The Question(s)
September 8th, 2008 by BradWill the Stars be the team we saw in April, or the team we saw in March?
Hockey seasons are full of ups and downs. That’s just a way of life in the NHL. Last year the Stars were rolling in January and February, and when they were at their very best they traded for Brad Richards. Then the wheels came off and they went 2-9 in the month of March, barely eeking their way to the 5 seed.
We know what happened next.
So which is it? Is it the big kills and the timely goal scoring from April/May? Or is it the late game collapses and digging large holes early from March? The dogged determination and saint like patience of quadruple over time-Marty Turco? Or the bewildering line combinations and frequent trips to the box while losing their 5th in a row?
The Stars have lost Stu Barnes, Nik Hagman, Antti Miettinen and Norstrum.
Can you properly fill in those gaps with youth?
Is Sean Avery enough to overcome the loss of a heart as big as Barnes’? Will his time spent in the box out-weigh the good?
Can the untested Brunnstrom replace the production of Nik Hagman? (Of course it can’t, but there are those that hope)
What about Matt Niskanen? He’s a skating microcosm of the Stars themselves. Which version is the real deal? The stability and poise he showed early in the year, or the costly confusion in the playoffs?
Can Zubov, Lehtinen and Boucher play 60 games? 70 games?
Did Toby Petersen just steal money from the Stars, or can he really keep his playoff performance up?
Can the GMs and Tippet reach a consensus on where Modano is most effectively placed? Can Mike live with that? (As a checking center, if you ask me by the way, away from Brad Richards)
Even though Ribeiro shut me up once already by repeating his magnificent performance from 06/07 in 07/08, can he really do it again?
Are the Stars one of those teams that merely caught lightning in a bottle in the playoffs (like the Oilers and Hurricanes in 2006, what happened to them after that?) or have they built a machine that is ready to compete for 3 or 4 years in a row?
I can’t wait to find out. Please Hockey season, get here soon.
Posted in Uncategorized
