Dallas, TX
Game Day Guide: Stars vs Flyers | Dallas Stars
First Shift 🏒
The bad news is that the Stars’ recent slump has been going on for a little while.
The good news is that there is plenty of time to fix it.
Dallas is 2-2-2 over its past six games, including a 3-2 shootout loss to Tampa Bay on Thursday that disappointed head coach Pete DeBoer. The Stars got behind 2-0 in the game and battled back to claim a point. However, it was another inconsistent performance for a team that has the third best record in the league and a high standard that has been established during the DeBoer era.
“You’re patient, you’re patient, you’re patient…to a point, and then you have to get their attention,” DeBoer said Friday. “I think we got to that point last night.”
Part of the problem, the coach said, is the fact that other teams are dialing up their intensity in preparation for the playoffs. Dallas couldn’t keep up with the pace set by Edmonton, Winnipeg, Colorado and Tampa Bay in recent games, and while there were comeback efforts in most of the contests, the bottom line is the Stars didn’t initiate, but reacted instead.
“I made excuses for them for a few games there,” DeBoer said. “I’ve got to stop making excuses, but there are some real underlying factors, including where you are in the standings, where the teams you are playing in the standings are, the desperation level of those teams. We’re learning really quickly that we have to up our standards.”
The Stars have 14 games remaining before the playoffs and are in a great spot in the standings. Still, players and coaches know that you can’t just flip a switch and be ready for the postseason. When asked what the window is on finding that higher level of intensity, defenseman Matt Dumba said, “The window is right now.”
“You want everyone feeling good going into the playoffs, structure-wise and just how efficient we’re being,” Dumba said. “You want everyone on the same page, so when it comes to that time when you’re in these gritty games, you’re ready and you can rely on everything you have built during the year.”
The Stars on Friday worked on the details of their game like puck support and connectedness, and would like to get back to that in a 1:00 p.m. game on Saturday against Philadelphia. Dallas is third in points percentage at .662, fourth in scoring at 3.37, sixth in GAA at 2.62 and fourth in goal differential at plus-51, so it has done a lot of things right during the season.
“I’m not sure that I’m concerned. I’m a little disappointed is probably a better word,” DeBoer said. “I know we’re going to get it fixed. We’ve played too good of hockey for too long a period that we won’t get it fixed.”
The coach said he doesn’t mind trying to open a few eyes. Backup goalie Casey DeSmith was great on Thursday and is 6-0-1 in his past seven starts. That could open the door for more games.
“He’s earned it,” DeBoer said. “I think everyone has been on notice, including our goalies. We have one agenda here and that’s winning. It’s my responsibility to give the team the best chance to win. Is Jake our starter? Yes. But Casey is making a strong case to play more.”
Jake Oettinger, who is 1-2-1 in his past four starts, could face some motivational adversity, DeBoer said. In fact, the entire team can learn from some hardship.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing,” DeBoer said. “I’d much rather go through this now than three weeks from now. I think our group has the mental toughness to respond the right way.”
Dallas, TX
New video of Lake Dallas explosion draws focus on order decades ago to remove old plastic pipes
The search for the next general manager or president of basketball operations of the Dallas Mavericks has begun. They terminated Nico Harrison in November, which was about nine months too late, and gave any available candidates clear notice that they were open for business.
The plan was always to wait until after the season to start the search. While names popped up as the season reached an end, they didn’t begin turning over the staff until the Monday after the season ended. However, Dallas Mavericks fans are not going to like how the team is going about the search.
Patrick Dumont Leading Search for General Manager
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the Mavericks are not hiring a search firm in their hunt for a new lead executive. Instead, team governor Patrick Dumont is “acting as his own point person.”
This is an… interesting decision, to say the least. Dumont is not a basketball person whatsoever, and most organizations usually hire a search firm. The Chicago Bulls hired one as they look for their replacement for Arturas Karnisovas. Just because a firm is hired doesn’t mean a team will listen, though.
The Mavericks hired a firm in their last search for a GM. They let Donnie Nelson go in 2021 after a long tenure with the Mavs. Instead of listening to the firm, though, Mark Cuban ignored it to hire Nico Harrison, who had no previous NBA front office experience. Harrison had been an executive with Nike, which gave him connections with players like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and plenty of others.
For a while, that seemed to be working out okay. While he still had some questionable transactions, such as trading for Christian Wood and letting Jalen Brunson walk in free agency, they were still able to make a run to the NBA Finals in 2024. Then, he blew it all up, trading away Luka Doncic for an older and injured Anthony Davis, and the team hasn’t been the same since.
It’s imperative that the Mavericks get this hire correct. The interim Co-GM setup with Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley has performed admirably, but the 2026 NBA Draft is important for the Mavs to get right. It’s their best chance to pair Cooper Flagg with another young star, as they don’t own their first-round pick again until 2031 after this.
Hiring the right GM could help bring in more draft capital by bringing in bad contracts or flipping veterans into picks.
Dumont was able to convince Rick Welts, a Hall of Famer, to come out of retirement to be the CEO and lead the charge for a new arena. Maybe Dumont pulls another rabbit out of his hat for the GM.
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For a moment, it looked like FC Dallas was on its way to another statement win at home tonight.
Petar Musa scored two first half goals, to extend his Golden Boot leading tally to nine goals. But after Dallas grabbed control, the Galaxy found a way back before halftime with goals from Lucas Sanabria and Joseph Paintsil.
The second half brought more chances and more frustration for Dallas, which finished the night with 13 shots to LA’s nine. In the end, the point stretched Dallas’ unbeaten run to five games, though just like last week, it felt like another match where Dallas left points on the table.
Key Moments
7’ – GOAL! After a poor pass back by a LA defender, Petar Musa was free to go one-on-one with the LA goalkeeper. After a touch to get ahead of a defender, Musa slotted home his eighth goal of the season from outside the penalty box.
21’ – Offside! Joaquin Valiente sent a floating ball over the Galaxy defense, where Musa was able to get behind the defense and make an easy play for what appeared to be his second goal of the night. The play was called offside despite a fairly lengthy review period.
38’ – GOAL! This one counts! Musa gets his second of the night off a great ball from Chris Cappis. Logan Farrington picked off the ball in the midfield. He then played Cappis wide to the left of the penalty area. Cappis immediately played a ball back across the goal for Musa to slide in and finish for his ninth of the season.
43’ – Goal LA. Lucas Sanabria got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He took a couple of touches to get outside the penalty box before firing a shot that beat Michael Collodi at the near post.
45+4’ – Goal LA. Gabriel Pec got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He pulled the ball back a bit, which caught a pair of Dallas defenders. This allowed Joseph Painstil to get free behind the Dallas defense as Pec played him through inside the penalty area. Pec immediately smashed home a shot above Collodi to tie the game.
75’ – Another offside goal. This time on a corner kick for Dallas, after a scrum in the penalty box, Kaick hammered home what looked to be the go-ahead goal. But after a few seconds the flag was raised due to a deflection on Osaze Urhoghide, who was in an offside position.
Instant Reaction
Yeah, this is another disappointing result for this team. In a real way, it felt like the first half against Houston from last month. Dallas grabbed the lead, looked in control, but some defensive miscues opened the game up for the visitors to climb back.
With a double-game week coming up, this will certainly be another game where Dallas will wonder ‘what if’ more than anything else…especially when you factor in the two goals called off for offside.
About the Subs
Eric Quill went to his bench for the first time in the 66th minute, as he brought on Santiago Moreno for Logan Farrington. Quill went to his bench again 81st minute with Ran Binyamin and Nolan Norris coming on for Sebastien Ibeagha and Deedson. The final sub came during stoppage time with Herman Johansson and Joaquin Valiente coming off for Sam Sarver and rookie Nick Simmonds, who made his MLS debut.
Man of the Match
No question about it tonight, it has to be Musa.
Where does this fit into the season
As of this writing, the draw puts Dallas into a three-way tie for 5th place with Real Salt Lake and Seattle. Both are in action right now and look firmly in control of their games. I’d expect Dallas to be in 7th place by the end of the night.
What’s next for FC Dallas
Dallas wraps up a three-game homestand next Wednesday night as they host Minnesota United.
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