Stars Offense Starting with the Defense

If it has seemed like the Dallas Stars’ defensemen have played an important part in the offense since the team returned to play, you aren’t imagining things. The defense has at least one point on 46 of the 62 goals that the team has scored this postseason. In 21 postseason games, the blue liners have 13 goals, 40 assists and 53 points. 

Even if the defenders aren’t getting points on the score sheet, they are starting the play up ice helping to keep pucks in the zone for extended offensive zone time. You know things are going good for the team when even goalie Anton Khudobin has an assist in the playoffs after making a save and kicking the rebound to the corner.

Sure, it helps to have guys like Miro Heiskanen and John Klingberg skating and moving pucks up ice. The whole defensive core has gotten into the scoring act this postseason, and that needs to continue in the Stanley Cup Final for the Stars to have any kind of further success.

STARS DEFENSE LEADING THE WAY

Heiskanen is leading the way for the Stars defensemen. In 21 games, he has five goals, 17 assists and 22 points in 21 games. His 22 points are tops on the Stars through the Western Conference Final. Klingberg is fourth on the team with 16 points. He has three goals and 13 assists so far this postseason. These two defensemen not only can skate and move the puck, but they will also either join or lead a rush going into the offensive zone.

There has been one big surprise this postseason on the blue line and that has been Jamie Oleksiak.

Oleksiak is known more for his defensive and physical style of play, not for point production. However, in 21 games, he has four goals, three assists and seven points. Those seven points may not seem like a lot, but they come at some clutch moments in the postseason.

Esa Lindell has one goal, five assists, and six points in 21 games, but more importantly he has been a major factor in blocking shots on the penalty kill. Andrej Sekera only has one assist through 21 games, while Joel Hanley also has one assist in six games played. Taylor Fedun is currently “unfit to play” for the Stars, and he had zero points in the 11 games he played.

ROUND ROBIN RECAP

The Stars were one of the four teams who got a bye in the Western Conference when the NHL returned to play. Since they were able to skip the qualifying round, the team participated in round robin games with regular season rules, which helped determine the seeding. The Stars didn’t fare too well in the round robin games, finishing with the third seed.

In the three round robin games, the Stars were shutout once by the Colorado Avalanche. They scored three goals against the Vegas Golden Knights, and one regulation goal against the St. Louis Blue came via the shootout. The defense had one goal, five assists and six points on the four goals that the Stars scored. Heiskanen and Klingberg had the assists on Joe Pavelski’s game tying goal late in regulation against the Blues.

RED HOT AGAINST THE FLAMES IN ROUND ONE

In the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Stars were matched up against the Calgary Flames. The defense did some serious damage in this series. The defensemen combined for five goals, 14 assists and 19 points in six games. The group recorded at least one point on 17 of the 21 Stars’ goals. 

The defense pairs were jumping into the play on the offensive side of the puck. They seemed to know when to take a risk at pinching along the board and when to stop. The defense has been active and aggressive all postseason long. The Stars defensemen just seemed to figure out a way to put out the Flames. They were finding open guys and again, it all started with Heiskanen and the rest of the group followed.

CAUSING AN AVALANCHE IN ROUND 2

In the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Stars were up against the Western Conference favorite, Colorado Avalanche. The defense didn’t seem as active in this series, but still managed to find ways to get on the score sheet. Yes, the Avalanche weren’t at full strength but the Stars just managed to outscore them while also getting some timely goaltending. 

The Stars defensemen continued contributing to the offense in the second round. They had five goals, 15 assists and 20 points. The group had at least one point on 18 of the 28 goals scored by the Stars in the series. The forwards managed to pick up the scoring pace a bit in this series, which was needed to win and advance. In seven games against the Avalanche, Heiskanen had two goals, seven assists and nine points. Meanwhile Klingberg contributed a goal, four assists and five points from the blue line.

TO THE STANLEY CUP FINAL THE STARS GO

The Stars moved on to face the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final. The Stars only needed five games to eliminate the Golden Knights, but the defense again managed to put up some points. They had two goals, six assists and eight points. The defense had at least one point on seven of the nine goals scored by the Stars. Klingberg had two goals, two assists and four points in the series. 

DEFENSE WITH CLUTCH PERFORMANCES

In three series-clinching games, the Stars defense has shown up on the offensive score sheet. In game six against the Flames, the group had one goal, four assist and five points. The defensemen have points on five of the seven goals scored in that series clincher. In game seven against the Avalanche, the group had zero goals, five assists and five points. They had at least one point on all five of the goals scored.

In game five against the Golden Knights, the defenseman had zero goals, three assists and three points. They had at least one point on all three goals scored, including the overtime winning goal. If the Stars plan to win the Stanley Cup then they will continue to need the aggressiveness of their defensemen.