Andrew's Dallas Stars Blog

Who was the Stars MVP this season?

I’ve thrown out six names for consideration and the other category. If you have someone else in mind, feel free to put it in the comments section.

Sunday update

The Stars are officially out of the playoff race, but I still find who gets those final spots intriguing as well as how the higher seeds play out as well. San Jose and Detroit seem to be pretty well set at one and two respectively, but how 3-5 will shake out is still up in the air. So are the 6-8 spots.

Lots of big games today. Chicago is at Columbus, San Jose at Anaheim, Detroit at Minnesota and Colorado is at Vancouver. There could be a lot of movement. Minnesota has a game in hand on teams fighting for that eighth spot and if the Wild can find a way to win in Detroit, it would move them to within one point of the final spot.

The Ducks and Predators both won last night. Anaheim beat San Jose and is really making a great run here at the end. Nashville continues to impress. They rallied from 3-1 down last night and beat Columbus in a shootout. The Blues, I felt, really squandered a point last night with some sloppy play against the Stars. The Oilers won a big game over Vancouver last night, but their tragic number is down to three.

Last night's games:

Dallas 5, St. Louis 4 (OT)
Nashville 5, Columbus 4 (SO)
Edmonton 5, Vancouver 3
Anaheim 5, San Jose 2

RK	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	PTS	Sunday
1	San Jose	78	51	16	11	113	at Anaheim
2	Detroit	77	49	19	9	107	vs. Minnesota
3	Calgary	78	44	28	6	94	idle
4	Chicago	77	42	24	11	95	at Columbus
5	Vancouver	78	42	26	10	94	vs. Colorado
6	Columbus	78	40	29	9	89	vs. Chicago
7	Anaheim	79	41	32	6	88	vs. San Jose
8	St. Louis	79	38	31	10	86	idle
9	Nashville	79	39	32	8	86	idle
10	Minnesota	78	37	32	9	83	at Detroit
11	Edmonton	79	37	33	9	83	idle

As for the draft lottery standings, the Stars are currently ninth.  That gives them a 2.7 percent chance of winning the lottery and moving up four spots.

RK	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	PTS
1	NY Islanders	78	26	43	9	61
2	Colorado	77	31	44	2	64
3	Tampa Bay	79	24	37	18	66
4	Atlanta	78	34	38	6	74
5	Phoenix	79	34	38	7	75
6	Los Angeles	78	32	35	11	75
7	Toronto	79	32	34	13	77
8	Ottawa	78	34	34	10	78
9	Dallas	79	35	34	10	80
10	Edmonton	79	37	33	9	83
11	Minnesota	78	37	32	9	83
12	Buffalo	78	38	31	9	85
13	St. Louis	79	38	31	10	86
14	Florida	78	38	29	11	87

Stars-Blues thoughts

Well, it was an entertaining home finale. They got the win, but it wasn’t enough to keep their playoff hopes alive. Of course, reality had set in on that front some time ago. It was a matter of time and the time came tonight. It was kind of a bittersweet night. That’s it for Stars hockey at the AAC for the season. They gave the fans a good show.

As for the game, I thought Matt Climie did fairly well. Those were some tough goals. A couple of deflections, a Brad Boyes blast from the slot and David Backes picking a corner from the left circle. Climie had his ups and downs, gave up some big rebounds but I didn’t think he looked out of place out there. He looked pretty confident when he went out to handle the puck at times, did a nice job breaking up plays around the net. He played a good game and it was nice to see him get the win. He was as good, if not better, than the guy at the other end on this night.

I thought Tom Wandell had a real strong game. He had assists on both Loui Eriksson goals. I thought that was one of the best games I’ve seen Wandell play. I thought that line with him, Eriksson and Morrison was pretty good. Dave Tippett juggled things around later in the game andJames Neal was out there with Wandell and Eriksson too. That trio produced the Stars’ third goal.

Mike Modano, who made a nice play to set up Trevor Daley’s game-winner in OT, was talking about his future again after the game. We’ll see. He didn’t shed any new light. The audio is below. My gut feeling is he’ll be back.  Here are some quotes provided by Stars PR along with audio from Modano and Matt Climie.

read more...»

