Stars Preseason - How Did They Fare?
Overall, the pre-season can be seen as an injury risk for star players. Most recently proven with the moment that terrified Blues fans for two days when Jake Allen was taken out of a game with a twisted leg, and the terrible fate that befell the Panther’s John Huberdeau. Jake Allen made his return to practice and started against the Blackhawks opening night, but the same can’t be said for Huberdeau as he will be out for up to 4 months. All these injuries and risks aside, the pre-season is an opportunity for players to get back in the rhythm of facing off against competitive teams as well as new players getting some ice time with their teammates.
We did gain some insight into how our favorite teams might perform in the coming months. Turning our attention to Dallas, what did we learn? A bit about the things to come this season and in future seasons, but with some lingering questions. The Stars finished out the preseason 4-3, with a fun finisher expo game in Las Vegas, topping the Kings 6-3. We got to see several new players on the team trying to prove their way out of the AHL, and not doing half bad. While not scoring many points, the young guns hit hard and skated hard. The old guys also showed up to play though. Notable efforts from new Star Jiri Hudler who showed Dallas fans he is here to score points. After sitting out the WCoH, Hudler was ready for some action, notching a goal and an assist in the first game against the Blues. Jason Spezza was also ready to show is what we already knew he could do: support the young guys and get some points. One of the impressive young guys was Radek Faksa. With hot players like Jamie Benn sitting out many of the matches and Tyler Seguin out with injury, 3rd liners has to step up, and Faksa did just that. With a 2 goal night against Colorado, Faksa was coming off a decent premier season looking to show his efforts can lead to pucks in the net.
In summation, the pre-season is tough to use as a barometer for the upcoming season. Dallas only won one pre-season game in the 2015-16 season and wound up on top of the Western conference. What we did get to see was that the new faces can produce. Look for Hudler to work in the lines in a similar fashion as Spezza did in his time in Dallas, scoring points and setting the right example for the young players. Still to be seen is Tyler Seguin’s recovery from injury, if Niemi and Lehtonen can hang in for the long haul, and if the new defensive shakeup will drop that GAA. A lot is to be seen, and get ready, because it all starts right now with the season officially underway.
