill and a veteran coach (Lindy Ruff) are now at the helm and that combination should prove to get the Stars out of the funk.
PROGNOSIS: The turnaround will happen, but it won’t be overnight. The Stars will struggle out of the gate with all the new faces, and the likes of Whitney and Gonchar aren’t getting any younger.
PREDICTION: 7th in Central Division
We will be previewing every NHL team ahead of Training Camp which for most teams will begin on Sept 11th. As a twist, we will be unveiling our teams in reverse order to how I predict they will finish in the standings. Here is the schedule (you can click on a team name to see the preview for that team):