True Reverse Retro
Joined: Mar. 2018
Posts: 4,642
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These lines aren't even accurate.
Benn-Seguin-Radulov
Janmark-Spezza-Nichushkin
Comeau-Faksa-Pitlick
Hintz-Shore-Ritchie
Lindell-Klingberg
Methot-Johns
Heiskanen-Honka
Bishop
Khudobin
And with the roster they currently have, they are a wild card team, at best.
The defense is there, and the goaltending (when healthy) is enough for them to push for a wild-card spot in the west.
The top line is among one of the best in all of hockey. Between Benn, Seguin, and Radulov they have 3 guys who all put up points at almost a PPG clip last season. And all 3 of them played a full 82-game slate last season. If they can even replicate their production last season, they will again be one of the most productive lines in the league this season.
The addition of Nichushkin helps our 2nd line scoring, and with Montgomery implementing a more puck-possession friendly system than Hitchcock Spezza should see a slight resurgence. Between Janmark, Spezza, and Nichushkin the Stars 2nd line isn't awful, but if the Stars want to push for one of the top-3 spots in the Central they need to upgrade at their 2C position. While Spezza could see a slight uptick in scoring, at this stage in his career he's more suited for a bottom-6 role. If the Stars could bring in a real 2nd line scoring threat, it would fix a lot of the scoring issues Dallas had last season.
A 3rd line of Comeau, Faksa, and Pitlick could quietly be one of the better shutdown lines in the league, and all 3 of them have a solid impact on the penalty kill. There's a reason Faksa got some Selke votes last season. He's an elite 3C and can take over the game in his own end and in the neutral zone. If these three can shut down opposing top lines, like Faksa's line did last season, they could bring a solid defensive balance to the Stars forward group this season.
The 4th line is kind of a crap shoot. Hanzal will be out until December, meaning that one of Shore, Dickinson, or Smith will be at Center. Shore is the only one with sustained success at the NHL level, and both of the other two are still waiver-exempt, meaning they can be sent from the NHL to the AHL (and vice versa) without having to clear waivers. With the year he had last year, Hintz is very likely to make the roster out of training camp. The RW spot will come down to Ritchie, Dickinson, or Smith. For the same reasons listed above, Ritchie will fill that spot. If Shore can improve the way he did last season, he could very well be 35-40 point guy in the bottom-6. Hintz looks like a kid who could be a 30-35 point guy this season. The big wild card is Ritchie. He's a strong physical presence, but hasn't had offensive production. If he can put up 25+ points, the 4th line will be a good mix of defense and depth scoring. If he struggles, it could very well impact the other two guys on his line as well.
Overall, this team is a playoff team last season, if it weren't for the injury bug. The Stars lost Roussel and Lehtonen while replacing them with Comeau, Nichushkin, and Khudobin. They are better off that they were last season. None of these moves are earth-shattering (though Nichushkin has the potential to be), but fortunately for Dallas the Central didn't get a ton better either this offseason. Only time shall tell, but they look like a potential wild-card team this season.