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STARS MAILBAG: Thoughts on superheroes, Cracknell, goalies, and Johns vs. Oleksiak

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Do you remember when this was a thing?

Yes, the NHL had comic book “guardians” for all 30 NHL teams. And this was the Dallas Stars guardian:


According to a story at that time on the Stars official website, this was the his backstory.

Like Texas itself, The Star’s personality is BIG. Everything about him oozes with confidence. He’s the horse everybody came to see and he relishes the opportunity to prove his greatness. You could say there is another side to him but there just isn’t. His confidence is so severe that it could almost be considered a superpower all by itself. When engaging his enemies, the Star lets them know who is boss immediately with his catch phrase “There’s a new Sheriff in town.” The Star is almost totally made up of Hydrogen and Helium gasses and like an actual star, he generates an incredible amount of energy through nuclear fusion. He can harness this energy in a variety of ways but his main offensive weapon is something he refers to as a solar flare.

Why am I bringing this up? Well, why not?

Let’s get started:

I think it was a good deal for both sides.

Adam Crackell has a contract in place and some job stability for really the first time in his career. He certainly earned it after he seized an opportunity and had been expected to start the season in the AHL.

For Dallas it brings back a reliable bottom-six player who has had a positive impact all season. He’s been one of the positive storylines in a season filled with disappointments.

Cracknell also controls the postgame music in the locker room, so the Stars don’t have to worry about filling that role for next season.

People should be excited about Cracknell re-signing, it’s a good story about a career fringe player that found a spot. I think we’ve all been Adam Cracknell at some point in our respective lives or careers, so we root for guys like that.

I think people would be excited about the Cracknell re-signing either way. But it’s not a good sign that it’s the most exciting thing happening in mid-March.

We don’t know for sure, but this is the Stars projected protected list at this moment:

Forwards:
1. Jamie Benn
2. Tyler Seguin
3. Jason Spezza
4. Radek Faksa
5. Cody Eakin
6. Valeri Nichushkin
7. Brett Ritchie

Barring a trade, the top six protections are close to a lock in my mind. The Stars value Nichushkin as an asset and believe he’ll be back in the soon enough. The Stars also believe they have value in Eakin, so he’ll be protected.

That leaves the final spot between Brett Ritchie and Antoine Roussel. Right now Ritchie gets the edge because he’s younger and the Stars have hopes that he can fill that long-term role as a top-six right wing.

Defense:
1. John Klingberg
2. Esa Lindell
3. Stephen Johns OR Jamie Oleksiak

The first two on this list are obvious, it then becomes a debate between Stephen Johns and Jamie Oleksiak. Before this season started Johns seemed like a lock, now it appears Oleksiak may have passed him on that list.

Goalies:

It doesn’t matter. Vegas isn’t drafting a Stars goalie.

It would be a missed opportunity for the NHL.

The expansion draft is one of the most interesting and unique stories in all of sports right now. It’s something the NHL needs to capitalize on and make it as public as possible.

The protected lists should be made public, any deals made to protect extra players should be announced — not hidden as future considerations — and the expansion draft selections should be announced in a made-for-TV event that would generate some buzz for Vegas and the NHL.

This is an interesting way to fix the goalie problem, and the math would actually work.

If Antti Niemi is bought out this summer Dallas would carry a $1.5 million cap hit for each of the next two seasons. If Kari Lehtonen is bought out he’d be on the books for $2,566,667 next season and $1,666,667 the following season.

In your scenario the Stars would be spending roughly $10 million on goalies next season, which is slightly less than what they’re paying this season.

I think Landon Bow will get an entry-level NHL contract with Dallas after this season.

There haven’t been any discussions yet, but it’s something the team will likely address after the season.

Because he was overly patient and kept waiting for a deal that never came. Stars should have been more aggressive in the goalie market last summer and tried to create their own deal rather than wait for one to fall into their lap.

