SB Nation - Nicklas Grossman

Game 38 Preview: Jackets limp into Dallas

Mike MacLean — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 17:05:00 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

Dear Santa, all I want for Christmas is a god damned win! The Jackets are in the midst of the worst tail-spin of any NHL squad right now. Remember when they were at or near the top of the Western Conference standings? Now they are battling with Edmonton and Anaheim to stay out of the conference cellar.

Based on the Dispatch's projected lineups, it looks like the roster is is set up like we all predicted it would look like back in the summer. Vermy and Brass are the scoring line pivots, with Juice, Nasher, RJ and Jake as the scoring wings. Chimmer is checking with Sammy and Freddy, which makes a hell of a lot more sense than having Juice on that line. The fourth line will bring energy and physical play, no doubt. I'm pulling for Blunden to score that first goal, and i think if Boller and Raffi can create havoc and the guys can work the forecheck as well as they have of late, it could happen. Mase gets the start. I hope he took Hitch's comment about he and Garon being equal on the depth chart personally and re-affirms himself as the clear-cut number one.

The Stars are a good team- they can score and they bang bodies. The James Neal subplot is an interesting one, it will be fun to see how he is treated by the Jackets. I'm sure that given the chance he and Boller will chuck knuckles tonight. Brad Richards seems to have returned to his former high-scoring self, so he will need to be contained. Their defense is missing some pieces, but are serviceable. I remember watching Fortunus and Vishnevskiy when they were playing in the QMJHL, they are both good players and while they aren't household names yet, they have the potential to forge decent NHL careers, especially Vishnevskiy, a former first round pick. He's a natural Zubov replacement. Turco is in net for Dallas.

Fearless Prediction : A decent effort, the Jackets want to go into the break on a high note, so they can start fresh after Christmas. Mike Blunden gets a point.

Game Time: 8:30pm ET

Opponent's Blog: Defending Big D

Game Page: Blue Jackets vs Stars Coverage

TV: FSN Ohio

Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)

More after the jump...

From the Columbus Dispatch:

It's hard to imagine a more fragile club in the NHL right now than the Blue Jackets. Getting out of the first period without trailing would be huge. The Blue Jackets are 5-1-1 in Dallas the past three seasons. If the Jackets lose tonight and Edmonton wins in Minnesota, they fall to last place in the Western Conference.

Jackets Links:

Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats

Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:

Columbus Blue Jackets

Kristian Huselius	Antoine Vermette	Rick Nash
R.J. Umberger	Derick Brassard	Jakub Voracek
Jason Chimera	Samuel Pahlsson	Fredrik Modin
Raffi Torres	Mike Blunden	Jared Boll

Fedor Tyutin	Mathieu Roy
Mike Commodore	Jan Hejda
Kris Russell	Marc Methot

Steve Mason

Mathieu Garon

EXTRA: Andrew Murray

INJURED: Anton Stralman, Rostislav Klesla, Derek Dorsett

Dallas Stars

James Neal	Brad Richards	Loui Eriksson
Brenden Morrow	Tom Wandell	Jamie Benn
Steve Ott	Mike Ribeiro	Fabian Brunnstrom
Toby Petersen	Mike Modano	Krys Barch

Nicklas Grossman	Stephane Robidas
Karlis Skrastins	Maxime Fortunus
Jeff Woywitka	Ivan Vishnevskiy

Marty Turco

Alex Auld

Matt Niskanen: Flirting With Disaster

Brandon Worley — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:58:51 -0000

More photos » by Ann Heisenfelt - AP

Browse more photos »

With the talented young rearguard Matt Niskanen floundering I got to thinking; Are we seeing the residue from a kid who skipped the step of playing at least a half a year in the minors?

Niskanen basically stepped right from college at Minn-Duluth to the NHL. Not many do that. Sure being paired with Zubov helped the transition but Niskanen didn't look out of place at the time. Now, at times, he does - and those times are becoming more frequent.

His confidence appears wilted and he seems neither fast enough nor strong enough to handle the NHL game right now. Nisky's plus/minus rating is a team worst -9. His best work has been done with the puck and Crawford has trotted him out on the powerplay a lot over the first two months. He has repaid him with 4 PP assists. Four.

-Daryl 'Razor' Reaugh, 'Taking Sips From A Firehose'

Matt Niskanen has had a rough time adjusting to life with Sergei Zubov. After playing just 13 games in the AHL after graduating from college, injuries on the Stars' roster thrust him into the starting lineup and he found himself playing next to a future Hall of Fame defenseman. He was second on the team in plus/minus with a plus-22, scored seven goals and was the breakout player of the year for the Stars. He and the rest of the Stars young defensemen, Mark Fistric and Nicklas Grossman, held together down the stretch when Zubov was out due to injury and played admirably in the playoffs that season. Yet the warning signs were starting to show.

In 2008, with Zubov struggling to return to the ice, Niskanen and his fellow defenseman fell flat on their faces. In the first month of the season Niskanen had just one assist and was a minus-7 as the Stars became a sieve on defense and in net, finding themselves in the basement of the conference standings just seven weeks into the season.

Niskanen would finish last season last among defensemen with a minus-11, yet set a career high with 29 assists and 35 points. There were some that played off the subpar season as a 'sophomore slump' and were encouraged by his offensive potential. He played well for the USA in the World Championships over the summer and with Marc Crawford and Charlie Huddy coming to the Stars to implement a new system, Niskanen looked to be on track to return to the form from 2007 that so many fans excited.

After perhaps the worst weekend of his career, some are wondering what happened to the defenseman that showed so much promise just a short time ago.

In his excellent article, Razor points out that the biggest issue for Niskanen is most likely the path he took to the NHL.

Nik Grossman: 2 years in AHL after a half season in Swedish pro league.

Mark Fistric: 150 games in AHL

Trevor Daley spent a year and a half in the AHL

Even the most senior veteran defensemen on this team, Robidas and Skrastins, spent a full season in the minors before becoming every day NHLers.

Matt Niskanen? He played just 13 games.

When injuries forced the Stars' hand and Niskanen was needed to step in at the start of the season, no one predicted that he would play 78 games that season in the NHL. Normally when a young player is struggling you send him back down to the AHL for a kick in the rear and a taste of what life is like while not playing under the bright lights of the NHL. Mark Fistric was demoted for a time last season and has returned to the Stars a much more complete and mature player; he's not flashy but you still rarely see Fistric being beat on a regular basis.

Which brings us to Niskanen. The past two games there have been four goals that could almost single handily be blamed on him and he has looked shell-shocked and lost every time he's on the ice. His confidence is shot and he is nowhere near the level of a player who can carry a defensive pairing; he's too much of a liability in his own zone and is not enough of a scoring threat on offense.

What is frustrating is that Niskanen has all of the potential you would want in a defenseman: great skating ability, good size, good speed and a booming shot from the point. What Niskanen is in desperate need of is some extended time in the AHL, where he can just focus on his skills and his approach to the game without the distractions of having to play in top form 100% of the time for an NHL team fighting for positioning in the standings. There's a reason that Ivan Vishnevskiy is still down in Austin and he is well on his way into developing into a top defenseman for the Stars in the near future.

