Prospect Report: Dellandrea putting up points, but his team isn't

Stars forward prospect Ty Dellandrea is on a nice individual run in the Ontario Hockey League, but his team is not.
Dellandrea, the Stars' first-round pick (13th overall) in the 2018 NHL Draft, has put together a seven-game points streak (four goals, eight assists), giving him 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) in 17 games this season.
The 18-year-old Dellandrea's team is a different story. The Flint Firebirds are 0-16-1 and have been outscored 38-104, ranking last in the league in goals for and goals against. Still, Dellandrea and the Firebirds are a scrappy bunch. This past week they took on the top three teams in the OHL standings and were competitive at times despite some tough circumstances.

Wednesday, Flint played at Sault Ste. Marie and dressed only 14 skaters (nine forwards and five defensemen) due to injuries, a suspension, and players being away for tournament play. The Firebirds jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the game and were still tied 2-2 midway through the second, but the Greyhounds scored twice in 45 seconds to take a 4-2 lead, and the wind went out of the sails of Flint's depleted lineup. Sault Ste. Marie went on to win, 9-3.
Friday, it was a game at London, and the Firebirds were up to 16 skaters (11 forwards, five defensemen). Dellandrea's tap-in goal from close range tied the game 1-1 early in the second period and after London jumped ahead 3-1, the Firebirds pulled to within one at 3-2 with 12 minutes left in the game. But on the next shift, with Flint in the offensive zone, Dellandrea got hit from behind into the boards and was slow to get up and London, which had numbers going the other way, scored to push the lead to 4-2. Momentum shifted and London tacked on two more goals to win, 6-2.
Saturday, Flint took on Ottawa, the top team in the league, and it was 16 skaters again for the Firebirds. Flint scored twice in 26 seconds in the second period to tie the game at 3-3. Dellandrea, who had nice primary assists on the first two Flint goals, scored the game-tying goal at 7:48 of the second, pushing the puck into the net from close range off a rebound. But then the wheels came off for the Firebirds as Ottawa scored three goals in 3:04 to blow the game open and went on to win, 7-4.
Dellandrea played well in the three games, tallying a total of five points (two goals, three assists) and it was evident how big a role he plays for Flint. He centers the top line, plays both sides of special teams and takes a lot of faceoffs. He's won 230 of 389 (59.1 percent) draws this season. His 230 faceoff wins rank third in the league, and of all the faceoffs Flint has won this season, 47 percent have come at the hands of Dellandrea. He's had a hand in 44.7 percent of the team's goals, 17 of 38.

The team struggles are nothing new to Dellandrea. Last season, Flint had the second-worst record in the OHL, winning just 20 times in 68 games. But that's nothing like what Flint has gone through so far this season.
This summer Dellandrea talked about his mentality of playing for the struggling Flint franchise.
"My mentality was always just kind of accepting the challenge head-on," