Game 9 AfterThoughts: Turnabout Is Fair Play, Again

Dallas came back from a 2-0 deficit, again.

Two very happy hockey players.

After a homestand that started out with disappointment, the Stars finally grabbed a win on Saturday to snap a four-game winless streak.

So when they lost Roope Hintz afterward (for at least one game, and maybe more), it almost seemed like a forgivable thing when they fell behind 2-0 in Nashville the next day. A depleted, tired team that had finally exhaled for the first time in over a week? Yeah, that’s a recipe for dropping the second game of a back-to-back on the road, and an understandable one at that.

If the Stars really do continue to pull away from the morass of .500 NHL teams, this will be a game worth remembering (aren’t they all, really). Because it took every bit of their roster depth, every bit of their power play time, and every last second of the game to ensure that they didn’t fall back to 4-4-1 on the season.

No Matt Duchene, no Roope Hintz, and No Jake Oettinger (by choice)? Well, that turned out to be no problem, as the Stars’ backup goaltender Casey DeSmith picked up where he left off for most of last season, settling into a bumpy game for the long haul and pitching two-thirds of a shutout once the rest of his team finally decided to show up.

Oskar Bäck also showed up for the first time this season, after suffering an injury during training camp that kept him out of the lineup until tonight. And Bäck must have been doing some covert skills work while he was on IR, because his between-the-legs deflection to cut the lead in half was fantastic.

That goal gave the Stars life with a great 4th-line shift after the top six forward group had been getting frustrated, both on the power play and otherwise. The rest of the second period was far better for Dallas, with multiple decent chances starting to come for the Stars as they finally settled into the 2-1 game. But this shift, and this goal, really were a massive turning point for Dallas, as the Bäck-Faksa-Bastian line showed themselves to be every bit the sort of stubbornly persistent trio that this year’s team decided to construct.

The Stars would finish another chance to tie things, but only after Casey DeSmith came up with a huge save that wound up springing a 2-on-1 for them the other way. This was a dangerous one-timer here, but DeSmith was ready for it.

You’ll also notice four yellow jerseys here. And so did Wyatt Johnston, because after the puck got poked out to Robertson lurking up at the point, the duo immediately busted back down the ice on a 2-on-1, which they finished in style:

The full highlight shows you Johnston absolutely pickin’ ‘em up and puttin’ ‘em down as he busts down the ice with Robertson to create that passing lane Robertson finds at the end. It’s a fun one to watch, but probably even more fun to have participated in. I am guessing though, as I have never been and will probably never become an NHL player, barring a time machine and some magic serum.

All in all, Dallas got some even-strength scoring when they needed it, which either makes you think things could be coming around even as they wait on injured players, or else makes you wonder what might have happened in some of their recent losses, had they gotten just one of these sorts of goals at the right time.

Ifs and buts, candy and nuts, though.

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Those two 5-on-5 goals in the second period were especially big because special teams were a problem for Dallas until the very final second of their last power play in this game.

I didn’t love the way Nashville had two players free to hammer away at Casey DeSmith’s doorstep on the Preds’ first goal, even if you can sort of understand why it happened, and how perhaps Lindell is trying to front a shot here.

Yes, Heiskanen lost his stick earlier when pressuring high, but I have to believe that it drives your goalie nuts when he makes a really good save, only to get zero help on the rebound chances afterward. Part of this could also be Heiskanen re-acclimating to the penalty kill after being mostly off it under DeBoer, but generally speaking, you need to help your goaltender out here, and neither he nor Lindell did quite enough to save him.

Special teams got sillier for Dallas after that, when Seguin got a Grade-A chance on the doorstep that he put just high when trying to put it over Annunen’s shoulder.

Tough angle, yes, but Seguin has got the hands to score that, and you could tell he was annoyed with himself for missing it.

Then after perhaps a bit of too-casual 5v3 work by Dallas for the next 20 seconds or so, the Stars got whistled for an extremely marginal hooking call on Johnston (whose stick might have nudged the underside of a glove) to end the two-man advantage. However, the first of the two Nashville penalties on Forsberg was also a pretty marginal call, so you wonder if there was some attempt at balancing going on there.

Anyway, it was a missed chance to mash RESET on the game after a slow start, and that felt somewhat portentous. And speaking of ill portents, the Stars gave up a great shorthanded rush on yet another power play a bit later on, which also featured a further pair of great Annunen saves on Rantanen and Seguin from the front porch.

Then, shortly after that power play ended, Spencer Stastney scored the second Nashville goal of the game (on a wicked dinner-bell shot) after Erne and Hryckowian turned the puck over in the defensive zone. Missed opportunities beget regret, I’ve heard.

But also, I’ve heard that a good motto is “No Ragrets,” and the Stars took that to heart by finally scoring in the final second of a third period power play when Mavrik Bourque made a beautiful play.

It came with a sort of hybrid power play unit on the ice, with Steel, Harley, and Bourque from the second group joining Rantanen and Robertson (who stayed out after the first minute). It worked out pretty well, I’d say, as Mavrik Bourque showed excellent patience and vision to not immediately fire this one on net, instead finding the best play of all—an alley oop to the Stars’ best player, who dunked it.

Perhaps the best part of this goal was seeing Rantanen shouting in Bourque’s ear in the pile right afterward. The joy is real, and corporate, for Rantanen.

