Tales From The Clipped (Game 1): Dallas wins 2-1 over St. Louis

Stray observations for the first official Stars game of the year.

Everything about this game had the makings of a slaughter. Dallas iced the bulk of his NHL roster, while St. Louis brought their travel bag players, and the end result was a surprisingly competitive, and low scoring affair.

More important than a hockey game though, it was nice to see the Stars pay tribute to Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. It was a nice touch for a player whose legacy will always live on.

The big story of the night was the official rollout of Victory+. I’m not the person to write intelligently about whether Victory+ was the future of streaming and whatnot. I saw the game, it looked clean, no animated ads, Josh and Razor on the call; just the meat and potatoes. Because I’m a borderline luddite, I don’t actually own a TV. Watching Victory+ on desktop was mostly effortless. I’m not gonna complain about a few errors before the game got started. But I didn’t like the lack of volume control on the video player. The video player not always letting be toggle between maximizing and minimizing was no small thing either.

But this entire thing is an experiment, so a few minor inconveniences are no big deal. But again, I’m an odd duck as far as the viewing experience goes. I don’t watch intermission reports because much of hockey broadcasting has ensured my lack of appetite for one, and besides — I’ve got writing to do. I guess what I’m saying is that I want to know what you, the reader, thinks.

Goals by Kyle Capobianco and Colin Blackwell may have been the least interesting moments of the night, as odd as that sounds. Let’s talk about what was on full display from shift to shift: the future.

Defense pairs

Dallas iced a really solid blueline, with left-right symmetry across the roster: Lian Bichsel with Matt Dumba, Thomas Harley with Nils Lundkvist, and Kyle Capiobanco with Alex Petrovic. They all looked pretty darn good, all things considered.

While I think Harley had the best game, Bichsel had what was far and away the play of the game, turning a two-on-one headed his way into a three-zone counterattack.

His game wasn’t perfect. The criticism that he needs to make quicker plays with the puck when he has control still holds true. But he was engaged, made reads, and did something more important than bring the pain — he played quality defensive zone defense.

All in all, the Gorilla from Olten played like one.

However, he wasn’t the only one who shouldered expectation, and delivered. So too, in my opinion, did Nils Lundkvist. Listen, let’s just skip all the subterfuge; the projection of him playing, revisiting the drama of the previous two years, and ignoring what made these ingredients feel worth revisiting for all the parties involved to complete this trilogy of despair. From here on out, we’ll take it from game to game.

Lundkvist looked good. He had this nice little play in the first where a quality read turned into a quick connect with Kole Lind for scoring chance around the net.

If Lundkvist is to succeed, whether in Dallas or elsewhere, he’s gonna need to maintain that identity; to be aggressive, and confidently pressure the offensive zone since that is exactly where his game comes alive.

But I like that his aggressiveness translated into a player trying to impose his will in all zones. He doesn’t need to pretend like he’s Bichsel, but plays like this are what coaches love to see.

It wasn’t the only play, though. Throughout the night, Lundkvist — getting minutes on the PK thankfully — looked comfortable out there.

As much as I praise Lundkvist, we’re not talking about a player reinventing himself. I don’t know what that would look like, or even if it would be enough, but a more confident Lundkvist is at least a step forward.

As mentioned, the blueline played well. St. Louis lineup couldn’t muster much, so the challenge wasn’t there, but we can only beat who they put in front of you. I’d like to say more about Matt Dumba, but he was just fine. If he plays next to Miro Heiskanen at some point, I wouldn’t expect it to last long, but I would expect him to look competent. I’ve been a fan of Dumba’s game for years, but admittedly, his old self looks long gone. I’d be surprised if that version showed up more consistently.

Offense

Logan Stankoven was an absolute savage tonight. He generated chance after chance, and nobody was able to stop him. Well, except for Jordan Binnington.

There’s not a lot to say about Stankoven beyond what may have been the most aesthetically pleasing backcheck I’ve ever seen. He’s the truth. We know it. Not it’s a question of whether or not his peers have the edge. (Another shameless plug.)

All the usual suspects on offense were Dallas’ best players. But nowhere was that clearer than for Mavrik Bourque. I made quite a few clips of him, which I’ll save for a separate article, but needless to say, Bourque might have been the most mature forward on the entire ice. Getting the PK minutes that he earned in Texas, he played responsibly in all three zones while generating dangerous looks.

Honestly, it makes me embarrassed to think I’ve walked back some of the early hype I built up in my own head — especially about his ceiling. That’s not to say all that hype will be made manifest after just one preseason game against a very shoddy St. Louis roster, but it’s hard to think that Bourque might have a similar ceiling to Johnston and Stankoven given how high they’ve already set the bar. Bourque shouldn’t have a big year, but he’ll be anything but quiet.

Prospects

Not a whole lot of standouts beyond the big names. I take that back.

Justin Hryckowian (this video has audio) did some UFC training in the offseason.

The reason why I’m not a fan of fighting is because most hockey fights don’t actually qualify as one. Hryckowian, however, threw actual punches, so whatever’s that worth to anyone that still cares — there you go.

I didn’t notice anyone else. Emil Hemming, who I tried to watch closely, didn’t look overwhelmed, but he didn’t stand out either. Kole Lind and Oskar Bäck were two other forwards I tried to key in on who left little impression. Nonetheless, nobody really stood out as “deficient.”

All in all, Dallas’ best players were their best players. And they were all young.