Sean will be Sean

I watched the Bruins and Rangers this afternoon and it was a pretty good game. Bruins won 1-0 to clinch first overall in the East. It was a big loss for the Rangers, who are still in a fight to make the playoffs. One of the highlights of the game was this, which came during a commercial break in the third period. Sean Avery got two for unsportsmanlike conduct and Tim Thomas got two for roughing. 

Vishnevskiy recalled

According to the AHL transaction wire, the Stars have recalled Ivan Vishnevskiy from Peoria of the AHL.

Update: Here’s the official release from the Stars. Garrett Stafford has been assigned to the AHL.

The Dallas Stars announced today that the club has recalled defenseman Ivan Vishnevskiy from the Peoria Rivermen in the American Hockey League (AHL), and assigned defenseman Garrett Stafford to the Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL). 

Vishnevskiy, 20, has appeared in 67 games for Peoria this season, scoring six goals and 13 assists for 19 points, good for third among Rivermen defensemen in goals and fifth in points. He was also called up by the Stars on Dec. 31 of this season, but was a healthy scratch for three games.

Drafted by Dallas in the first round (No. 27 overall) of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, Vishnevskiy played for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) last season, scoring 45 points (17 goals, 28 assists) in 45 games. The 5-11, 176-pound defenseman also appeared in 17 playoff games for the Huskies, posting six assists with 16 penalty minutes. 

The native of Barnaul, Russia, was named to the QMJHL Second All-Star Team in 2007-08, and he led all QMJHL rookie defensemen in scoring in 2005-06 with 48 points (13 goals, 35 assists). He skated for Russia in the 2006 ADT Canada-Russia Challenge, and participated in the 2006 CHL Top Prospects Game. 

Stafford, 29, appeared in three games for Dallas since his recall under emergency conditions on Mar. 29, and recorded two assists in his Stars debut on Mar. 30 at Phoenix. He has registered 42 points (11 goals, 31 assists) and 46 penalty minutes in 67 games with Grand Rapids this season, good for second on the Griffins in assists. He is tied for eighth among all AHL defensemen in scoring. 

The 6-0, 200-pound rearguard went scoreless in two NHL games with Detroit last season, making his NHL debut on Feb. 23, 2008 vs. Vancouver. A native of Los Angeles, he was named to the 2002 Hockey East Second All-Star Team as a junior at New Hampshire, and to the league’s All-Tournament Team as a senior in 2003. He also skated in the 2004 AHL All-Star Game. He was signed by Dallas as a free agent on July 3, 2008. 

Climie gets the start tonight

Matt Climie, called up from Idaho of the ECHL because Marty Turco is day-to-day with a lower body injury, will make his NHL debut tonight against the St. Louis Blues.

Saturday update

The Stars are still barely clinging to life in the playoff hunt, but the picture isn't really any brighter than it was yesterday. St. Louis needs one point over their next four games to knock them out of playoff contention. The Blues have a chance to do that tonight in a head-to-head matchup with the Stars. Nashville could have done it with a win last night, but lost to Chicago. The Predators can do it again tonight when they host Columbus.

Some other key games tonight: Anaheim is at San Jose and the fading Oilers host Vancouver. Minnesota, which won a big game against Calgary last night to move to within two points of eighth place, is idle today.

The Stars' tragic number is still one.

Their chances of making the playoffs still register at zero percent, according to SportsClubStats.com.

Last night's games:

Chicago 3, Nashville 1
Minnesota 4, Calgary 0

RK	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	PTS	Saturday
6	Columbus	77	40	29	8	88	at Nashville
7	Anaheim	78	40	32	6	86	at San Jose
8	St. Louis	78	38	31	9	85	at Dallas
9	Nashville	78	38	32	8	84	vs. Columbus
10	Minnesota	78	37	32	9	83	idle
11	Edmonton	78	36	33	9	81	vs. Vancouver
12	Dallas	78	34	34	10	78	vs. St. Louis

The Stars are still ninth in the draft lottery standings.

