Dallas Stars Prospects Win Tournament, Shine Light on Future

*Image Note: a couple of players were cut out due to size, but notice Stu Barnes in his first gig as an assistant coach on the top right.*

There is something about the future that excites people. For some, it is the prospect of college graduation; for others it is the prospect of next hockey season. Cubs' fans are long notorious for retorts of “I can’t wait 'til next season!” 

But in hockey, such things are different.

Some hockey fans follow the offseason with a watchful eye, analyzing draft picks and free agency like a general manager in their own home. Others, however, ignore the summer months placing full faith in the team’s leadership and await the finished product.

There is no waiting in hockey.  It is much like a defensive breakout and return to defense, an ever constant transition.

This past season saw youngsters like Matt Niskanen learn the ropes from veterans like Sergei Zubov, youngsters like Brenden Morrow blossom into veterans, and a veteran like Stu Barnes assume his role as a coach and leader behind the bench. Hockey, more than any other sport, is much like life—there is only death when it is finally seen as the last step.

Late last night, another step in that chain became visible, a needed link in the chain to this cycle of hockey life. As teams begin to evaluate young talent acquired over the summer, many hold prospect camps, to see which among them is truly the best.

Others take part in prospect tournaments, where the biggest winners are the prospects and a coaching staff now able to accurately evaluate the talent. Question is—if a trophy is played for in said tournament does it matter?

For the Stars, their prospect team's 8-3 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers can only be a sign of good things to come. Both teams likely gained new knowledge and insight into young prospects and their ability to play with the parent club.

First, let me say the Thrashers went through some deeply talented prospect teams to play the Stars. The Thrashers beat the Red Wings in a shootout to move on, showing the immense talent this club has in its future. To Thrasher fans, the future is bright—there is a light at the end of the tunnel, so the future can continue to be dreamt of.

To Stars fans who know the future is now—don’t forget to keep a watchful eye on the future as well. Likely many of the names profiled below will be mentioned in American Airlines Center either this, or in following years.

The Stars Prospects held a 4-0 record, scoring a total of 20 goals. James Neal, a player who could easily be seen in Dallas this fall, scored nine points, and consistently led the Stars prospect team while also leading the league in points. Jamie Benn, another young star, scored a league-high five goals.

"We’ve got a good group of young guys, and we clicked pretty good," said Benn in the Stars press release. "I think that was a big key for us. We knew that if we’d have team success, we’d have individual success, so we concentrated on the team, and that paid off for us."

Stars co-general manager Les Jackson said in the press release that the team adopted an aggressive offensive attitude during the tournament.

"We were trying to push it, for sure," Jackson said. "I think we had the talent and the skill, and those were the strengths of our team, so we wanted to play to our strengths."

Dallas phenom Fabian Brunnstrom showed no signs of letting down expectations, adjusting well from a disappointing first game and helping lead the Stars come the final contest. Brunnstrom scored on a rebound from defenseman Ivan Vishnevskiy to ignite the team in the third period of Game Four.

Drawing more attention than Brunnstrom was the always dangerous Neal, who drew amazing praise from Jackson and the rest of the front office. "Neal was fantastic," Jackson said in the press release. "He’s determined to make our team, and he played like that every shift."

It remains to be seen what the impact will be on training camp. A lot of players drew praise from the Stars' front office during this tournament—then again, can anyone complain by the results of this talented squad? Brunnstrom is expected still to make the big team out of training camp.

As of now, he is listed on the big team’s third line and Jackson as well as Hull have agreed expectations are not too high for him. Both have mentioned the Stars will be patient with his adjustment to the parent squad.

Another potential parent team-maker is James Neal. How about this kid? Leading the league in points, he was a constant pulse for the Stars. He will certainly be a name to look for in the training-camp news. I won’t set any expectations for him for this season, but he certainly seems capable of being on the big team for October.

Ivan Vishnevskiy, according to the press release, is also ready for a successful jump to the NHL. In recent months I have heard and read nothing but good things about this young defenseman. I say give him two years and he will likely be a stable blue-liner for the parent club.

Another name to watch for is the captain of the prospect team, Raymond Sawada. He led the team well and received a lot of praise in previous press releases. Other then that, I don’t have enough information on him to input any expectations on where he will end up at the end of camp. Likely, camp will hold the answers on his placement for this season.

One more prospect to keep an eye on is Jamie Benn, listed above was the goal-scoring leader of the tournament. Other than this information, I know very little about him.

Links to DallasStars.com review of Prospect Tournament games:

Stars down Minnesota, 3-2; Will Face Atlanta Wednesday In Final
Stars Pull Out Come-From-Behind Win In Second Game
Stars Win Traverse City Debut over St. Louis, 4-3
Dallas Takes Traverse City Title Dallas Stars Website

Ken Armer is a senior hockey writer and a Community Leader for the NHL and Dallas Stars. You can contact him on his profile or via e-mail at [e-mail]