Gift Stack at the Stars Stack: New art, the state of the Stars, hockey Christmas shopping, and Die Hard
Happy holidays, Stars fans!
I didn’t get to see the Dallas vs. Nashville game. I traveled from San Antonio to Fort Worth to see my family because it’s been awhile since I’ve seen my parents but I thought for sure this part of the recap would be more nitpicking, as Dallas seemed all but guaranteed a loss to a quietly good Nasvhille team. Then they pulled off the proverbial Christmas miracle.
If there’s a theme with the Stars it’s that the performances haven’t always been there but the results have. Victory is victory, and the Stars continue to be victorious. “They can’t all be Picassos,” the saying goes. Have any of them been? It doesn’t seem like it. But it also doesn’t seem like it’s mattered much. Perhaps we can just leave it at that.
I wonder how much differently we’d look at the Stars if it weren’t for the margin for error at the top of the Central. There’s not gonna be much runway going into the New Year. Colorado and Winnipeg are right beside them. Unlike Vancouver in the Pacific next to LA and Vegas, Dallas’ Central peers aren’t paper tigers. They’re both really good teams, which means the Central’s top three race is gonna be one of the tightest in years.
Stars Wishlist
The market for Chris Tanev is gonna be insane. Or will it? There aren’t many teams who will be able to afford him, and rumors have swirled about Calgary trying to lock him down. It makes sense in Hockey Men terms. After all, Elias Lindholm is at the top of most trade boards, and so is Noah Hanifan. No matter how far away from being competitive a team like Calgary is, you can trade away one pillar but not multiple. Trading Lindholm and Tanev would be all but signal to Flames’ ticketholders and the other players that they’re throwing in the towel. So don’t be surprised if Tanev stays. (Ignoring the fact that the Flames ended up in this spot to begin with precisely because didn’t have the appetite to lose a core…that they were about to lose anyway. And yes, that’s an overly simplistic look. But if we can put it all on the prospects even with the excuse of youth, we can damn sure put it all on the lack of foresight by hockey men who have no excuses at all.)
Then there’s the clues left in the offseason. Nill is not the type to move out cap just to make a move. If Dallas felt like the blueline was the issue that fans claim, then they probably would have been much more proactive in the offseason. The Stars are 20th in goals against at even strength. However, thanks to their PK they’re 14th in goals against in all situations. In terms of expected goals against, they’re 7th in all situations and 6th at even strength. Granted, I don’t believe the blueline is the cause of this, but that’s another story for another time.
For now, don’t be surprised if someone like Sean Walker is at the top of Dallas’ list. He won’t “disrupt” the Suter-Heiskanen pair, or Lindell-Hakanpaa. $2.6 million AAV seems like the perfect amount of money to spend elevating Thomas Harley’s pair. Perhaps even someone like Ilya Lyubushkin could be a potential target.
In a less cap-strapped world — or a world in which getting Heiskanen back on his strongside were top priority — I think Dallas might be looking at Rasmus Ristolainen. For years he’s been criticized as an analytics bust, but under the tutelage of Tortorella and Shaw, he’s essentially reinvented himself. Like a more mobile, angrier Jani Hakanpaa, it’s the kind of move I wouldn’t hate assuming Philly has truly done the impossible fixed him. But it also doesn’t feel like enough.
Regardless, I have a hard time expecting Dallas to satisfy fans’ Santa wishlist. It may be exactly the same blueline they took into last year’s playoffs. But that blueline went far! I’m not being facetious, but I am. I think it’s a blueline that the org thinks way too highly of. But I also think it’s a blueline that’s extremely functional. For sure, Heiskanen and Harley are the rising tide lifting a bunch of boats names Suter/Lindell/Hakanpaa/Hanley (sorry Hanley), but the issue is less about a bunch of bad d-men and the fact that they’re so limited.
Bringing up the Cedar Park twins
I mentioned this in my recap of Mavrik Bourque’s four-goal night. At what point is Dallas a better team with at least one of AHL’s leading scorers up in the big leagues? You certainly have to ask the question, especially with Radek Faksa becoming part of the healthy scratch rotation. And there’s also the ‘development issue.’ As in, at what point are these players not being challenged?
I’m as pro-prospect as anyone, but at least I can understand why it won’t happen. Dallas is deep at both center, as well as right wing. However, what’s not broke and doesn’t need to be fixed doesn’t mean a more effective replacement can’t exist. That’s the real rub: Bourque and Stankoven will always be seen as luxuries until one or two of Pavelski/Duchene/Smith walk. By then they’ll have have full seasons of pro hockey under their belt, along with — barring a catastrophic meltdown — a taste (or more) of professional playoff hockey. As good as I believe to be be, next year they’ll be even better.
Original art: Wyatt Johnston and Jim Nill (Ryan Konzelman)
I’ve been sitting on several pieces of art, mainly because I haven’t been able to find a solid place for them. The first is Johnston. Johnston was actually quite visible early on in the season. There was one point where he was top three in Dallas scoring. But at the time he was overshadowed by Matt Duchene. Now he’s slowed down and I haven’t had a chance to highlight him. However, I’m a big believer in the year he’s gonna have. He’s still on pace for over 50 points. So I’m confident I’ll use this for a more Johnston-centered piece eventually.
Behold!
And here’s the full body image.
I really love Wyatt’s bug-eyed, youthful stare in this one. When I gave Ryan a list, I also put together pretty straightforward specs: names, birthplaces, nicknames, body types, player profile, and every now and then, some proof of concept (like the Conan the Barbarian pose for Thomas Harley).
For Jim Nill, I liked the idea of pulling from Gene Hackman’s expression in The Conversation (1974), which is one of my favorite movies.
Here’s the full body image.
Good stuff. And again, paid subscribers make this possible.
Yes, Die Hard is a Christmas Movie
I can’t think of a more tired discussion than whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas movie. But as I watched the 1988 classic with my parents this weekend, I realized how simple this thesis is: Die Hard is a great film. Great films can be whatever they want to be. Therefore, Die Hard is a Christmas movie.
My philosophy professors wouldn’t exactly be proud of this style of modus ponens, but come on — Home Alone 3 takes place on Christmas. But it’s not in the Christmas Movie debate because nobody gives AF about Home Alone 3. Now if you a real debate, ask if I think ‘Die Hard With a Vengeance’ is better than the original (It is for me).
Why am I talking about Die Hard? Because that’s where I first saw Ryan’s work.
John McClane in the Roy Rogers getup, plus introducing the word “henchling” into my lexicon? I knew this was the guy to do original artwork for the Stars Stack. Speaking of, I’m still waiting for Jake Oettinger, Logan Stankoven, and Tyler Seguin (Mavrik Bourque TBD).
Beyond that, I wish everyone a Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and good vibes. If you’ve got none of that but you’re reading this then bring it in for a group hug too because I’m leaving no Stars fan behind. The support for this place is genuinely shocking to me. Which means we can never stop stopping.
David, wishing you a Merry Christmas with your family as I look forward to more of your good, no great work that you are providing us Stars fans.
Christmas is all over Die Hard, it takes a high level of cognitive dissonance to think it's not a Christmas movie. John McClane even mentions Christmas music 8 minutes in.