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The Dallas Stars wrapped up their four-game road trip at 3-0-1 with a 3-2 win against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena on Wednesday.
Wacky Wednesday
This game started off really calm, collected, and under control, right?
That was sarcasm, in case you don’t know me and what I am capable of.
Really, the game was immediately chaotic and wacky in all three zones. Seattle just got Jared McCann back from a 17-game absence, and he took a high stick from Alex Petrovic 49 seconds into the game and went straight down the tunnel into the dressing room. Bad for McCann, bad for Petrovic, who was now sitting for four minutes with a double minor. McCann did return with some new stitches shortly after.
But give Dallas some credit — hey, that sounds familiar… Did you all read that article from today yet? — because they bowed up and bailed out their teammate with an excellent and mostly clean penalty kill.
On the other side, just after Petrovic got out of the box, he set up Roope Hintz for a high tip that snuck between the five hole of Joey Daccord and gave Dallas the lead. Nothing special about this one. Just make a quick play, don’t think too much, and get bodies in and around the net.
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Scoring first in the second night of a back-to-back… Always strongly encouraged.
Then it was a whole bunch of turning pucks over, spinning and chasing Seattle around the defensive zone, and saves from Casey DeSmith.
Unfortunately, DeSmith got into some spinning of his own, and it resulted in the opening goal.
DeSmith is a scrambly goalie. He has to be because of his smaller size. He can’t play the position like Jake Oettinger because he would get beaten to spots his body just doesn’t cover with positioning alone.
While you don’t necessarily want your goalie scrambling, because it likely means the opponent is swarming and your defense is so-so, DeSmith is usually very good at it. He reads plays well, has some of the best footwork I have seen from a goalie, and uses his athleticism to not just make the save, but often make it look pretty easy.
That is what the remainder of the first period featured in the defensive end. He made a few key saves, especially on McCann, and kept this game level 1-1.
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Forecheck, backcheck, forecheck some more
You thought I was going to say paycheck, didn’t you? Don’t lie.
Dallas could not handle the Seattle forecheck in the second period any more than they could in the first. And that was not a lot.
Seattle is excellent on the forecheck — shocker with Mason Marchment on their roster, I know — and creates a lot of offense from it. When you turn pucks over, it only makes that situation worse. That’s what Dallas did.
Somehow, the shots are all even after 40 minutes. I say somehow because it hasn’t felt that way. But as I wrote about today, Dallas seems to always find a way to hang around and score enough to win or earn a point.
Thanks to their goaltender and Mr. Smiley, Esa Lindell, they are 20 minutes from winning three of four on this road trip. Is this guy ever not smiling ear to ear? I sure haven’t seen it.
As Razor said on the broadcast, Lindell does this very well. He is not the most skilled, or even in the top three, defender, but he is more than capable of carrying the puck over the blue line, handing it off, and then simply continuing toward the net. It has led to basically all of his goals, which are often scored from right around the net.
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Speaking of Marchment, he and Oettinger had a nice moment before the game, one that fit their friendship, as Marchment shot a puck at Oettinger in warmup.
Now, Dallas has a real test ahead of it.
This is a tight game, and the Stars have played a lot of hockey lately, including last night in Edmonton. If they are able to stay sharp mentally and physically, and play a simple period, they could walk away with another 2-1 win as they did a couple of weeks ago. If not, Seattle is going to have its push, and it may be up to DeSmith to stop it.
Very thankful at DLLS on this Thanksgiving
I know this isn’t about the game, but I get all sappy around the holidays. Sue me!
These first 15 months at DLLS have been surreal. We had no idea what to expect day-to-day, let alone what our reception would be, and if we would be able to build this thing off the ground. Because of you, we have done just that and are now looking for ways to expand, build, and be creative to bring the best Dallas sports coverage possible.
I just want to say thank you. And I mean that.
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If you have met me, you know I am no fibber. I wear my heart on my sleeve because it’s the only way I know. And I am just so stinking grateful for every Stars fan and DLLS DieHard who have supported me and us. From Justin Hryckowian buttons and friendship bracelets (two of them… sorry), to meet-ups, selfies, events, hugs, high fives, and the nonstop hilarity of our back-and-forths on social media, I appreciate every bit of it. And I appreciate every one of you.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, eat some good food, try to forget about hockey for 24 hours (no longer than that though because the Stars play approximately 100 games this week), toss around the ol’ pigskin, maybe avoid politics at the table, flatter your wacky aunt or uncle by acting SUPER into whatever the heck they are trying to tell you about, and be present.
Holidays are special not because of the food or presents, but because of the people you get to surround yourself with. Personally, I am excited to spend Thanksgiving with my fiancé for the first time since we started dating. Who are you excited to see tomorrow?
To however many you will be hosting or sharing your turkey with, Happy Thanksgiving from me and all of us at DLLS.
I’ll see ya right back here on Friday.
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