Damning data reveals Dallas recorded the league's fewest high-speed bursts during the playoffs, exposing a critical lack of pace that now complicates blockbuster contract negotiations and offseason retooling.
As the Dallas Stars' first-round exit at the hands of the Minnesota Wild stung every Stars fans, now after some time has passed, underlying data is available to fully break down what went wrong for Dallas and paint a clearer picture.
Daily Faceoff's Jeff Marek didn't mince words on a recent episode of the Daily Faceoff Rundown, stating plainly that "the Stars were really exposed as being slow measured off against the Wild."
He went a step further, connecting the team's sluggishness to the ongoing contract negotiations surrounding superstar winger Jason Robertson, adding that "that's one of the reasons too why I think there's a sensitivity about the number and term that Jason Robertson is thinking about."
It's a pointed observation, and the underlying numbers largely support it. Among the most striking statistics to surface from Dallas' playoff run is their 22+ MPH Skating Speed Burst total in which they recorded just three, the fewest of any team in the league.
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In the 20 to 22 MPH range, a tier that captures the next level of high-end acceleration, Dallas recorded just 1,321 bursts, third-fewest in the league. Taken together, these numbers paint a consistent portrait of one of the slower teams in the NHL.
The Stars will head into the offseason with a clear mandate to retool their bottom-six forward group, and speed should be at the top of the checklist when doing so. The free agency market will offer more depth, supporting options rather than high-profile names and could work well for teams like Dallas that are looking to increase their pace of play. Acquiring even one or two difference-makers in that mold would meaningfully shift where the Stars sit in the NHL's speed and overall rankings next season.
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