And there lies the crucial missing link for Matt Niskanen: development. Players coming to the NHL are expected to already be as polished as possible; that's what the AHL and ECHL are there for. Jamie Benn is an exception to the rule and he is having some growing pains as well that can be covered up while playing on the wing. As a defenseman, Niskanen's mistakes are all there for the world to see and there's no hiding his shortcomings.

Since there is no doubt that Niskanen possesses all of the physical tools you could possibly want in a defenseman, it all comes down to intelligence, training and confidence.

While he is still playing under his original contract, Niskanen has now played in enough games to necessitate the Stars place him on waivers in order to assign him to the AHL. That option no longer exists for the Stars unless Niskanen gets hurt and can be assigned to a 'conditioning stint' down in Austin.

So what's the cure? Should Marc Crawford bench Niskanen for a few games in favor of Jeff Woywitka to give him some time to get his head in the right place. Will that happen tonight, or will Crawford give Niskanen a few more games to prove that this past weekend is all a fluke? Currently, Niskanen possesses a team-worst minus-11 and is last among all defensemen with an overall plus/minus per 60 minutes (-1.22 per game). He has just seven assists and has not been the weapon on the power play that this team has needed him to be.

Even so, can the Stars afford to sit Niskanen? Are they better off with Woywitka playing more minutes while Niskanen sits? More importantly, will benching Niskanen shatter whatever amount of confidence he has left?

Is Matt Niskanen able to be saved? Without time in the AHL was Niskenen's career put on the wrong track from the start?

Whatever the answers to these questions might be, there's no doubt that the Stars can afford many more blatant mistakes like Niskanen made this past weekend.

Dallas Stars 2010 Olympic Hockey Preview

Art_M — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 16:00:14 -0000

More photos » by Ross D. Franklin - AP

It's very possible that come February these two could be on opposing teams and it's also very possible that it's Modano - not Morrow - wearing a C for his team.

Browse more photos »

The Olympic games in Vancouver are 75 days away but most national teams for the much anticipated hockey tournament will be announcing their rosters around the January 1st mark and with that in mind, all the various hockey blogs of SBNation are taking a look at their own rosters and previewing who should be making plans for a trip to Vancouver to those who maybe can expect a couple of weeks off in February.

Today is our turn as we take a look at the Dallas Stars lineup.

Pack Your Bags!

Loui Eriksson (Sweden) - It could be in a third or even in a second line role depending on how the likes of Kristian Huselius and Daniel Sedin play the next month or so, but make no mistake that Loui - who is on pace for another 30 goal season this year - will be joining the defending gold medalists from Turin, Italy.

Karlis Skrastins (Latvia) - This is kind of a no-brainier considering how thin Latvia is in all positions. Still, as we've seen so far this season Karlis is a very steady defenseman who also doubles as a puck magnet when opposing players take shots. He's going to be on the team's top pairing, so unfortunately for Stars fans, we can expect him to have a few more bruises on his body after Vancouver.

We look at more players after the jump...

Nearly A Lock...

Brenden Morrow (Canada) - Before his knee injury last season and coming off his magnificent playoff run on 08, pretty much every hockey expert had Morrow as a lock to make Team Canada's checking line. Now coming off that injury not everyone is so sure and his recent goal-less drought has also had some people question his status. Still, Morrow is a prototypical Canadian player... hard nosed, gritty and still skilled enough to score goals. Unless he goes through another long goal-less stretch, he should be wearing a red maple leaf come Olympic time.

A Safe Bet...

Mike Modano (USA) - Sure the injury and his age are working against him, but since he's made his return he's played like a man on a mission with three goals and four assists in 11 games. It also helps that both US GM Brian Burke and head coach Ron Wilson are fans of Mike and have both suggested his leadership would be a welcome addition to the team. With that in mind, don't be shocked if Mike not only makes the team, but is the one wearing the captain's C when they hit the ice.

Jere Lehtinen (Finland) - It was hard to say if Jere should have been here or in the "Work To Do" section we'll feature in a moment... Jere not being a part of Team Finland almost seems crazy, but he's been injury prone the last couple of seasons and since his return this season he hasn't put up any numbers of note and is actually a -2 as I write this. Still, Finland on wing isn't as deep as other teams and his leadership and dedication to Finnish hockey should land him a roster spot.

In A Battle...

Stephane Robidas (Canada) - If he was from any other country (save for Sweden as we'll talk about in a moment...) he'd probably be a lock, but sadly he's from Canada where the country could ice three teams for the tournament and all three would contend for gold. His offensive numbers both five on five and on the powerplay and his hard nosed play (pardon the pun) have justified Hockey Canada's choice to have him as part of the September orientation camp, but with so much big name talent in front of him, Robi will have to play near flawless hockey from here until the end of the year to get a shot at making the team.

Nicklas Grossman (Sweden) - Grossman faces the same problem Robidas does, Sweden is pretty deep on defense and while Grossman has had a solid year defensively, the lack of any kind of offensive numbers may hurt his chances overall. If Sweden though is interested in having a defensive corps of large stay-at-home defenders that can hit , Grossman may just get the call.

You Have Work To Do!

Marty Turco (Canada) - The Carolina Hurricanes Cam Ward may have been a lock for Team Canada before his injury and Steve Mason of the Blue Jackets also had some early buzz going for him, but he's struggled so far this year. Turco has been a loyal Team Canada soldier for years and his puck playing ability does make Team Canada management salivate at the idea of constant breakout passes. Problem is Martin Brodeur is a near lock as starter and unless they really stumble, Roberto Luongo and Marc-Andre Fleury are pretty much penned in as his backups, so Turco needs to continue to improve and stay as far away from games like he just had against Phoenix last night.

Moving On Up!

Brad Richards (Canada) - Five years ago coming off a Conn Smythe Trophy winning playoff, Richards would have been a lock to make any kind of Team Canada, but as you may be well aware his stock has dropped considerably. This season though his play making ability has caught the eye of more than a few Canadians and while Canada is very, very deep at center, if Brad keeps up his MVP like play for the Stars, he will make it very hard for Team Canada officials to look away.

James Neal (Canada) - If Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dustin Penner of the Edmonton Oilers are causing many Canadians to take a second look, then you can throw James Neal into that group as well as his offensive numbers are comparable to the two not to mention Neal brings a physical side that Stamkos lacks and speed that Penner lacks. Maybe in four years if NHLers are part of the 2014 games, The Real Deal is a lock for Team Canada, but for now it's a long shot.

Tom Wandell (Sweden) - Speaking of long shots, that brings us to Tommy who is a very long shot to make Tre Kronor. Still, Wandell has shown a slight nose for the net and more importantly has shown he can play a solid two-way game and has been on the ice many times for Marc Crawford in critical situations at the end of the game where the Stars lead by one and need a defensive stop. Sweden has too much depth at forward for Wandell to crack the lineup, but he's still managed to catch some eyes this season.

Headed On Down...

Matt Niskanen (USA) - Last year coming off a solid second season, Matt was part of the US National team for the 2009 World Championships and was pretty good for them in the nine games he played with the team and many thought he had a solid chance at making the Olympics. Since then though he wasn't invited to the US orientation camp and this season has been a rough one for the young Nisky. Team USA will probably decide to pass on a player who is starting to look more and more like a defensive liability this year.

