The Other Stars: Stankoven and Bourque keep rolling, and a word on Dallas' other defensemen in Cedar Park
The Texas Stars finally string together some wins.
Unfortunately I missed the Stars game versus the Bruins, being at work and all. I don’t know that I would have much to say even if I had watched it. Dallas was always gonna get credit for not getting destroyed given their blueline, to go along with the absence of Miro Heiskanen (who deserves a sticktap for becoming a new father) and Matt Duchene. Instead they actively made a game of it.
Now it’s onto to New York tonight, which should be another tough one. The Rangers kind of just trundled along for a good chunk of the season, but they’re 8-1-1 in their last 10, the sole contenders in the Metro (unless Carolina finally gets their act together), and Shesterkin looks like he’s back.
With the Dallas squad getting tested on the injury front, it’s worth looking at who else might be available for a potential callup. Texas is in a tough spot themselves. They had all of three wins the entire month of January. February hasn’t been perfect, but they’ve matched the previous month’s number in wins, with five games left before March.
Let’s start with the obvious.
Bourque to Stankoven. Stankoven to Bourque. What difference does it make?
There’s not much else to say that I haven’t already said here about Stankoven and Bourque. They are terrors in all three zones. Against Iowa, they got on board both nights.
One thing likely to disappoint fans is that Nill and his staff probably believe there’s no need to rush them. Dallas’ offense is the envy of the league. There’s no one they’d be willing to push down the lineup to make room for, and thus, no reason to do anything except let them dominate in the AHL. They get to play big minutes in all situations, which is gonna create a more pro-ready player once they do make the cut.
I don’t want to keep yapping about them, though. For two reasons. One, aren’t you tired of what I have to say about them anyway? And two: I put together some crude highlight reels the other day when I thought one of them might get the callup. It didn’t help that I did a piss poor job of naming all the original clips, along with editing them down instead of pretentiously trying to include every detail. Cough. So…a lot of extra work for no reason.
Artem Grushnikov
At Traverse City I was really drawn into Grushnikov’s game. These days — having learned my lesson — I’m an easy sell when it comes to hybrid defenders who lean defensive more than offensive. So Grushnikov ticked a lot of boxes for me: plus skating, decent size, excellent rush defense, and an ability to close gaps. However, the first half of the season didn’t show what I initially liked. Maybe due to limited minutes, or eating the occasional scratch, but I just didn’t see much confidence in his game. However, when Lian Bichsel went to Sweden, it opened the door for Grushnikov to play on the top pair next to Alex Petrovic.
He still isn’t the player I thought I saw at Traverse, but damn did he make an impression this weekend. I highlighted this play on Twitter, but here’s the super-mo version.
The hit is what obviously draws the most attention. But that’s a hell of a way to defend a two-on-one. Granted, proximity is his ally here (Nic Petan needed to get farther out), but taking away the pass, the man, and the puck all at once is the stuff of legend.
I see people refer to Grushnikov as Lindell’s replacement. In an ideal world, Harley replaces Lindell, and Harley and Heiskanen form the skeleton of a top four complimented with two right-shot defenders that play top four minutes. However, I don’t see the similarities. Maybe in type, but outside of being stay-at-home, they’re nothing alike. For all of Lindell’s faults, he was drafted as a clunky-skating, offensive defensemen. He scored 42 points in his rookie year with the Texas Stars. Grushnikov will never reach anyone close to those numbers. He has neither the shot nor the vision nor much of anything beyond just getting pucks around the net. Where Lindell closes gaps with his stickwork, Grushnikov is more reactionary.
However, I like what I’m seeing. The other night he spent a full minute and thirty on a penalty kill. He’ll be a depth defender in Dallas if he ever makes it, but there’s nothing wrong with depth. He’s not pro-ready, but the bones are there.
Gavin White
I’ve talked about White here before. Truth is, I still don’t get him. But I’m starting to think we haven’t seen the real Gavin White given his time on the bottom pair, and not enough minutes shared with the top line. When he decides to just deadlift a play, he’s frankly, as good as it gets. (White is #24, beginning the play at the right point.)
He has a fantastic first step that allows him to weave in and out of traffic, but his puck handling is functional enough that he can just as swiftly along the exterior of the ice, like so. (White starts this play coming into frame at the left point.)
There are some significant holes to his game though. His biggest problem is lack of creativity. He knows how to initiate an attack, but now how to follow through. Even in these above clips, he appears to be aiming for perfunctory rebounds rather than something more high-percentage. In fairness, he’s on pace for close to 20 points in bottom pairing minutes, and basically no power play time.
I’m still not sure what his ceiling is, but I like his aggression and movement.
Quick New York Rangers preview
The last two games Dallas has been the very very slight underdog, and they lost both games by razor thin margins. This time, they’re the slight favorite, which means they should win in overtime finally, right?
Unfortunately the Rangers are one of the hottest teams, only losing one game in regulation over their last ten. Meanwhile, the injuries keep piling up in Texas. I’d expect this one to be even closer than what the odds say. The Rangers are elite on special teams, and the Stars (power play notwithstanding) are on that border too. In other words, this should be fought primarily at even strength.
Stankoven got the call.
If you watch the replay. We had multiple chances to win. With breakaways, hitting the post.!!