My goalie shopping list for the off-season:

-A young NHL goalie ready for a starting job
-An AHL veteran that could be trusted to play in an NHL game if needed.
-A draft pick.

I think the Stars would like to see Ales Hemsky back next season. Obviously not at a $4 million cap hit, but maybe around $2 million if he continues to make strides over the final 16 games.

If they were they would have been the call up before Remi Elie.

Denis Gurianov could be an NHL option next season, but I’d like to see him play another AHL season and play big minutes in all situations with the Texas Stars.

Jason Dickinson is close to NHL duty, but hasn’t looked nearly as good as he did last season. He did have off-season hip surgery, so that hindered his season, but his overall play has been a bit of a concern an you’d like to see a bit more.

The 2017 IIHF World Championships are May 5-21 this year are co-hosted by Cologne, Germany and Paris, France.

More than a handful of Stars could be competing in that tournament, which will start roughly a month after Dallas’ season comes to an end.

Here are the most likely options by country:

Canada: Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Cody Eakin, Dan Hamhuis
Czech Republic: Radek Faksa, Ales Hemsky
Finland: Esa Lindell, Julius Honka
France: Antoine Roussel
Russia: Valeri Nichushkin
Sweden: John Klingberg
United States: Stephen Johns

These are just the most likely options. It’s hard to guess World Championship rosters since it’s dependent on injuries, a player’s interest, and what other teams miss the NHL playoffs.

Their aren’t many options, because the Texas Stars are likely going to miss the playoff and Dallas prospects at the junior ranks will still be playing with their respective teams through the end of March.

You might see Roope Hintz make an AHL cameo after his season comes to an end in Finland.

Esa Lindell can have a long, successful NHL career. But comparing him to Duncan Keith isn’t fair.

It starts with better coaching. It’s a long list, but that’s where it starts.

I think you’ll definitely see some shakeup. You can’t have this performance and one of the worst penalty kills in NHL history and do nothing.

For those who aren’t aware, Swedish hockey officials made a pitch on Wednesday to NHL general managers requesting that Swedish prospects be allowed to spend more time in Sweden and not the AHL.

You can read all about it here.

I understand the Swede’s request, but I also think it’s hard to ignore the benefit of the AHL. Prospects are much closer in the AHL and the NHL team can help control their playing time and watch them develop within the system.

For example, this quote stood out to me yesterday:

“There’s still one or two teams that are at the bottom (in Sweden) and have a chance to be relegated and if ownership and/or the fan base is not approving of that, it’s easy to sit kids,” said Sabres GM Tim Murray. “My coach in the American League may not like some of my young guys some nights, but I have the ability to tell him to suck it up and play them. So there’s that.”

It’s a slippery slope, Sweden is important to the NHL and the NHL is important to Sweden. So somebody much smarter than I will probably have to figure out a solution.

I don’t think it’ll have too much of an impact on how the Stars operate. They tend to take it on a player-by-player basis when bringing players over from Europe to the AHL.

I don’t know if ability is the right word, but I agree that Oleksiak has progressed this season while Johns has regressed in some areas.

A woodchuck would chuck as much wood as a woodchuck could chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood.

Or in simple terms, three to four logs.

Because we live in a world where players have to fight after a clean hit.

I’m not a doctor, so I can’t tell you how much alcohol to consume. However, I can help you prepare for the Johns vs. Oleksiak protection drama.

Make each of the following drinks, share with a friend, and be happy you don’t have to be the one making the final decision.

The Big Rig: Two shots of vodka, Canada Dry ginger ale over ice. Add a splash of pool water and make sure to mix in the tallest glass you own.

The Right Choice: Hot coffee, Irish whiskey. Top off with cream from Pennsylvania dairy cows and make sure to only use your right hand when preparing the drink.

Let’s go even further. Don’t announce when the games are, just send out the scores after the game is complete.

If you are lucky enough to show up to the arena at the right time you might just see a game.

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