Gameday Preview: Dallas Stars @ Phoenix Coyotes (8:05p EST)

Brandon Worley — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 13:38:24 -0000

Next Game

Dallas Stars (11-6-7, 7th in West)
@ Phoenix Coyotes (13-11-1, 9th in West)

Friday, Nov 27, 2009, 8:05 PM CST
Jobing.com Arena

TV: FSSW+
Radio: KTCK 1310 The Ticket

Opponent's Blog: Five For Howling

Complete Coverage >

Hopefully everyone had a safe and fun holiday yesterday, but now it's back to business. The Dallas Stars will attempt to fight off their tryptophan coma tonight as they take on the Phoenix Coyotes tonight in Glendale, Arizona.

The Stars are coming off of a four-game homestand, their first of the season, and went 2-1-1 in those games. Dallas was finally able to get into a pseudo-rhythm on home ice after an up and down start to the season. While you'd certainly hope for a better finish than the shootout loss to the Blues, at least you can be thankful the Stars did enough to pull a point out of the game. Every single game is incredibly important this early in the season, as just eight points separate 2nd in the West and 11th. The Stars gained a point on Wednesday, but have dropped two spots to 7th.

More importantly, the Stars have a chance to gain some ground in the race for the division title. While it seemed early on that San Jose will just run away with the Pacific, a win tonight will put the Stars five points back with a game in hand; it's still extremely early to be focusing on a division win but with such a surprisingly competitive division every point becomes important.

But that's big picture. Right now the Stars just need to focus on each game, one at a time. We've seen the team start to form some consistency over the past week and despite the loss two nights ago, you still had to be encouraged by the energy the Stars showed throughout (and yes, that is an important factor).

After the jump, a look at the Coyotes since we last saw them and some updates on the Dallas Stars; it's a Super Preview!!

The Dallas Stars:

After being recalled for just one game in case Karlis Skrastins couldn't play against the Blues, defenseman Maxime Fortunus was sent back to the Texas Stars. If the Stars have any more injury issues on defense, I'm hoping that Fortunus gets another chance to make his NHL debut. He is an extremely intelligent and solid defenseman and is a key part of the reason that Texas has done so well this season. He's an AHL veteran and was great in last season's playoffs and I think that if given a shot he could make a good impression in the NHL.

Fabian Brunnstrom made his debut Wednesday with Texas in his first game since his shoulder injury, going pointless and minus-1 in the 2-1 Stars shootout victory over Milwaukee (Warren Peters and Ivan Vishnevskiy scored in the shootout for the win). With him down in Austin and Brian Sutherby still on injured reserve (although he could come off today, I believe), expect to see the same lines as Wednesday night:

Neal - Richards - Eriksson
Ott - Ribeiro - Lehtinen
Morrow - Modano - Benn
Petersen - Wandell - Barch

We'll find out later today if Nicklas Grossman can play. If not, we'll get another great dose of Jeff Woywitka.

After the loss to the Blues, Marc Crawford mentioned that the lack of execution and defensive breakdowns was attributed to fatigue after playing four games in six nights. Hopefully they got some rest over the short holiday because the travel to Phoenix tonight, go back home to take on Tampa Bay tomorrow night and then travel once more to Detroit on Monday. Expect this for the rest of the season; fatigue is going to be an issue for every team and it's an excuse I'm tired of hearing.

No word as of yet as to who the starter will be tonight, although I would go with a rested Alex Auld against the Coyotes and play Turco tomorrow night against Tampa Bay. Marc Crawford is wily, however, and there's telling what their 'plan' may be for this weekend. His last hunch worked out however when he started Auld against the Red Wings, so I'll defer to him.

Here are some news and notes on the Stars from the last few days:

Andrew's Dallas Stars Page has a look at some special teams stats:

Statistically speaking, you can look at the Dallas Stars' special teams in more than one way. In the standard statistical view the power play is middle of the pack and the penalty kill is the in the bottom of third of the league. In another way of looking at the numbers, the power play is top ten and the penalty kill is middle of the pack.

Take the power play, for example. Through Wednesday's games it ranked 17th in the league at 17.4 percent in the usual way of looking at power play performance stats. Look at it a different way - power play goals per game - and it ranked seventh in the league at 0.92 per game.

The penalty kill ranked 23rd in the league at 77.9 percent through Wednesday, but if you look at power play goals allowed per game it was at 16th in the league at 0.79 per game.

The Dallas Morning News has a good story on Brad Richards, who is 4th in the NHL in overall scoring.

There are several reasons for the surge. Richards has found chemistry with young wingers James Neal and Loui Eriksson; he has taken over as the quarterback of the power play (a role Sergei Zubov held for better than a decade); and he simply is better than he has been in recent seasons.

Richards said he was disappointed with last season's injury-plagued campaign, and the Stars' inability to make the playoffs. He went to his summer home in Tampa, Fla. and worked out relentlessly, concentrating on leg work and skating, but also on finding the hunger in his game again.

"It obviously helped physically, but I think it helped mentally, too," he said.

Andrew's also has the audio from Brendan Morrow's appearance on BaD radio from Wednesday. What I found interesting was what he had to say about his fight with Tim Gleason.

The Phoenix Coyotes:

Since beating the Stars at home on November 14, the Coyotes have gone 2-3-1 and slid further down in the standings, including two straight losses on the road against Calgary and Edmonton. Five For Howling has an excellent preview up for the game, so I'm going to defer to them for the Coyotes point of view:

Attack the Goalie
Whether we get a big helping of Thanksgiving Turco or more of the same Auld Lang Syne, we need to make sure that the Stars' netminder earns his pay. Marty Turco in particular has proven to be less than bulletproof at Jobing.com Arena - he likes to play Superman, but the Coyotes in general and Shane Doan in particular seem to know where to find Kryptonite. The key against Turco is to have enough patience with the puck until he overcommits. Against Auld, who plays a less "flamboyant" style, the Coyotes simply have to dodge the "show up your old team" ethic that nipped them against Calgary. Tall Bald Auld is less aggressive in the crease than Turco, but he's also more porous - and as long as the refs and video review guys are paying attention the Coyotes can slip a few past him.

Clog the Slot and Crease
By now, we've all realized that there aren't any spectacularly-gifted offensive talents on the Coyotes' squad. And if we hadn't on Wednesday, TSN did a great job of reminding us about it. Over. And over. And over again. So since we apparently lack the creativity and precision it takes to snipe goals in from afar on a consistent basis, it would behoove the Desert Dogs to increase the close-in pressure between the circles and in front of the net. The Coyotes signed Taylor Pyatt for his big body and ability to create chances at the crease - his slow skating speed has looked out of place among the other faster forwards in the lineup when the team has dumped-and-chased. Parking guys like Pyatt, Paul Bissonnette, and Martin Hanzal in front of the goalie might smack of hunting for garbage goals... but let's be honest, right now any goal is a good goal for the offensively-challenged Coyotes.

There is much, much more so be sure to check it out.

Key Injuries:

Dallas: D Nicklas Grossman (groin) is questionable. C Brian Sutherby (groin) and RW Fabian Brunnstrom (shoulder) are out.

Phoenix: D Kurt Sauer (upper body) is out.