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Perhaps the best part of the end of the game itself had to be Casey DeSmith’s making three critical saves in the final ten seconds, then being so amped that he sprang out of his net at the final buzzer rather than sitting there to accept congratulations, eventually circling back to greet his teammates.

This one meant a lot to him after the tough one against Vancouver, I think. When talking about that game after practice the following day, he said it had been tough to find a good rhythm in his first game, with Vancouver passing up Grade-A chances for Grade-A+ chances.

Good thing, then, that the Stars decided to reverse the Vancouver formula: this time, they spotted the opponent the 2-0 lead before turning it on in the second period. Sometimes it’s just as simple as doing The Opposite. (TV should do a story about that sometime.)

Given that DeSmith had sat out for a decently long stretch between games, you could be sure he didn’t want a repeat performance of that night. Great work by him (in the typically tough position backup goalies often face) to lead a depleted Stars team to perhaps their biggest character win of the season—until the next one, at least.

Esoteric Soundtrack of the Game (ESotG)

Lineups

The Stars began the game with this lineup:

Steel-Seguin-Rantanen
Robertson-Johnston-Bourque
Erne-Hryckowian-Blackwell
Bäck-Faksa-Bastian

Lindell-Heiskanen
Harley-Lyubushkin
Bichsel-Petrovic

DeSmith in goal

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Nashville began with this group, which noticeably lacks Roman Josi, who is week-to-week right now:

Forsberg-O’Reilly-Wood
Jost-Stamkos-Evangelista
Bunting-Haula-Marchessault
Smith-McCarron-Wiesblatt

Skjei-Perbix
Wilsby-Hague
Stastney-Barron

Annunen

AfterThoughts

• Putting Tyler Seguin on the top line in lieu of Roope Hintz echoes the same thing happening in January 2023, when Seguin slotted nearly seamlessly in between Robertson and Pavelski. Say whatever you want about cap hits and such, but the Stars have needed Seguin very much at the beginning of this year, and he’s been there.

  • Seguin also drew in on the top power play (though without having practiced with them so far this year), and having a second righty on that group makes a lot of sense. John Klingberg and/or Jason Spezza really were great with Seguin, back in the day.

• It was nice work by Lian Bichsel early to draw some bodies low in the offensive zone before dishing off to Hryckowian, who drew the first penalty of the game. That’s smart, simple work from Bichsel to use his size well.

  • It was likewise good to see Bichsel stand up for DeSmith after Evangelista fired a puck on the Stars goaltender after an offside whistle. It’s somewhat performative, sure; but it matters all the same.

• Mikko Rantanen took yet another penalty in this one for interference (during which Nashville took a 1-0 lead), putting him at seven minor penalties taken this year. As of this evening, that mark is tied with two other players for 3rd in the NHL, behind only Charlie McAvoy (9) and Emile Lilleberg (8). Moose gonna Moose, I guess.

• DeSmith had to be excellent in the first in particular, and his save on the 7th shot by Nashville (after Dallas had only managed one, despite having a power play of their own) was superb:

• Heiskanen lost a puck in a really similar spot to where he did the other night. I’m not saying his hiccups with puckhandling this year have been the result of a mysterious and ancient hex, but I am also not not saying that. Just weird stuff that is probably worth ignoring, but it’s easier to ignore when it doesn’t keep happening.

• And at risk of belaboring the point, Heiskanen also gave up a shorthanded chance (on admittedly a tough bounce) with another lost handle. Again, probably nothing.

• By the way, did Wyatt Johnston’s finish on the goal to tie the game in the second period remind anyone else a tiny bit of this goal in how the puck appears to slip off his blade before he pokes it five-hole?
  (IYKYK)

• It looked to me like Rantanen was perhaps telling Steel to perhaps wait a bit longer to let the screen get more effective before shooting on this play. That’s pure conjecture, though. Curious what y’all think?

• Justin Hryckowian drew two power plays for Dallas tonight, and his line also generated the third-period delay of game call on Nashville with a good forechecking shift. Those aren’t the same as goals, but those sorts of contributions matter. I thought he had a bit more of a push tonight than he’s had in some recent games, and the Stars needed it.

Finally, the Stars had a few nice little defensive plays in this one, but two in the third jumped out at me.

• First, Tyler Seguin, tracking back after a rush down the ice to strip Steven Stamkos in the Stars’ zone.

• Second, Mavrik Bourque made a very good read and play to end a Predators’ offensive zone possession all by himself.

• Without two of their top centers, things were a bit catch-as-catch-can when it came to lines and ice time tonight (understandably so). Jason Robertson finished with 24:41 in a regulation game, and the Stars’ second power play unit earlier in the game featured Hryckowian, Steel, and Lindell, along with Bourque and Harley.

• Faceoffs aren’t something I pay an inordinate amount of attention to in large volume, but it was noticeable tonight that Dallas was low on left-hand faceoff guys. Righties Johnston and Seguin took 36 combined, with Seguin going 50% and Johnston going 39%. Steel (3 for 3) and Faksa (5 for 9) did well in far less duty, though I always assume Faksa is taking like every single faceoff in the defensive zone, so he could get an extra 10% handicap on his faceoff stats. This is my contribution to hockey statistics.