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Dallas Stars surprised many folks last spring when they marched to the Western Conference finals. They could get back there again this year, but the shock value would be gone.
The Stars were presumed to be on the downswing simply because Mike Modano is nearing the end of his career, but Dallas has been preparing all along for that scenario, shoring up its roster with an influx of young talent.
Modano will be back for his 19th season with the Minnesota/Dallas franchise, but this team now belongs to captain Brenden Morrow, who showed his worth during last season's run to the conference finals.
The dual general manager contingent of Les Jackson and Brett Hull also displayed last year that the team is willing to make blockbuster trades in order to win, as the deadline acquisition of Brad Richards from Tampa Bay showed.
The Stars play in the Pacific Division, which also includes Stanley Cup contenders Anaheim and San Jose, so it's not surprising that Dallas gets lost in the shuffle at times. But make no mistake, the Stars aren't planning to rest on the laurels of their one Stanley Cup (1999), but are actively pursuing another shot at the crown.
FORWARDS - Modano actually had a solid season for the Stars in 2007-08, playing in all 82 games and registering 57 points (21 goals, 36 assists). He also became the NHL's all-time leading scorer amongst U.S.-born players, passing Phil Housley for the record early last season.
However, at this stage, Modano is the Stars' third-line centerman behind Mike Ribeiro and Richards. Luckily for Dallas, the future Hall of Famer is happy just to be on the team, as long as another shot at a title is in his sights.
Ribeiro was the Stars' best offensive weapon a year ago, as he posted a career-high in goals (27), assists (56), points (83), penalty minutes (46) and plus/minus (+21). Dallas was so impressed with the 28-year-old's play that they didn't even wait until the All-Star break to reward him, but instead gave Ribeiro a five-year, $25 million deal in early January.
While Ribeiro is called on to be the team's top scorer, captain Morrow is expected to lead the team in pretty much ever other aspect of the game. The left winger was first on the team with 32 goals, second in points with 74 and first in both power-play (12) and game-winning goals (7).
Morrow is also a tremendous defensive player and his physical play is illustrated by his 105 penalty minutes during the regular season. The 29-year- old also elevated his play in last year's postseason, leading his team with nine goals in 18 playoff games.
Playing on the opposite wing from Morrow on the top line is the valuable Jere Lehtinen, who is a superb defensive forward with a good deal of offensive skill. The 35-year-old Finn had 37 points (15g, 22a) in an injury-plagued season that saw him play in just 48 regular-season games.
Richards had a big debut for the Stars, setting a franchise-record with five assists in his first game with Dallas. However, he had just six points in his next 11 games, and his worth was questioned heading into the playoffs. That kind of talk subsided as Richards anchored the second line with three goals and 12 assists in the postseason, tying Morrow for the second-most points on the club during the team's 18-game playoff run.
The Stars added controversial, but talented left wing Sean Avery to the equation in the offseason. Avery is known as a pest, a player who uses physical play as well as verbal assaults to get under the skin of opposing players. The 28-year-old also has some offensive skill as was demonstrated by his 15 goals and 33 points in 57 games with the Rangers last season.
However, possibly the most important addition to the offense came with the signing of Fabian Brunnstrom, who will be a 23-year-old NHL rookie this year. The Swede was passed over when he was of draft age, but after a few strong seasons in his home country, a bidding war began for his services in the NHL.
Dallas beat out the Detroit Red Wings and a handful of other powerful players to land Brunnstrom with an incentive-laden two-year contract. Brunnstrom, a 6-1, 203-pound left wing, had 37 points (9g, 28a) last year, his first in the Swedish elite league.
The Stars hope Brunnstrom can help ease the loss of left wing Niklas Hagman, who had 27 goals for Dallas before signing with Toronto in the offseason.
DEFENSE - The Stars will once again boast one of the NHL's deepest bluelines and also have an excellent defensive strategist at their disposal in head coach Dave Tippett.
Tippett gets everybody, including forwards, to chip in on defense so it's not surprising that the Stars were sixth in the NHL last year with just 2.49 goals allowed per game.
The Stars defense did receive some unwelcome news shortly before the start of training camp this September, as it was announced that veteran defenseman Sergei Zubov will miss four weeks with a hip injury. That means, at best, his season won't begin until the 2008-09 campaign is nearly a month old.
On the positive side, the Stars learned last year they could succeed without Zubov, a two-time Stanley Cup champion who played in just 46 regular-season games and just 11 of 18 playoff contests in 2007-08.
However, Zubov, even at 38 years old, is an excellent puck mover and solid all-around defenseman. He was also the highest-scoring defenseman for the Stars last year, notching 35 points (4g, 31a) in his 46 contests.
Stephane Robidas was Dallas' best all-around defensemen without Zubov in the lineup, playing in 82 games and posting 26 points (9g, 17a) while averaging nearly 21 minutes of ice time per night. Robidas picked up his game in the postseason as well, recording three goals and eight assists in the playoffs.
The Stars solid corps of defensemen also includes veteran blueliner Philippe Boucher as well as rising stars Mark Fistric, Trevor Daley and Matt Niskanen.
GOALTENDING - The only knock on Marty Turco as a goaltender was that he supposedly folded under pressure in the playoffs. Turco has proved that knock to be unfounded, so it turns out that the 33-year-old goaltender is one of the best in the NHL after all.
Turco is the franchise's all-time leader with 207 wins and 33 shutouts and turned in yet another strong season in 2007-08. He went 32-21-6 with a 2.31 goals against average and .909 save percentage last year during the regular season and was even better in the playoffs with a 2.08 GAA and .922 save percentage in 18 postseason tests.
The seven-year pro is also one of the NHL's best puckhandling goaltenders, a talent that makes this defensemen's job much easier.
Turco played in 62 games a year ago for Dallas and will likely see that number increase this year as the Stars are heading into the season with 24-year-old rookie Tobias Stephan as the backup. The Swiss Stephan, who has just one game of NHL experience under his belt, was a second-round pick by Dallas in the 2002 draft.
WHEN ALL IS SAID AND DONE - The Stars head into this season with a very similar roster to the one that made it just one step away from the Cup final last year. The team is loaded with emerging talents on both offense and defense and should be poised for another deep run in the postseason. If Brunnstrom is as good as advertised then Dallas will become a leading candidate to win it all next June.
