This week in the NHL, by Kevin Lindstrom

This Week in the NHL, 2-19-08 Edition, by Kevin Lindstrom

Lookie here – someone else is creating a little separation from the pack. And who might it be, but [Bill]Your-Dallas-Stars![/Bill]

Other than a slight stumble in Phoenix, the Stars have been playing their kind of hockey and imposing their will on whoever they play. On Sunday, it was against the Detroit Red Wings – that is right, the Invincible Team that has now lost SIX in a row. And that’s right, we’re the one that gave them No. 6 – after beating Anaheim in Anaheim on Friday.

Nice.

Now surely, Detroit will right their ship. I’m sure all the Red Wing fans are going “better now than in April.” And they are right. And they also shrugged off their bad streak on Monday with a battering of the Avs. Ah, yes, Dallas-Detroit-Colorado – the way the West should be. (Sorry for the Good Old Days Syndrome lapse….)

But that doesn’t take anything away from the fact that Your Dallas Stars are a good bit ahead of everyone else an playing some pretty solid hockey pretty much night in and night out. And even though some of that distance washes out when the games played are factored in, you still have a team playing the team with the best record in the game at home and last year’s Champs on their ice and coming out on top.

Looks like Detroit isn’t the only team stumbling a bit, either. Ottawa took it on the chin a few times last week as well, and San Jose is on a terrible run. Minnesota seems to be making headway, along with the Ducks (despite their loss to the Stars).

Looking around the league, and there really isn’t a lot of “new”, other than the fact that who is currently in and currently out of the playoffs changes from day to day and things are tight after the Stars.

So what are the current issues for the Stars relative to the rest of the league? Two issues pop in my head – who wins the Pacific (and how important that may or may not be) and what trades could change the landscape.

Who can catch the Stars for the Pacific Division? The Ducks will have to get better and hope the Stars cool off as they are six points back and even on games. Those two things are possible, but will it happen to the degree the Ducks need? Less clear. As for the Sharks, they are nine points back but have four games in hand – possibly more realistic, but games in hand don’t always equate to points, especially when it means you have to play more games than other teams.

The trade deadline is approaching and with Forsberg pulling himself out of the NHL for this year, things could get interesting. Here is hoping Your Dallas Stars don’t do anything unless it is the right move at the right price. Why? You’ve got a good group who seems to have come together this year and are playing well. Give them a chance to play together in the playoffs and see how they do. Obviously, the goal is to win the Cup, but sometimes a team has to become a band of brothers – and you can’t do that anywhere but in the playoffs.

All in all, the Stars just need to keep raising their game with the goal of peaking in the playoffs, ‘cause after all the regular season success this team has had over the years, we know what matters – winning in the playoffs. That isn’t to say that the regular season isn’t important, or that winning the division isn’t a good thing, but I’d rather the team peak at the right time rather than push themselves silly in the regular season. Keep improving, keep pushing – but make sure that you’re playing your best hockey in April and May, not in February or March.