(creative titles are the only fun I can have right now)
First thing first: Vote Robo!!
In Jamie Benn‘s 900th NHL game, the Dallas Stars endured a lashing from the Flordia Panthers. It started bad and stayed there for the Stars. The Panthers came in hot with 2 goals in the first 8 minutes and the Stars could not generate squat. They held the Panthers at just two goals in those first 20 minutes.
However, in the second period, things slipped apart even further when the Panthers came back with two quick goals only 30 seconds apart just 5 minutes into the period. At this point, the Stars pull young goaltender Jake Oettinger and bring in Anton Khudobin, my beloved. It was the first time we’ve seen Dobby since November 18th. Suddenly we have a fresh goaltender, it’s a 0-4 ballgame, and oh look, Sam Bennett wakes up with a goal on the power play to make it 0-5. That’s not all because Bennett comes back and does it again 3 minutes later. The Stars left the second down 0-6 and it does not get better.
Roope Hintz at least takes matters into his own hands a minute into the third and gets the puck past Sergi Bobrovsky to break his shutout.
But it is a little fruitless at this point as the Stars are already down 6 goals in the final frame. Sam Bennett comes back once more about 15 minutes later to complete his hat trick and end this game 1-7.
It remains a fact in Dallas Stars Hockey that they cannot play well on the road. They haven’t won a game on the road since they were in Arizona on November 27th, 2021 and that win is their sole regulation road win of the season. Their other 3 road wins have come in OT or the shootout. They fall to 18-14-2 so far but something has got to give. They’re 6th in the West headed into the All-Star break with games against Tampa, Montreal, and Buffalo coming up. Tampa is going to be a hell of a test that I’m not sure I want to watch. With the Stars, if their confidence gets shaken early, they’re done for the entire game. This has been something we’ve seen consistently and it’s getting out of hand. We’ve seen it time and time again. They have to turn around from this game and move onto Tampa, which will be an emotionally charged one after the 2019 (2020?) Cup Final. I desperately want them to win but oh boy am I terrified.
In closing:
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