Gameday Preview: St. Louis Blues @ Dallas Stars (7:05p)

Brandon Worley — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:10:34 -0000

Next Game

St. Louis Blues (8-9-4. 13th in West)
@ Dallas Stars (11-6-6, 5th in West)

Wednesday, Nov 25, 2009, 7:05 PM CST
American Airlines Center

TV: VERSUS
Radio: KTCK 1310 The Ticket

Opponent's Blog: St. Louis Game Time

Complete Coverage >

Note:The last time these two teams met there was some emotional debating between DBD readers and those from St. Louis Game Time, mostly stemming from the Steve Ott hit and suspension. Expect there to be a high level of vitriol directed towards Ott and the Stars tonight as well. If you are inclined to travel over to SLGT, be warned that you are on their territory and they play by a different set of rules; represent DBD with intelligence and respect, no matter what you might read on their site. Remember, that is their home and they are free to present whatever feelings they desire. The same goes for visiting Blues fans; anyone is welcome here at Defending Big D, but you must follow OUR community guidelines. I will not tolerate anything less. End Note.

Don't look now, but the Dallas Stars are on a bit of a roll. They are 4-2-0 in their last six and have now beaten Detroit, San Jose and New Jersey are in the past few weeks. There is a lot to like about this team and it's been refreshing to finally see the Stars begin to realize the potential we knew they had going into the season. Marty Turco is top ten in the NHL in both goals-against average (2.26) and save percentage (.919), and had been perhaps the only reason the Stars have been able to survive their inconsistent performances of the past month.

It's way too early in the season for any substantial predictions, but Brad Richards has to be mentioned as a player deserving MVP consideration. He is sixth in the NHL in overall scoring (28 points) and fourth in assists (21), and is on pace to get nearly 100 points this season. At one point early in the year Brad, Brandon, Art and I had a mini debate planned about the most important and indispensable players on the Stars. At this point, there's no question that Brad Richards is integral to this team's success. He has become the player we traded for in 2008, is an unquestioned leader on this team and is downright spectacular on a nightly basis. He's not flashy but as Brad says, "He has a part in nearly every single Dallas Stars goal." If this continues, Richards could have one of the most remarkable seasons in Dallas Stars history.

Also, please remember that the game tonight is on VERSUS. Razor will be on the television broadcast, while friend of Defending Big D Brent Severyn will join Ralph on the radio broadcast on The Ticket.

After the jump, a look at the visiting Blues and we try to determine just what the lines will look like now that James Neal has returned.

The Dallas Stars:

There was a lot of questioning how the Stars would respond offensively with James Neal out of the lineup, but his suspension may have been a blessing in disguise. The absence of Neal forced Marc Crawford to shake the lines up a bit and as it turned out the Stars have found perhaps their most balanced lineup of the season. The question now becomes how will the lines shake out now that Neal has returned and since so many players were off for yesterday's practice, we don't have much of a idea at this point. Expect a better picture after today's skate.

In the meantime, here are my guesses:

Neal - Richards - Eriksson
Ott - Ribeiro - Lehtinen
Morrow - Modano - Benn
Barch - Wandell - Petersen

Also, remember that the Stars have done a bit of shuffling on the roster to make room for injuries to Nicklas Grossman and Karlis Skrastins:

Fabian Brunnstrom to AHL (conditioning)
Warren Peters to AHL
Brian Sutherby to IR
Maxime Fortunus recalled to NHL

If Skrastins is unable to play tonight then Fortunus will be a solid fill in for one night, although the Stars will certainly miss his shot-blocking and penalty killing prowess. Skrastins hasn't been flashy, but if he's out for any length of time Stars fans will certainly realize just how important he's been to this Dallas Stars team.

Andrew's Stars Page has some quotes from Neal on his return:

"You can't slow up your game because you're worried about stuff like that. You've got to keep playing," said Neal. "I've done it my whole life. Never in my life have I got suspended from a game for a hit like that. I didn't mean to hit him from behind."

"There was no malicious intent there. He was just a little reckless. He's served his time and you move on," said Crawford. "He's got to continue to play hard and he will."

The St. Louis Blues:

The Blues find themselves in similar position as last season; struggling early and low in the standings. They pulled out a miracle run in the second half of the season to get into the playoffs and will be looking to do so again. So far this season they've struggled mightily to score and have the worst power play in the NHL.

Hildymac from SLGT has these thoughts:

Frankly, I really need to figure out a way to pick a topic that I can do point-counterpoint on better, because this one I'm totally biased in one way, and that is 110% against the dump and chase. That is the system of desperation. You use that system, and the opposing team smells blood in the water, regardless of if they're the Sharks or not. You get the puck, you're not sure what to do, so you dump it all the way down the ice, hoping you get there before the other team. Yeah, that's useful... if you're on a LINE CHANGE. If your team isn't built for speed, and aside from Perron and Kariya, we're really not, you're not going to get there first. Sorry. What this system tells the other team is that you don't have the patience to let players get into position, or you don't have any idea what to do once they do manage to get something established. This is the system of bottom-feeding teams who have coaches that are just trying to get guys to do something, anything, resembling playing hockey. This is not us. Allow me to repeat that for anyone who thinks that this works for teams: no.

Obviously, keep an eye on how the Blues respond to Steve Ott. He was suspended for his hit on Colaiacovo, but I'm sure the team is still pissed for his run at B.J. Crombeen as well. If the Stars go up by a few, this could turn into an ugly game. I'm hopeful it won't and generally, when you expect a bunch of fireworks from either side, you end up with a team and normal game.

Key Injuries:

Dallas: D Karlis Skrastins (upper body) and D Nicklas Grossman (groin) are questionable. C Brian Sutherby (groin) and RW Fabian Brunnstrom (shoulder) are out.

St. Louis: LW D.J. King (hand) is out.

Dallas Stars Roster Changes; Fortunus Called up, Brunnstrom & Peters to AHL

Brandon Worley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 22:41:58 -0000

More photos » by Tom Gannam - AP

Maxime Fortunus (right) has been recalled from the AHL.

Browse more photos »

The Dallas Stars have made a series of roster moves today as they work to adjust to some injuries on defense, as well as try to get some returning players healthy and get some playing time in the process.

To start with: Nicklas Grossman did not play yesterday with a ~~"lower body injury"~~ groin injury and is listed as day-to-day, although it's looking like he will not be available tomorrow night against the Blues. Additionally, Karlis Skrastins was hurt last night blocking a puck and while it seems that he should be ready to go, the Stars need to be ready in case of they are a defenseman short at game time.

So Maxime Fortunus has been recalled from the Texas Stars. Fortunas is an AHL veteran who plays a very intelligent game and has a big shot. I actually wrote up a scouting report on Fortunus last season, which can be found here.

To make room for Fortunas, Warren Peters was assigned back to the Texas Stars.

Fabian Brunnstrom has been activated off IR, but the Dallas Stars are sending him to the AHL for a 'conditioning assignment'. To me, this is a great way to get Brunnstrom some confidence back as he comes off of injury. Since Brunnstrom has to stay on the NHL roster to go down to the AHL for a rehab stint, Brian Sutherby has been placed on Injured Reserve to make room.

With James Neal returning from suspension and Fortunus up with the NHL team, the Stars now have 12 healthy forwards and six healthy defensemen, with the possibility that Skrastins plays tomorrow night and Fortunus is a healthy scratch.

Hope that wasn't as confusing to you as it was for me to write. It all makes sense, however.

