Pair of third period goals could be the spark Brett Ritchie needed

Brett Ritchie has had a frustrating season.

The winger is supposed to be a goal scorer and on a team that entered this season with questions marks about depth scoring, Ritchie was expected to be one of the solutions. Especially with his shot, arguably one of the heaviest on the team, Ritchie could have conceivably been a top-six option.

He never delivered on that ideology. Through the first 21 games, Ritchie had one goal and three assists. He had fallen into a group of players that was easily scratchable by Ken Hitchcock, and had become more of an energy player than a legitimate offensive option.

I’ve had a couple conversations with Ritchie about his offensive production this season. The winger is self-admittedly a streaky scorer, he knows he’s been missing out on golden opportunities, and he isn’t willing to chalk up his lack of goals to bad luck.

“I’m getting chances, I have to be better on those,” Ritchie said earlier this week. “It’s one of those situations where getting one, hopefully that is the boost you need to get another. Either way you have to keep playing well, even if it’s not going in.”

So it was somewhat prophetic when Ritchie scored twice in the third period of a 7-2 win against the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday — a win that extended a five-game win streak, and was sparked by a pair of goals from Tyler Seguin in the first period.

Ritchie’s first goal, which gave Dallas a 5-2 lead, came on an assist from his close friend and former AHL roommate Curtis McKenzie, who Hitchcock said is getting “better and better every day” and is a “luxury that most teams don’t have” as call-up that can step into the lineup.

Playing just his second NHL game of the season, McKenzie found himself in a position that’s become his specialty in the AHL — with the puck on his stick and his back to the opposing goalie. McKenzie didn’t rush a shot and made a smart pass to Ritchie, who cashed in with an empty net.

Ritchie added his second goal with 1:50 remaining, giving Dallas a 7-2 lead to cap off an impressive back-to-back weekend with wins against a pair of Central Division opponents.

The Stars play another Central Division foe on Tuesday when the Nashville Predators visit American Airlines Center, and without his two goals on Sunday, Ritchie could have been watching the game from the press box.

While the Stars have liked Ritchie’s work in his all-around game, the forward needs to score more to help elevate the depth scoring once Radek Faksa eventually cools off.

It’s not too far-fetched that Ritchie could have been considered for a scratch on Tuesday with a no-show in Denver on Sunday, especially with Jason Dickinson recently recalled from the AHL and poised to get an opportunity in the bottom-six.

So Ritchie should have a chance to build on Sunday’s third-period performance, and if he can live up to his own billing as a streaky scorer, he could become a more important cog in the offense.