The offensive juggernaut Dallas Stars had a great season, making the playoffs and topped the Western Conference. They were led by stars Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, who just racked up the points this year.
Expectations for the season
Coming into this season, there were varying expectations for the upstart Dallas Stars. They had improved their point total by one point in 2014-15 but missed the playoffs after making it in 2013-14. They also brought in two key former Chicago Blackhawks in Johnny Oduya in free agency and Patrick Sharp in an offseason trade. Dallas also acquired defenseman Stephen Johns in the Sharp trade and he ended up in the NHL later in the season.
Season Outlook
Dallas started fast and never looked back. They kept pace with the Washington Capitals for most of the first half of the season for the President's Trophy, before the Caps ultimately pulled away and finished with 120 points, while the Stars were next at 109. They led the division most of the season though the St. Louis Blues gave them a run for their money in the second half of the season to try and take the division from Dallas.
Key Players
Jamie Benn—If it weren't for Patrick Kane, more people would have talked about how great of a year Benn had. The captain played in all 82 games and racked up 89 points with 41 goals and 48 assists, second in the league behind Kane. Tyler Seguin gets a lot of attention because the Stars took off after he arrived, but Benn is still the straw that stirs the drink in Dallas.
John Klingberg—The young Swedish defenseman is one of the best offensive defensemen in the league already. He tied Benn with 48 assists and scored ten goals of his own. He had a team high +/- of 22, showing that he can take on other team's top scoring lines too. He's just entering his third season, and sky is the limit for this young man's potential.
The goalies—Both Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen were awful last season. It is almost astounding how the Stars won arguably the toughest division in hockey with goaltending that was among the worst in the league. While it would be ideal for the Stars to move one of the massive contracts they have in those two, it is not likely to happen. The two are owed a combined $10 million next season. Unless some team needed to take on some money to reach the cap floor or want to cut payroll going into next season, the Stars will be stuck with these two for another season.
Grade: A
There is no way you can't say this season was an A. They won their first playoff series and division title since 2008 and finished first in the Western Conference. They are a fun team to watch because no lead is ever safe in a Stars game—whether the Stars are in front or trailing.
Outlook for the 2016-17 Season
Coming into next season, they will have to deal with high expectations for the first time in a long time. An injury kept Seguin out for the end of the regular season and most of the playoffs, but with him back their offense will once again be among the most feared in the league.
However, the central division is as tough as it comes in the NHL. Along with the Stars you have the Blues, who finally broke through and went to the Western Conference Finals this season, the Blackhawks who have won three of the past seven Stanley Cups, the Nashville Predators with Ryan Johansen and P.K. Subban now in the fold and on top of all that there has been a team that finished in the bottom two of the division each of the previous two years that jumped into the top two the next season (Dallas this season and Nashville before that, and in the first year of the newly formed Central the Colorado Avalanche went from worst in the west to division champions).
I don't necessarily see another division crown this year for Dallas, but there's no doubt they'll be a contender for years to come. They need to find a true #1 goaltender and beef up the defense a little more to have a legit shot at winning the west.