Press release after the jump:

Frisco, Tex. - The Dallas Stars announced today that the club has placed center Brian Sutherby on injured reserve, retroactive to November 12. Stars left wing Fabian Brunnstrom has been activated from injured reserve and has been sent to the Texas Stars, Dallas' primary affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL), for a conditioning assignment. Dallas center Warren Peters has been assigned to Texas Stars. Defenseman Maxime Fortunus has been recalled on emergency conditions from the Texas Stars.

Sutherby, 27, has missed the last five games with a groin injury he suffered Nov. 12 at San Jose. He has skated in 17 games for the Stars this season, collecting five points (4g, 1a) and a +6 rating. The Edmonton, Alberta, native has appeared in 380 career NHL games, scoring 38 goals and 44 assists. Sutherby was acquired by Dallas last season in a trade with the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 14, 2008.

Brunnstrom, 24, had been placed on injured reserve retroactive to Nov. 7, when he suffered a shoulder injury. He has tallied seven points (1g, 6a) in 17 games so far in 2009-10. The 6-2, 212-pound left wing has skated in 72 career NHL games, registering 18 goals and 18 assists. Brunnstrom played in the Swedish Elite League in 2007-08 for Farjestads BK Karlstad, collecting 37 points (9g, 28a) in 54 games. He was signed a free agent by the Stars on May 8, 2008.

Peters, 27, was recalled Nov. 19 from the Texas Stars. He played in two games for Dallas and scored his second career NHL goal against New Jersey on Saturday, Nov. 21. He has played in 16 games for the Texas Stars this season, notching seven goals and four assists for 11 points. The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native has appeared in 365 career AHL games, collecting 65 goals and 53 assists for 118 points. Peters was signed as a free agent by Dallas on July 6, 2009.

Fortunus, 26, has played in 22 games this season for the Texas Stars recording three goals and two assists and 10 PIM. He collected seven goals and 12 assists in 58 games last season with Manitoba of the AHL. The La Prairie, Quebec native has appeared in 318 career AHL games, registering 80 points (23g, 57a). Fortunus was signed as a free agent by Dallas on July 3, 2008.

The Dallas Stars will host the St. Louis Blues Wednesday at American Airlines Center (7:00 pm, TV: Versus, Radio: Sports Radio 1310 The Ticket). Fans are encouraged to be in their seats by 6:50 pm to see the entire ceremony honoring Brett Hull and his recent induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Stargazing: Turco, Stars Shut Out Hurricanes, 2-0

Brad G — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:26:37 -0000

More photos » by Mike Fuentes - AP

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Stargazing is a daily assortment of Dallas Stars and Texas Stars news, and whatever other random ramblings are bouncing around inside our heads.

Like Razor often says, special teams and goaltending win you hockey games, and the Stars had both working pretty well last night as they defeated the Carolina Hurricanes on home ice 2-0.

It had been nearly four weeks since the Stars won consecutive games. They've now won four of their last six and sit in fifth place in the Western Conference. Looking at the standings this early can still cause one temporary dizziness. The seedings change dramatically by the hour, it seems. The Stars went from ninth, to fourth, to fifth very quickly last night. The Red Wings, Ducks and Canucks are on the wrong side of the line it seems, and the Nashville Predators have won six games in a row? Like I said, the standings will wait.

One thing you can see quite plainly is the improvement in the Stars health, and play. Last year on November 24th, Dallas had earned 16 points and sat 6-10-4 with a points percentage of .400%. This year, their 11-6-6 record is good for 28 points and a .609 points percentage. They've earned at least a point in 17 of their 23 games. I'm not quite ready to claim they'll earn the 100 points that projects to, but there are some good signs. They'll have to fix the offense if they're to keep improving.

Marty Turco's shutout aside, the power play, for me, was the star last night. Richard Durrett explains:

It's easy to look at power play percentages and talk about whether a team is good or bad on the man-advantage. But when goals are scored on the power play matter too.

The Stars had great timing on Monday. They scored on their second power play, six minutes into the game. Steve Ott drew a cross check and the Stars got the goal when Jamie Benn put in a rebound. Dallas was playing better at that point and got the game's first goal.

"When you score those goals is important," Richards said. "You want to have good power plays, but you have to score goals at the critical times. We did that."

The Stars have scored two power play goals in back-to-back games (for the first time) since Dec. 2007. Can they make it three in a row on Wednesday against St. Louis?

This is exactly what this team was missing in some of these tougher losses. The Phoenix game comes to mind. A timely power play goal would have tied that game late, but they couldn't connect. They're connecting now, and it's sustaining them in a bit of an offensive drought.

Follow the jump for more quotes and reaction to last night's game...

Speaking of that drought, people like Mike Heika have not forgotten, in spite of the two game winning streak:

The Stars have sanded and stained a lot of the lumber in their lineup, but they still could use some finish.

There's no arguing this team has plenty of skill. It's probably the most natural resource in the organization. But darned if the Stars can put the puck in the net at times.

Dallas played the kind of game against Carolina on Monday it wants to play every night, controlling the puck, creating scoring chances around the net and drawing penalties.

But against a team with the worst save percentage in the NHL, the Stars found the back of the net only twice.

...The depth is there. The talent is there. But this team has to take the final step if it wants to start stringing a lot of wins together.

Dallas has scored two goals or fewer in eight of their last ten games. No bueno.

Check at our friends over at Canes Country for their post game coverage:

The Carolina Hurricanes had another disappointing game on the road Monday night and lost to the Dallas Stars, 2-0. The Canes remain the only team in the NHL that has not won a single game on the road. The team is once again tied with Toronto for last place in the league.

The visitors came out flat in the first period and were dominated at times by the home team. They were out-chanced 8-1, out-shot 11-8, and took three minor penalties in that opening period. More importantly, it seemed like Dallas kept the puck in the Carolina zone most of the time. The score was 1-0 when the 20 minutes was over, but it could have been much worse.

Manny Legace deserves kudos for fine play and was given third star of the game.

The only one Marty Turco let by him last night was deemed illegal:[Raleigh News and Observer]

The Hurricanes thought they had tied it at 1 at 6:37 of the second period when the puck went over the goal line on an attempt by Ray Whitney. But after a video review, the goal was waved off when officials ruled that Whitney had kicked the puck onto his stick.

"I didn't feel it hit [his stick], no," Whitney said. "I took a swipe at it. Did I hit it, I don't know. That was a big moment in the game. It would have been a huge momentum swing for us; a huge boost for us. Goals are tough to come by in this league the way it is."

That's kind of a tough call, but unlike the Detroit non-goal, they probably got this one right. As much as we'd like to see the Stars win without these kinds of reviews involved, we'll take them however we can get them.

Brenden Morrow was a man on a mission Monday night:[Andrew's Stars Page]

I know on a night when the goalie gets a shutout and makes some big saves at key times he’s the story of the game, but I really thought the man for the Stars tonight was Brenden Morrow. He gets in a fight 25 seconds into the game and that just seemed to pull everybody else along into the game. Even saw Brad Richards engaging in a few shoving matches out there. Morrow was parked in front of the net on both Dallas goals, assisting on one and coming close to scoring on the other. He had seven hits and was just a force out there tonight. That was leadership. He was outstanding.

