The Dallas Stars have incredible depth at all positions, and that's why Adam Proteau and many other pundits have the Stars predicted to be a Stanley Cup winner this season.
The Dallas Stars are the sexy pick of many NHL pundits to do great things this season, and a look at their crucial statistics in 2023-24 tells you exactly what’s going to power the Stars to prominence this coming season.
Primarily, Dallas’ offense was a key driver of their success last year: their season average of 3.59 goals-for-per-game was third best in the league last year, trailing only Toronto (3.63) and Colorado (3.68) in that department. And while the Stars didn’t have anyone chasing Leafs superstar Auston Matthews for the Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard Trophy as the NHL’s top goal-scorer, Dallas had a whopping eight players who had 21 goals or more last year. They’ve lost only one player from that group of eight – retired star Joe Pavelski – so offense isn’t going to be an issue for the Stars this season.
The Stars also had a stellar power play, with the league’s sixth-best man-advantage (24.2 percent efficiency). But don’t sleep on Dallas’ defense, either. Their penalty-kill was the league’s sixth-best (82.5 percent), and their defense was elite as well (in sixth-place at 2.83 goals-against per game).
Dallas’ defense corps might take a small step backward or sideways this season, as newcomers Matt Dumba and Ilya Lyubushkin aren’t regarded as shut-down D-men at the level of former Stars blueliner Chris Tanev. That will put more pressure on star goalie Jake Oettinger to do much of the heavy lifting in Dallas’ zone, but we suspect he can handle the increased pressure. And with the competition for a spot in the Stars’ top-six defense spots increasing thanks to the evolution of young players such as Lian Bichsel, Dallas should continue to frustrate opponents in the Stars’ end.
Everywhere you look in Dallas, the Stars have admirable depth and intimidating top-end performers. Coach Peter DeBoer is regarded as one of the top bench bosses in the league, but with due respect to DeBoer, his job is significantly easier because he has so much talent to deploy.
When injuries come – and they will come – Dallas has more than enough talent to sustain itself and come out the other side stronger than ever. As youngsters Wyatt Johnston, Logan Stankoven, Mavrik Bourque evolve, the pressure on veterans Matt Duchene, Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin and Jason Robertson will subside. And that should make the Stars better than just about any opponent they take on.
There will be challenges that no one foresees in Dallas. There’s challenges like that in every NHL market. And all Stars GM Jim Nill can do is stockpile as much skill and all-around talent as he can to provide insurance for Dallas’ blueprint for success. Nill has done his part, and now it’s on Stars players to deliver on their end. We like their chances, and that’s why it will surprise no one if and when Dallas thrives in the regular season and goes on a deep and prosperous playoff run.
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