2019-20 Dallas Stars Regular Season Discussion - Part II

[Smelling Salt]

The roster is expanded. You don't have to send anyone down, and you have LTIR space.

The limitation you have is you only receive 4 non-emergency callups after the trade deadline. If you use 1 and send that player down, you can't just call that player up. You'd have to use another of your non-emergency callups to bring them back up.

That is why, traditionally, once a guy is called up after the TDL, they're here to stay. That wouldn't be a problem if your coach played them. Otherwise, you could find yourself in a situation where say you've called up Jason Robertson, and he eventually is just not playing at the NHL or AHL level because the coach doesn't want to sit Janmark/Cogliano/etc. when everyone is healthy.

The coach, as much as Nill, is fighting for his job, and more often than not, they tend to become even more conservative and tight as things start to come apart. Look at Hitchcock in 2018.

Thanks. I forgot about the expanded roster.

 

[LT]

I almost wonder if you could fire Lites, promote Nill to CEO/President/whatever, and bring in a new GM.

I don’t think anyone would miss Lites. Nill is a great guy to have around but as a team-builder, he’s not the best.

You can already toss Bowness and most of the coaching staff without any issues this offseason.

 

[Kipper 17]

No...

 

[BigG44]

Kiviranta as the call up actually makes a ton of sense from a Nill/Bowness perspective. That's not saying it's the best move. I just mean it's incredibly predictable as the move those 2 would prefer.

I'm not complaining. I do think Kiviranta could be a very good addition depending on which player actually comes out. It at least makes it interesting leading up to the game tomorrow to see who comes out. Of course, it'll be more interesting to see who comes out when Radulov is healthy.

 

[BigG44]

I almost wonder if you could fire Lites, promote Nill to CEO/President/whatever, and bring in a new GM.

I don’t think anyone would miss Lites. Nill is a great guy to have around but as a team-builder, he’s not the best.

You can already toss Bowness and most of the coaching staff without any issues this offseason.

Shapiro's the only media member I've seen really talk it about it, but he seems to insinuate Gaglardi is very much behind Lites in all of this. The things many of us dislike about Lites, IMO, are likely him just being the mouthpiece for Gaglardi. There's no doubt in my mind that effing horse**** was Gaglardi more so than Lites.

I'm fine with that if that is what actually occurred. I like that Gaglardi mostly holds back, and according to Shapiro, a great deal of him remaining quiet is because of Lites holding him back behind the scenes from going nuclear in situations it could have happened. If Shapiro's suggestions are true, they do seem to work well together, and it's hard to fault Lites at his actually primary responsibility on the business side.

Lites seems like a toolbag, but he also seems like he does his job pretty well. I don't think he's part of the problem.

 

[Troy McClure]

Gotta call up a checking winger to help fix the offense. Makes sense.

 

[BigG44]

Just to compare 2018 and 2020 so far ...

After 58 games in 2018, Dallas was in 3rd in the Central with 72 points, St. Louis had played more games, but they also had 72 points and were in the wildcard.

After 58 games in 2020, Dallas was in 2nd in the Central with 73 points. Colorado was at 72, Nashville and Winnipeg were at 63, and Minnesota is at 61.

After 69 games in 2018, Dallas was now the first wildcard team with 82 points. They were 3 points up on 9th place.

After 69 games in 2020, Dallas is now in 3rd with 82 points. They are 4 points up on 9th place.

The one potential positive ... in 2018, Dallas' 8 game losing streak started with a loss in Game #69. In the remaining 13 games, they went 4-7-2. Dallas has already started their big losing streak so there's more time to recover. When Dallas did pull out of the free fall, they finished the season 4-2-0.

Take it for what you want. I don't think Dallas will go 4-7-2, but I also don't think that's how bad they'll have to be to miss the playoffs. They missed by 3 points in 2018 with that record. I think it's entirely possible they could win 5 or 6 games and still miss the playoffs, especially considering they have 3 games against potential teams who could pass them in the wildcard. If you lose those games but say win against the East, you could still find yourself out of the playoffs.

 

[Kcb12345]

Kiviranta as the call up actually makes a ton of sense from a Nill/Bowness perspective. That's not saying it's the best move. I just mean it's incredibly predictable as the move those 2 would prefer.

I'm not complaining. I do think Kiviranta could be a very good addition depending on which player actually comes out. It at least makes it interesting leading up to the game tomorrow to see who comes out. Of course, it'll be more interesting to see who comes out when Radulov is healthy.

Seems pretty obvious that Dowling comes out. Dickinson needs to go back to center and they never play Dowling on the wing so.

 

[BigG44]

Gotta call up a checking winger to help fix the offense. Makes sense.

It makes incredible sense for the Dallas Stars which is why I've gone from impartial noting that Nill's future relies heavily on success in this season to actively thinking it's time for some major changes.

Dallas probably makes the playoffs, but you are on the verge of two separate collapses with different head coaches in less than 2 years. It seems that a fresh start is going to be pretty important for this team to change what's been going on. There's been a lot of good this season, but you can't just over look how they started and how they've responded in the last couple weeks.

 

[BigG44]

Seems pretty obvious that Dowling comes out. Dickinson needs to go back to center and they never play Dowling on the wing so.

There have been quite a few obvious things that haven't happened. Dowling should be the guy that comes out, but like I said, it becomes much more interesting once Radulov is healthy ... and he's not been ruled out for tomorrow.

 

[BigG44]

Everyone other than Radulov practiced so I did not suspect this. It means Kiviranta only can play if Radulov and 1 other player is injured/sick.

 

[BigG44]

 

[M88K]

The Damn Coronovirus and the likelihood of the NHL season being suspended is going to save Nills f***ing job. Another year of "I like this trash i built"

 

[BigG44]

It feels a little wrong to talk about it with everything going on, but I would actually say if the season ended today ... there's not way Tom Gaglardi is happy, and I don't think Nill or Bowness keep their jobs.

If this happens in the middle of February ... they probably are safe. They're on a 6 game losing streak though, and I'd be pretty surprised if Gaglardi gave them the benefit of the doubt.

 

[Kcb12345]

Jets pulled to within 2 points of the Stars tonight. We do have 2 games in hand

 

[FirstRowUpperDeck]

Just to compare 2018 and 2020 so far ...

After 58 games in 2018, Dallas was in 3rd in the Central with 72 points, St. Louis had played more games, but they also had 72 points and were in the wildcard.

After 58 games in 2020, Dallas was in 2nd in the Central with 73 points. Colorado was at 72, Nashville and Winnipeg were at 63, and Minnesota is at 61.

After 69 games in 2018, Dallas was now the first wildcard team with 82 points. They were 3 points up on 9th place.

After 69 games in 2020, Dallas is now in 3rd with 82 points. They are 4 points up on 9th place.

The one potential positive ... in 2018, Dallas' 8 game losing streak started with a loss in Game #69. In the remaining 13 games, they went 4-7-2. Dallas has already started their big losing streak so there's more time to recover. When Dallas did pull out of the free fall, they finished the season 4-2-0.

Take it for what you want. I don't think Dallas will go 4-7-2, but I also don't think that's how bad they'll have to be to miss the playoffs. They missed by 3 points in 2018 with that record. I think it's entirely possible they could win 5 or 6 games and still miss the playoffs, especially considering they have 3 games against potential teams who could pass them in the wildcard. If you lose those games but say win against the East, you could still find yourself out of the playoffs.

Well, that is depressing. Most of us think its a bit early to panic, but maybe not that early, statistically. Monty talked once about the losing culture. We tended to think one year of moderate success, and another few months of winning under difficult circumstances had turned around a decade of that. But it could be that "losing culture" is harder than that to overcome, and the players are reeling under the pressure. I don't know, time will tell, and all that. If for some reason, they miss the PO, and if for some reason they drop to the second WC, there will obviously more calls to change the core, maybe not because they are declining with age, but because they have had more than a half decade to prove they can learn how to win over the course of a season, and another failure will justify the opinion that they still haven't. Hope I am wrong, but obviously, those thoughts creep in with every loss.