He and Steve Ott both played with an almost dangerous edge to their games last night. I grew nervous instantly with that fight to start the first period that were going to see another circus like the Columbus game, but things settled down just enough, or as much as Morrow and Ott would let them. I like that side of the Stars game, but worry that it will continue to cost them suspension-wise if they get over-zealous.

To my eyes, Jeff Woywitka had a fairly shaky outing replacing the injured Nick Grossman:[ESPN]

DALLAS -- Dallas Stars defenseman Nicklas Grossman pulled his groin during Monday's morning skate, Stars coach Marc Crawford said. Grossman tried to skate during warm-ups, but did not feel up to playing and was scratched in favor of Jeff Woywitka.

Grossman is listed as day-to-day and is not expected to practice Tuesday. If he can't play Wednesday against St. Louis, Woywitka would once again get the start.

Grossman, 24, has two points and is a plus-7 this season. He usually plays with Stephane Robidas on the top pair. Woywitka played with Robidas for most of Monday's 2-0 win over Carolina.

Marc Crawford knows the power play shouldn't get all of the glory for last night...

"The big turning point in the game for us, the big minute in the game, was the 5-on-3 kill," Crawford said. "Marty made a couple of really good saves there. When you’re getting those saves, you’re killing penalties, you’re scoring on the power play and not taking a lot of penalties, you’re going to get rewarded for your efforts. That was a pretty complete game for us tonight."

Marty Turco:

"We played well enough to win and I thought our penalty kill played great and ended up being the difference," said Turco, who registered his second shutout of the season and 38th of his career. "Then you just look at our PP, which has a pretty simple mentality but an effective one. There was a lot of talk of us not winning two in a row and we came out with an effort that deserves a small streak. I thought everyone played really well."

It was great to hear that crowd surge with the 5-on-3 kill. It had been a pretty mediocre Monday feeling in the AAC until that. Stars fans appreciate a good PK.

Miscellaneous:

How is Brad Richards involved in nearly EVERYTHING that happens for the Stars offensively? His health is of paramount importance. More so than anyone else on the team.
Karlis Skrastins, after having stayed out of the box for an impressive 21 games, took a penalty in his second straight contest.
The Stars attendance numbers on this current home stand have been (out of a possible 18,532): 16,155...17,514...16,243. That's 89.7%... Attendance is continuing to fall.
Wednesday's game is on Versus. Friday's game is on FSSW+. Make your viewing plans accordingly.

Turco's Stonewalling of Sharks Leads to Stars' Rally ; Shootout Win

Brandon Bibb — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:58:17 -0000

More photos » by Ben Margot - AP

about 1 month ago: San Jose Sharks' Dany Heatley, left, races to the puck in front of Dallas Stars goalie Marty Turco (35) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009, in San Jose, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

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It's late, so of course this recap is going to be brief.

But the number 1 star of the night was clearly Marty Turco. He kept the Stars in it having only allowed two second period goals from Dany Heatley and Ryan Clowe. He shined during the third period, particularly with the game on the line after a late Mike Modano slashing penalty put the Stars a man down.

But he saved his best stop of the game for the second round of the shootout. Dan Boyle executed a series of splendid dekes to get Turco out of position. Or so Boyle thought. When he went to backhand the puck and tuck it inside the near post and Turco, the Stars' netminder flopped onto his back and with a last minute desperation move, kept the puck out with his glove hand.

And after Ryan Vesce had made it five consecutive shooters from both teams to not dent the twine, Stephane Robidas finally notched the first shootout win of the season for the Stars with an absolutely sick snapshot over Evgeni Nabokov's left shoulder into the top corner of the net.

Other quick thoughts:

Once again, why doesn't the league use replay to correct mistakes on high sticking penalties? In the second period, they whistled Steve Ott off even though replays never conclusively showed he high sticked. Then in the third, Joe Pavelski was victimized when officials called him for high sticking James Neal, even though it was obvious that the Real Deal was the victim of some friendly fire from the stick blade of Nicklas Grossman.

The Sharks were able to take advantage of that phony call on Ott. But fortunately for the refs, the Stars weren't able to do anything with that late power play off the flat out bogus call on Joe Pavelski.
"Crankshaft" appears to be a very appropriate nickname for San Jose's Douglas Murray.
No doubt James Neal had a very strong game tonight for the Stars. And when he tries to take games by the bull horns like he did tonight, the Stars will be successful more nights than not.

But dare I suggest that if he continues to get chances in the shootout that he find another move since the one he has, while effective at beating goaltenders, keeps ringing the post?
Speaking of Neal, I thought it was somewhat fitting that his goal canceled out the fluky goal that Ryan Clowe scored. And it continued to be fitting when Mike Modano's blast canceled out Dany Heatley's snipe from close range.
Sure, San Jose deserved that 2-0 lead by virtue of their domination of the middle frame. But the first period was evenly played and the Stars dominated much of the third period and deserved to have this contest tied at 2-2 going into OT.
About that ugly 1 for 34 against San Jose's penalty kill dating back to last season. Yeah, might want to get that one sorted out at some point during the season series, Stars.

Not like they weren't getting chances. But like Razor mentioned, when they did get chances on the man advantage, those chances fizzled into nothing without Nabokov having to do much to thwart them.

At the very least, I want the Sharks' best penalty killer to actually be the best penalty killer if the Stars are to not score on the man advantage. That rarely happened last year. Or tonight for that matter.
Remember that point I made to Sevy two weeks ago about how good a job fighting does to bring closure to issues on the ice? Exhibit A from tonight's game certainly has to be Krys Barch's fight with Brad Staubitz.The Sharks' tough guy came in a little too late for the Stars' liking on Tom Wandell.

Barch challenged him to a round of fisticuffs, they settled right then and there. And you didn't hear another word about that hit for the rest of the game.
There's a part of me that actually feels sorry for San Jose. Because no matter what they accomplish during the regular season this year, nobody in the hockey world outside of San Jose will give a damn until about the Sharks until they at least advance to the Western Conference Finals. And for some, that might not even be enough.

Dallas Stars Snake Bit by Flames in 3-2 Overtime Loss

Brandon Worley — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:04:57 -0000

More photos » by Donna McWilliam - AP

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The Stars did exactly what they wanted to do for 59 minutes. They were intense, they played with more energy at home than they have so far this season and displayed the offensive prowess we were promised when Marc Crawford was hired. Unfortunately, one bad play in the final minute led to yet another overtime loss for the Stars.

What everyone will undoubtedly be talking about is the phantom delay of game penalty called on Nicklas Grossman in overtime. The refs claimed that Grossman put the puck out of play from inside his own zone, when it was plainly clear we was still outside the blue line. The Flames won the game just seconds into the ensuing power play.

While that was certainly infuriating, it would have been unnecesary if the Stars had closed the game out. Overall however, it was a highly entertaining game with great goaltending, big hits and a ton of shots.

So, I had a full recap written but apparently when I hit 'publish' last night, it vanished into the ether. Here's a truncated look at the events of last night's game as well as video highlights.

Before anyone goes and blames the penalty call for the loss, this game was filled with missed opportunities by the Stars. Dallas outshot Calgary by a healthy margin, put pressure on the Flames for nearly the entire game but failed to take advantage of the chances they had early to put the game out of reach.

