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| Stars Narrowly Miss Playoffs but are Moving in Right Directions |
 Getty Images Langenbrunner battles for the puck with Wilson of the Avs at the AAC.A day later, the teams met at the Pepsi Center. Dallas dominated the first period as they out-shot the Avs 11-2 as they gained a 1-0 lead through Mike Ribeiro. Richards set up Eriksson to increase the Stars' advantage to 2-0. Two goals from Colorado's Brandon Yip kept the pressure on Dallas who knew that nothing but a victory would keep them in the playoff hunt. Morrow's early third period goal was enough for the Stars to claim all two points. The captain spoke about the Stars' mentality. "When you look at the big picture, it's kind of tough to just focus in on one game at a time, but when you get down to three, four, five, and they're all do-or-die, it makes it a lot easier to take it one at a time. It boils down to one more day. We're still alive. We got to worry about our game and we'll look for some help from there," Morrow said.  Getty Images Miettinen of the Wild scores against Lehtonen. The goal would prove to be the end of the Stars' playoff hopes."We just didn't get it done in today in the end, but it wasn't for lack of effort by our guys," coach Crawford stated. "They tried their tails off tonight. I can list off a bevy of injuries that our guys have played through…Adam Burish playing with a broken leg, and Brenden Morrow hasn't practiced in the last month-and-a-half. Yet they come in and find ways to play. I'm really proud of these guys," he summarized. When the Stars returned home, Robidas was interviewed and pointed out that a stronger start could have made the difference in their season. "It's a good reminder for all of us that points are important every night. You can't take nights off. Points early in the season are just as important at the end. If we would have won a game earlier in the year, maybe we didn't have to win that last game there. We have to make sure next year that we're ready to get a good training camp and a strong start to the season next year," he explained. Brad Richards finished the season as the Stars' overall points leader with 77. Captain Brenden Morrow set a new career high with 33 goals, also a team-best. Playmaker Mike Ribeiro led Dallas in assists at 52. Loui Eriksson delivered when it mattered most with a Stars' high 10 power-play goals and 6 game-winning goals. Jamie Benn showed a knack for scoring on the penalty kill, chipping in 4 short-handed tallies. Combined with his Pittsburgh statistics, Alex Goligoski finished the year with a plus/minus of +20. Kari Lehtonen's steady play between the pipes amounted to 34 victories and 6 shutouts. He logged a goals against average of 2.55 and a save percentage of 91.4%. The Stars accumulated a record of 42-29-11 during the 2010-11 season with 95 points. Their 227 'goals for' ranked 17th in the NHL while their 'goals against' was 16th out of all NHL franchises. Dallas' power-play percentage of 18.0% was 14th best in the league and their penalty kill success rate of 80.1% ranked 23rd in the NHL. When the Stars scored first, they won 82.1% of their games which was 2nd overall. Dallas won 89.7% of their games when leading after the first period, 3rd best of all NHL clubs. General Manager Joe Nieuwendyk took swift action at season's end by dismissing Marc Crawford as head coach. Crawford failed to make the playoffs in each of his two seasons behind the Stars' bench but it was clear that progress was made this season as they improved seven points from 2009-10. The decision to relieve Crawford of his coaching duties triggered surprise from Dallas-area columnists but Nieuwendyk is seen as a proactive general manager who may have a strong candidate in mind. Besides choosing a new coach, Nieuwendyk has a long list of unrestricted free agents to determine whether to re-sign including Brad Richards, Jamie Langenbrunner, Karlis Skrastins, Brandon Segal, Brian Sutherby, Jeff Woywitka, Jason Williams, Brad Lukowich, Travis Morin and Brent Krahn. The search for new ownership will play a part in whether the Stars can hold on to their big-name free agents. Their payroll has hovered around the lower third of NHL franchises over the past few seasons but a having a new owner in place would increase Dallas' spending power. Something Stars' fans can look forward to is the development of Jamie Benn who took his game to new heights during this season. Benn and Loui Eriksson make up one of the most exciting young tandems around the NHL. Trade deadline acquisition Alex Goligoski fit nicely on Dallas' power-play and scored many vital goals during the run-in. Along with Nicklas Grossman, Trevor Daley and Mark Fistric, the Stars have a core of defensemen in their prime. Tom Wandell became more comfortable as the season went on and contributed late in the season. Add that to a group of dependable veterans in Brenden Morrow, Stephane Robidas, Steve Ott as well as the talents of Mike Ribeiro and Kari Lehtonen and there is a strong platform already in place. If Nieuwendyk can retain his prominent free agents and possibly add another piece, there will be a lot to look forward to next season in 'Big D.' |
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