RK	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	PTS
1	NY Islanders	77	25	43	9	59
2	Colorado	77	31	44	2	64
3	Tampa Bay	78	24	36	18	66
4	Los Angeles	77	31	35	11	73
5	Atlanta	78	34	38	6	74
6	Phoenix	78	34	37	7	75
7	Ottawa	77	33	34	10	76
8	Toronto	78	32	33	13	77
9	Dallas	78	34	34	10	78
10	Edmonton	78	36	33	9	81
11	Minnesota	78	37	32	9	83
12	Nashville	78	38	32	8	84
13	Buffalo	77	38	30	9	85
14	Florida	78	38	29	11	87

Modano on his future

Mike Modano was on The Ticket Friday morning and was asked by Norm Hitzges if he had decided whether he’ll play next season. Here’s what Mike had to say;

“No, not right now and I probably won’t for a while,” Modano told Hitzges. “I am going to take a step back for a long, lengthy part of the summer and see how I feel. I think time away from the game is going to help me mentally, just to kind of recharge, think things through and see where the team is heading. They certainly have a lot of things to iron out themselves. I think establishing our farm team in Austin is one of them and getting those kids up and running and the situation there.

“For me, I am going to take some time. I am not going to be in any rush to make that decision. The game has been great to me. Mr. Hicks has been one of the best owners in sports that I’ve known and been around to play for. If they feel I am suitable to come back and contribute and I they want me back, then certainly I will take that into account.”

Here’s some of the audio from the interview. Modano’s comments about his future are at the end.

Stars sign prospect Gazdic

The Stars have signed prospect Luke Gazdic to an entry-level contract. He was a sixth round pick (172nd overall) in 2007. The 6-3, 233-pound left wing had 20 goals and 10 assists and 127 penalty minutes with Erie of the OHL this season. He’s signed a deal with Idaho of the ECHL for the rest of this season. 

The official release on Climie

Here’s the official release on Matt Climie being recalled. Marty Turco is being listed as day-to-day with a lower body injury,

The Dallas Stars announced today that the club has recalled goaltender Matt Climie from the Idaho Steelheads in the East Coast Hockey League under emergency conditions, as Marty Turco is day-to-day with a lower body injury. The club also assigned defenseman Dan Jancevski to the Hamilton Bulldogs in the American Hockey League today.

Climie, 26, has a 27-12-1 record with an ECHL-best 2.30 goals-against-average, a .915 save percentage and four shutouts. The native of Leduc, Alta. was named the RBK ECHL Goaltender of the Week for March 23-29, and received the CCM ECHL Rookie of the Month for December, after going 5-1-0 with a 2.31 GAA and a .920 save percentage for the month.

The 6-3, 205-pound goaltender was 2-0-0 at the 2008 NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City, Mich., helping the Stars win the championship. He finished his four-year career at Bemidji State ranked first in school history in shutouts (12) and second in save percentage (.908). He earned First-Team All-CHA honors as a junior, and was selected to the Second Team All-CHA squad as a senior. Climie was signed by Dallas as a free agent on Mar. 20, 2008.

Jancevski, 27, has gone scoreless in three games with the Stars this season, and has now skated in nine career NHL games, recording two penalty minutes. The 6-3, 218-pound defenseman made his NHL debut with the Stars on Feb. 4, 2006 at St. Louis.

Originally selected by Dallas in the second round (No. 66 overall) of the 1999 Entry Draft, Jancevski has recorded 28 points (1 goal, 27 assists) and 70 penalty minutes in 72 games with Hamilton this season. Among Bulldogs defensemen, he ranks tied for first in assists and second in points, and is third on the team overall in plus/minus (+23).

A native of Windsor, Ont., Jancevski posted 14 points (3 goals, 11 assists) in 22 Calder Cup Playoff games in 2006-07, helping Hamilton win the AHL championship. He served as captain for Iowa (AHL) during the club’s inaugural season of 2005-06.

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