The Stars had multiple power play opportunities early, including a lengthy 5 on 3. While they were able to muster some good chances Curtis McElhinney made some great saves early to keep the Stars out of the net. Once that started to happen you could see Dallas start to try and get that perfect cross-ice pass to open up a clear shot; with the defensive corps that Calgary has, that proved to be nearly impossible.

From the very start you could see what the game plan for the Stars was: funnel the puck to the net and crash the crease. The Stars had multiple chances early with rebounds just out their reach, while the Flames defensemen did a great job as well preventing any decent shots off of rebounds. Yet the Stars stuck with their plan even when they were foiled early and went down 1-0 in the second period. They kept the pressure up and were eventually rewarded with some great plays and a 2-1 lead in the third period.

What was most frustrating, however, was to see the Stars all of a sudden sit back in the final five minutes and work to keep that one-goal lead. They took the pressure off and disappeared into a 'prevent defense'. The style that had dominated the Flames for most of the game (strong forecheck, pressure up the ice and great plays in transition) disappeared and Calgary took advantage.

This team can respond to a loss like this in a number of ways. Either they become frustrated and sullen from losing a game in which they played so well, or they learn from it and move on with a chip on their shoulder. They must realize that with their full roster on the ice they can become a special, special team while at the same time knowing they failed to put forth a full effort from start to finish.

While we have focused on most of the negatives, to be expected after a loss like this, there are still some good things to pull from the game:

The Stars rolled four complete lines out on the ice. Marc Crawford has been known for using three primary lines and seldom using his fourth; tonight the line of Wandell, Sutherby and Brunnstrom was just as dangerous as the top line.
Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro regained their mojo...to some extent. The return of Jere Lehtinen to their line seemed to rekindle a bit of the magic from a few years ago. Morrow was crashing the crease, playing hard on the boards and causing general chaos for most of the game.
James Neal continues to be a force to be reckoned with. There's talk growing that he might be invited to join the Canadien Olympic team, and it should happen if he continues this level of play.
Aside from leaning the wrong direction around a screen on the game-winning goal, Marty Turco looked sharp once again. His ability to negate a forecheck with his passes up ice and along the boards makes a world of difference for this defense.
This was as fast as I've seen the Stars play this season: they were making crisp passes, the transition game was clicking and they were establishing a strong forecheck. After so many lackluster games in front of the home crowd, it was great to see them finally put on a good show at the AAC. Unfortunately, it ended in a loss.
Good to see Brad Richards pissed off after the game. Not about the penalty, but about their overall effort. That's exactly what I wanted to hear: no excuses, just a focus on what the Stars failed to do right.
Finally...Jamie Benn needs to shoot more.

DBD's Three Stars of the game:

Curtis McElhinney, Calgary: Stopped 38 of 40 shots and kept the Flames in the game after a flurry of chances for the Stars in the first period.

Stephane Robidas/Karlis Skrastins, Dallas: Normally you don't give one spot to two players, but the two defensemen played out of their minds last night. Skastins had two points off of two great assists, and Robidas had five big hits and five blocked shots.

Jarome Iginla, Calgary: Game winning goal for Calgary and a great effort on the tying goal in the final minute of regulation.

Hockeymetrics: A Look at Alternative Plus/Minus Ratings

Brandon Bibb — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:59:25 -0000

I'd be remiss if I didn't give credit to Vic Ferrari, who posts the Corsi and Fenwick numbers at his site, timeonice.com

From a hockey metrician's point of view, traditional plus/minus is probably THE one stat that will elicit a collective facepalm from the entire hockey metrics community.

And for good reason.

Just look at the Stars penalty kill as a prime example of how useless a stat it's been. The struggles of that unit have been well documented. Yet, if you look at the individual stats, you'll see that Nicklas Grossman leads the club with a +11 rating while Robidas has a +7.

And it's all because those problems on the penalty kill have absolutely no effect on plus/minus. Consequently, if you're a vital part of the overall success on a power play unit, you don't get any credit.

So it's not surprising to see how traditional plus/minus has provided the impetus for other plus/minus ratings. This week, we'll take a look at three such ratings systems and discuss the pros and cons.

Corsi Ratings: Developed by Buffalo Sabres goaltender coach, Jim Corsi.

Japers' Rink has an excellent introduction to Corsi Ratings from last season.

It measures all shots taken in even strength situations, excluding empty net situations, that are either goals, shots on goal, blocked, or missed the net. As you might guess, you get a plus rating if your on the ice when your team scores an even strength goal, puts a shot on net, block a shot, or your opponent misses the net. Consequently, you get a minus if your team surrenders an even strength goal, puts a shot on net, blocks a shot, or if a shot from your team misses the net.

The pros of such a system are that they measure quite a bit more than traditional plus/minus. More to the point, it tries to measure how well your team can apply pressure to the opposition and how well it handles pressure.

Unfortunately, Corsi numbers don't measure power play, short handed, and empty net situations. I understand why as it's almost impossible to correctly weight those situations against regular even strength situations.

Fenwick Ratings: Developed by Matt Fenwick from the blog, Battle of Alberta.

His criteria is almost the same as Corsi's, except it takes blocked shots out of the equation.

Chris Apple and Marc Foster plus/minus: Developed by one of my friends and one of his data analytical friends almost a decade ago. They wrote a series of articles in 2001 that appeared in CNN/SI that you can check out here.

In their system, you get a plus rating for all goals scored by your team when you're on the ice, no matter if it's an even strength tally, short handed tally, or power play goal. Consequently, you get a minus if you're on the ice when your team gives up a goal.

The pro of this system, obviously, is that it takes into account ALL goals that are scored in the course of a game, regardless if it's even strength, on the power play, or shorthanded.

Of course, it does treat all goals the same and thus, doesn't weight even strength or shorthanded goals above power play goals. But to their credit, Marc and Chris also developed a separate weighted goals system that weights goals more that give a team the lead or tie a game than ones scored in garbage time. But that's for another discussion.

So now that you know how each metric is measured, let's look at the Stars best and worst players by each plus/minus rating system after the jump.

First, let's look at the Corsi ratings. You'll notice the secondary header row labeled DAL and OPP for Goals, Saved Shots, Missed Shots, and Blocked Shots. I labeled them the way I did so you'll see them from an offensive POV.

That is, where it says 48 saved shots for Dallas on Brad Richards' ledger, it means that the Stars fired 48 shots that got through on goal and were saved while Richards was on the ice. Consequently, the 41 under Opp on Saved Shots means the Stars gave up 41 shots on goal that were saved while Richards' was on the ice.