 

[brighteststars]

Reversing into the playoffs boys

 

[ZeHockeyFan]

Shapiro's the only media member I've seen really talk it about it, but he seems to insinuate Gaglardi is very much behind Lites in all of this. The things many of us dislike about Lites, IMO, are likely him just being the mouthpiece for Gaglardi. There's no doubt in my mind that effing horse**** was Gaglardi more so than Lites.

I'm fine with that if that is what actually occurred. I like that Gaglardi mostly holds back, and according to Shapiro, a great deal of him remaining quiet is because of Lites holding him back behind the scenes from going nuclear in situations it could have happened. If Shapiro's suggestions are true, they do seem to work well together, and it's hard to fault Lites at his actually primary responsibility on the business side.

Lites seems like a toolbag, but he also seems like he does his job pretty well. I don't think he's part of the problem.

He oversees the hockey ops department too. I don't know what %age of his job portfolio is the above, but to think that he is in any way doing something equivalent to what John Davidson did in Columbus and St. Louis, that is concerning to me.

 

[BigG44]

Craig Custance created a list in 2018 of Assistant GM's that were ready for their first shot as GM of their own team. 5 of them became GMs. The guys remaining on that list are Tom Fitzgerald, Michael Futa, Bill Zito, Craig Conroy, and Pat Verbeek. Of those, Fitzgerald, Futa, Zito, and Verbeek seem to have interviewed for every recent opening in the last 2 years. Futa has taken promotions twice to remain in Los Angeles, and Fitzgerald was a finalist in Minnesota before Fenton was signed and he's currently the interim GM in New Jersey.

Custance: The Top 10 assistant GMs ready for a promotion

Futa seems to have the best drafting credentials of the group according to a couple different sources. Ross Mahoney also interviewed for the Oilers job. Some articles said his age is against him, but in terms of drafting, he's highly respected. 12 of the guys on the ice to help the Capitals win the Cup were drafted by Mahoney.

I brought this up because apparently NJ is already interviewing GM candidates. Report a few days ago was they interviewed Mike Gillis, a retread from Vancouver. Dallas won't do anything before the conclusion of the season ... whatever that eventually looks like, but it's plausible that they'll be in the mix looking for a general manager.

The few things I read about Futa really minded me of Nill in terms of situation and background. They both have a serious background in drafting, and LA has drafted pretty well. Situation though is what caught my attention. Nill was reluctant to leave Detroit, and he waited for the perfect opportunity in his view ... turning down jobs and interviews leading up to taking the Dallas position. Futa has done the same thing to this point.

 

[mc3488]

Resign Perry for cheap. I was actually surprised at his work ethic, and his play started to amp up I feel right before this cancellation

 

[BigG44]

League and PA are going to have to come up with a cap number for next year without using the typical formula. That could mean the initial positive increase that was reported a few weeks ago could be way off. There's no chance the cap will go down, but I can't imagine it goes up much.



Chicago won't be making a change at GM.

 

[AveryStar4Eva]

I’ve heard talk of compliance buyouts if the cap goes down. It would be a huge kick to the team, but do we buyout Benn if these come into affect? If not who is the top candidate?

 

[LT]

I’ve heard talk of compliance buyouts if the cap goes down. It would be a huge kick to the team, but do we buyout Benn if these come into affect? If not who is the top candidate?

Honestly, Radulov would be my best bet. Benn should in theory but he’s too big of a name/face.

 

[AveryStar4Eva]

Honestly, Radulov would be my best bet. Benn should in theory but he’s too big of a name/face.

Yeah I think management would be afraid to pull the trigger on a buyout even if it’s the smart move

 

[BigG44]

I haven't heard of the compliance buyouts option, but honestly, Benn would make a great deal of sense. The problem ... compliance or not, nearly his entire contract is bonus money. Benn is only owed $1,000,000 in salary each year the next 5 years. The rest is bonus money that is guaranteed.

Gaglardi wouldn't save any money. It would be a massive boost to the cap though. There's likely no chance for Dallas to get rid of Benn's contact if they passed on a compliance buyout. All of that considering, I'd be pretty shocked if they did do that.

I could absolutely see them using a compliance buyout on Radulov and/or Cogliano depending on if they had the option to use more than 1.