Captain Benn is back at it and in more ways than one

I was having a conversation with Jamie Benn this summer when I casually asked, "Hey, did you lose some weight?"
Benn's face froze into that steely glare it does at times, and he gave me a serious stink eye.
"You know better than that," he playfully said, implying that I fully understand he's not going to answer the question, so why am I even asking.

I chuckled and moved on to a different topic, but the chat stuck with me after Saturday's three-point performance by Benn. The Stars captain has 20 points (8 goals, 12 assists) in 18 games, and has finished some of the most skilled plays than in the past three years. Earlier, he had a run of three goals that were all snapped into the top shelf. On Saturday, his "second" assist was dazzling; he stickhandled through the defense to find Tyler Seguin, who then tic-tack-toed to Radek Faksa on a gorgeous play in transition. Benn then quickly converted a Mason Marchment pass and backhanded a high shot past Semyon Varlamov for the game-winning goal.
It was a terrific night for Benn, who has worn his frustration on his stink eye for much of the past few years.
"He's got some skill in the tank still," good friend and Saturday linemate Tyler Seguin said defiantly. "Tweet it."

Benn won the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading scorer in 2015 and ranks third in franchise history in both goals and points, so it's no surprise he has skill. But he is 33 and has played 966 NHL games. He has "hard miles", as they like to say in hockey parlance, and his points per game dipped to 0.56 last season. So, there was some concern.
While he won't confirm any fitness progress or weight loss, new Stars coach Pete DeBoer said he knows the work Benn put in over the summer.
"I saw a guy that every time I showed up for work this summer, he was the first guy in the gym, the first guy in training, the first guy trying to get quicker," DeBoer said. "Nobody put more work in than him coming into this season. You get what you put in sometimes, and it definitely started there for him."
Benn did admit when asked about the potential weight loss in the summer, "The league's getting faster." Right now, he seems to be keeping up pretty well. He said the other day the shot is simply coming, and he's firing it without thinking. That's a huge step forward for a scorer. Yes, you have to get yourself into position to score (fitness and work), but then you have to finish (skill). DeBoer said he sees his players gaining confidence right now, and this is huge for scorers.
"It's an immense piece to being an NHL player," DeBoer said. "Riding those waves of confidence - it's impossible to have it all year, but it's extending those waves when you're feeling really good and minimizing the ones when you're not."

Benn didn't score a goal in the first 10 games and now has eight in the past eight. That makes the transition to his current point-a-game pace even more impressive.
"I think it took him a little while and he obviously wore that pretty hard," DeBoer said of the 10-game goal drought. "But he's getting rewarded now and he's playing fantastic."
DeBoer has used Benn as the key to a line with youngsters Wyatt Johnston and Ty Dellandrea, but on Saturday DeBoer put him back with Tyler Seguin because of the injury absence of Roope Hintz. The regular Benn line could be back to normal on Monday against the Avalanche if Hintz is healthy, but Benn is expected to build on this run no matter what happens.
"Jamie likes his line, he likes playing with those guys," DeBoer said. "His impact on those kids is immense and it has nothing to do with him the player. I just think it's the comfort level of having his presence on the ice with them. Other guys aren't going to take liberties with them. With young, skilled players, that's always in the back of your mind - 'Are they going to get run out of the rink tonight?' If you're playing with Jamie Benn on your wing, that's not going to happen."
The Benn presence is intimidating whether it's on the ice or in the post-game media scrum. Benn was asked Saturday how he reacts to the outside noise or criticism he might receive.
"I don't," he said with an icy glair.
The stink eye is still strong in this one - that part of his game hasn't wavered at all.
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heika
is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter

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