First Place

Who would have thought that when waking up with three days till Christmas, the Dallas Stars would be in first place in the Western Conference? I know I wouldn't. I expected them to be better than last year's group; perhaps sneak in the lower end of the playoff window. Instead of backing in, the Stars are aiming to blow open the door and take this league by the throat. I feel this team can be defined by one word: Grit. It seems the majority of their games involve some form of comeback...which made tonight's game a joy to watch (and based on the crowd size, a joy to be at as well). The current three game win streak includes victories over a decent Columbus team and great Detroit and Montreal clubs. How are they doing it? With grit. Starting goaltender Kari Lehtonen misses time? No problem, our back up Andrew Raycroft can easily fill the void. Brad Richards continues to produce (currently tied for sixth in the league with 38 points). Loui Eriksson quietly has four game winning goals, and leads the club with a plus-12 rating (James Neal is only one behind). This team wont go quietly to the curb, and that grit has earned them (at least for now) the number one position in the Western Conference. They control their own destiny at this point. Keep it up.

Don't Look Now...

...but the Dallas Stars are currently second in the Western Conference; a mere three points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the top seed. Sure, the season is slightly over a quarter of the way over, but considering the changes made from the prior season and the financial issues, no one could have predicted the squad being this competitive. The only drawback of this position is that the difference in points between the third place team and the team sitting at twelve is two points (the equivalent of one game). This tight grouping means positions will flex on a seemingly nightly basis; but regardless, the team is playing well. Tonight their six game win streak came to an end in a shoot-out against the Columbus Blue Jackets, but all good things must end. Expect this team to be in many close knit games since they are tenth in the league with 2.9 goals per game while sporting the ninth best goals against average of 2.6 goals per game. The MVP of this team to this point has to be Kari Lehtonen. Injuries have plagued his career to this point, but this year he's healthy and playing like an elite goaltender. Statistically he wont be winning any awards, but he's fourth in the league with thirteen wins. If there's anything the Dallas Cowboys have taught this town, it's that all that matters are W's, no matter how you get them. Brad Richards leads the team in points (30) goals (11) and assists (19) and eight players have double digit points. The season seems to have potential, but there are two big factors that will affect the outcome. 1) Will the team be sold? Not too much has come up lately about the possibility of a buyer (I still say Mark Cuban...AAC=Cuban Palace). Texas Rangers fans know what impact new ownership can have on a team; let's hope it happens sooner than later. 2) Will Richards be traded? The New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, and even the LA Kings have been rumored to show interest. Trading in division doesn't seem likely, but the Philadelphia Eagles proved nothing is impossible. The Rangers seem to have the most interest, and might be willing to give up the most players in return. With Richards becoming a free agent at the end of the year and the ownership issue still at hand, it appears unlikely the Stars will be able to retain him after the year's end. Only time will tell.