			Goals		Saved Shots		Missed Shots		Blocked Shots		Corsi +/-
			Dal	Opp	Dal	Opp	Opp	Dal	Opp	Dal	Corsi +/-
91	C	RICHARDS, BRAD	8	4	48	41	24	20	31	14	32
5	D	NISKANEN, MATT	1	4	48	39	27	19	30	17	27
44	D	WOYWITKA, JEFF	2	2	29	15	18	15	16	13	20
9	C	MODANO, MIKE	0	0	11	4	4	0	3	3	11
3	D	ROBIDAS, STEPHANE	12	7	66	69	29	41	38	20	8
17	C	PETERSEN, TOBY	2	2	41	38	20	17	14	15	5
58	L	WATHIER, FRANCIS	0	0	4	2	1	2	3	0	4
20	C	SUTHERBY, BRIAN	4	2	39	42	13	17	19	11	3
21	L	ERIKSSON, LOUI	7	4	57	50	16	32	32	24	2
29	C	OTT, STEVE	4	4	33	35	21	18	13	14	0
18	L	NEAL, JAMES	8	5	49	51	21	34	27	17	-2
26	R	LEHTINEN, JERE	0	1	12	8	2	7	8	8	-2
11	C	GAGNON, AARON	1	0	2	4	0	3	0	1	-5
15	C	LINDGREN, PERTTU	0	1	4	7	2	2	0	2	-6
10	L	MORROW, BRENDEN	9	5	51	64	26	39	38	24	-8
2	D	GROSSMAN, NICKLAS	14	6	64	72	25	48	35	21	-9
96	L	BRUNNSTROM, FABIAN	4	6	44	42	15	20	14	23	-14
23	C	WANDELL, TOM	5	3	44	51	23	32	21	22	-15
63	C	RIBEIRO, MIKE	9	7	51	71	26	38	37	29	-22
14	L	BENN, JAMIE	8	1	36	53	22	37	23	21	-23
13	R	BARCH, KRYSTOFER	1	4	25	41	14	25	15	13	-28
28	D	FISTRIC, MARK	4	5	27	44	7	21	13	15	-34
6	D	DALEY, TREVOR	7	7	68	90	32	48	42	43	-39
37	D	SKRASTINS, KARLIS	4	8	62	74	29	39	23	37	-40

No big surprise that Richards is leading here. His line has been the most dominant of all the Stars' lines this season. What sticks out to me, however, is Jeff Woywitka's high rating versus Trevor Daley's low rating.

The 90 shots on goal allowed this season when Daley's been on the ice in even strength situations far and away leads the team. Of course, he also leads the team, far and away, in ESTOI with 186:25. The second highest total in that department belongs to Nicklas Grossman with 160:49.

Also of interesting note is Jamie Benn's -23 rating, despite being on the ice for 8 Stars' goals versus 1 total from the Stars' opponents.

OK, let's take out blocked shots and see what we get with the Fenwick Ratings:

				Goals		Saved Shots		Missed Shots		Fenwick +/-
				Dal	Opp	Dal	Opp	Opp	Dal	Fenwick +/-
6	44	D	WOYWITKA, JEFF	2	2	29	15	18	15	17
	91	C	RICHARDS, BRAD	8	4	48	41	24	20	15
9	5	D	NISKANEN, MATT	1	4	48	39	27	19	14
1	9	C	MODANO, MIKE	0	0	11	4	4	0	11
9	17	C	PETERSEN, TOBY	2	2	41	38	20	17	6
6	29	C	OTT, STEVE	4	4	33	35	21	18	1
1	58	L	WATHIER, FRANCIS	0	0	4	2	1	2	1
2	26	R	LEHTINEN, JERE	0	1	12	8	2	7	-2
1	11	C	GAGNON, AARON	1	0	2	4	0	3	-4
1	15	C	LINDGREN, PERTTU	0	1	4	7	2	2	-4
9	20	C	SUTHERBY, BRIAN	4	2	39	42	13	17	-5
	96	L	BRUNNSTROM, FABIAN	4	6	44	42	15	20	-5
10	21	L	ERIKSSON, LOUI	7	4	57	50	16	32	-6
10	3	D	ROBIDAS, STEPHANE	12	7	66	69	29	41	-10
10	18	L	NEAL, JAMES	8	5	49	51	21	34	-12
10	23	C	WANDELL, TOM	5	3	44	51	23	32	-14
10	10	L	MORROW, BRENDEN	9	5	51	64	26	39	-22
10	2	D	GROSSMAN, NICKLAS	14	6	64	72	25	48	-23
10	14	L	BENN, JAMIE	8	1	36	53	22	37	-25
10	37	D	SKRASTINS, KARLIS	4	8	62	74	29	39	-26
10	13	R	BARCH, KRYSTOFER	1	4	25	41	14	25	-30
10	63	C	RIBEIRO, MIKE	9	7	51	71	26	38	-30
7	28	D	FISTRIC, MARK	4	5	27	44	7	21	-32
10	6	D	DALEY, TREVOR	7	7	68	90	32	48	-38

Woywitka shoots to the top of the charts for one. But what stood out to me is that with blocked shots in the equation, Stephane Robidas is a +8 in the Corsi Ratings. Take out blocked shots and he's a -10 player in Fenwick Ratings.

Now onto the Foster/Apple total plus/minus ratings:

			ESGF	PPGF	SHGF	TGF	ESGA	PPGA	SHGA	TGA	TES +/-	TPP +/-	TSH +/-	T +/-
18	L	NEAL, JAMES	9	3	1	13	5	0	0	5	4	3	1	8
10	L	MORROW, BRENDEN	9	4	0	13	6	1	0	7	3	3	0	6
63	C	RIBEIRO, MIKE	10	5	0	15	7	2	0	9	3	3	0	6
91	C	RICHARDS, BRAD	9	5	0	14	4	4	0	8	5	1	0	6
2	D	GROSSMAN, NICKLAS	15	0	1	16	5	6	0	11	10	-6	1	5
14	L	BENN, JAMIE	8	2	0	10	5	0	0	5	3	2	0	5
21	L	ERIKSSON, LOUI	9	4	0	13	6	2	0	8	3	2	0	5
3	D	ROBIDAS, STEPHANE	14	2	0	16	6	6	0	12	8	-4	0	4
20	C	SUTHERBY, BRIAN	3	1	0	4	0	1	0	1	3	0	0	3
9	C	MODANO, MIKE	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1
15	C	LINDGREN, PERTTU	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
17	C	PETERSEN, TOBY	3	0	1	4	2	2	0	4	1	-2	1	0
28	D	FISTRIC, MARK	2	0	0	2	2	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
58	L	WATHIER, FRANCIS	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
6	D	DALEY, TREVOR	8	2	1	11	9	3	0	12	-1	-1	1	-1
11	C	GAGNON, AARON	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	-1	0	-1
13	R	BARCH, KRYSTOFER	1	0	0	1	2	0	0	2	-1	0	0	-1
26	R	LEHTINEN, JERE	1	0	0	1	1	1	0	2	0	-1	0	-1
29	C	OTT, STEVE	3	2	0	5	4	2	0	6	-1	0	0	-1
37	D	SKRASTINS, KARLIS	8	0	0	8	6	3	0	9	2	-3	0	-1
44	D	WOYWITKA, JEFF	3	0	0	3	3	1	0	4	0	-1	0	-1
96	L	BRUNNSTROM, FABIAN	4	0	0	4	5	0	0	5	-1	0	0	-1
5	D	NISKANEN, MATT	1	4	0	5	6	2	0	8	-5	2	0	-3
23	C	WANDELL, TOM	4	0	0	4	5	3	0	8	-1	-3	0	-4

Remember when I said Grossman and Robidas were +11 and +7 in traditional plus/minus ratings at the beginning of the post? Well factor in the troubles of the penalty kill, and they're +5 and +4 ratings respectively with James Neal and Brenden Morrow taking the top spots with Brad Richards not far behind.

So what have we learned?

For one, there's no such thing as one metric that's going to perfectly measure a player. And any variation of plus/minus will validate that point. But what it does do is expose new strengths and weaknesses in an individual player's game.