DALLAS STARS: With Season Still Young, Look For Dallas to Begin to Shine

Despite beginning the young NHL season at 0-0-2, the Dallas Stars still have a lot of potential—and a lot to prove—as they head into their third game of the year.

First and foremost, these Stars can skate and make games interesting; yes, Dallas lost their first two games in overtime shootouts and it’s a tough way to start the year.

But they looked great in both of those games, regardless of the ultimate outcome.
Marty Turco, who in many circles (both fans and beyond) is being talked about as trade-bait, still looks great in net and has proven he can still make remarkable saves and is a professional goalie.

In addition, and it’s sad but true—the core of the Dallas Stars are getting up there in terms of age. I remember watching guys like Mike Modano (now 39) and Brenden Morrow (still “young” at the age of 30) skating around the ice for the Stars when I first got into hockey many years ago thanks to my cousin (a die-hard hockey fan, no doubt).

Here’s the thing with the 2009-10 Dallas Stars hockey team, though: They have the talent. They have the speed. They also have the defensive presence to really make a name for themselves in this league—and it would be nice to see them restore their name to glory sooner rather than later.

With returning forwards to the franchise such as Modano, Morrow, Loui Eriksson, Jere Lehtinen, Steve Ott, Mike Ribeiro, and Brad Richards—along with young newcomers such as up-and-comers James Neal, Fabian Brunnstrom and Jamie Benn—these Dallas Stars have a chance to be something special out there on the ice this NHL season.

The 2009-10 Stars also have a new coach at the helm in Marc Crawford—who brings an aggressive offensive style to the game and could really open up a lot more scoring opportunities this season for Dallas (as witnessed in the first two games this year).

In addition, Dallas returns this season with a solid defense—with names such as Trevor Daley, Nicklas Grossman, and Stephane Robidas coming back this season as Stars (as far as goalies are concerned, 28-year-old Alex Auld is currently Turco’s backup in net).

The Stars return to the rink on Friday, Oct. 9, against the Calgary Flames on the road—with the puck set to drop at 8 p.m. Central Time on Fox Sports Southwest.

Look for Dallas to come out quick and aggressive as they aim to pick up their first win of the young season this Friday against Calgary.

Morrow, Neal, and Brunnstrom are looking good early-on this year offensively for this Dallas hockey team, and it’s only a matter of time before their teammates get involved and the Stars start racking up some goals and some wins.

Let’s hope that win-streak begins this Friday against the Flames…

Denton Ramsey may be reached via email at [e-mail]