Editor’s note: This is the sixth part of a series previewing individual players projected to make the Dallas Stars roster heading into the 2017-18 season.
Mattias Janmark presents one of the biggest questions marks for the Dallas Stars heading into the 2017-18 season.
While it’s common for a player who missed an entire season due to injury to be a question mark, Janmark’s unique situation goes beyond whether he’ll be able to find top form again.
With Janmark the questions go beyond performance. In fact, there still isn’t any certainty that he’ll be able to play in the NHL this season.
You can blame a genetic disorder called Osteochondritis dissecans. It’s a joint disorder where bone underneath the cartilage of a joint dies due to lack of blood flow. Bone and cartilage can crack and break loose, resulting in pain and interference with joint motion.
It’s a painful process — essentially part of his knee fell out — and Janmark has dealt with it before, when he was a teenager he outgrew a similar incident in his right knee. But there isn’t much past precedent for professional athletes and returning after having the corrective surgery.
For time being things have pointed in the right direction. Janmark started practicing with the team late last season, and has been skating in Frisco this summer. Both outside observes and Janmark maintain the knee is holding up, and he’ll be ready for training camp.
But how will the knee hold up against NHL competition? In an intense NHL training camp or an actual game, will Janmark’s body be durable enough to succeed?
That’s the biggest question for the 24-year-old Swede, and it’s one of the reasons the Stars had to add extra forward depth as insurance in free agency.
If Janmark is truly healthy, it’s a good sign for the Stars.
As a rookie during the 2015-16 season Janmark was an underrated part of a team that had the best record in the Western Conference. He won a job in training camp after he was expected to play another year in Sweden, and had 29 points in 73 games.
His speed was an asset that helped define the Stars up-and-down game, and he helped act as a defensive safety net for other players on his line. With Janmark, a natural center, on the wing other players had more freedom to create offensively while the Swede would pick up the slack in the defensive zone.
“He’s a guy we could play in the middle when we had struggles through the middle of the ice. He was a guy you could play on the wing that could help out a centerman that was struggling,” former Stars coach Lindy Ruff said. “But it started with the speed of his game. You look at his first couple of goals last season, he’d beat somebody up ice, or he’d beat somebody going to the net. He was an important part of the speed game.”
If all goes well Janmark could be part of the Stars top-six on opening night. Playing with Martin Hanzal and Jason Spezza could be an ideal fit for Janmark, forming a trio that is frustrating to play against with it’s combination of size and speed.
Overall it’s a season of cautious optimism for a player that could play a key role this season.
“I hope I can come back just as good,” Janmark said. “We’ll see what happens, but it’s been good signs so far.”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.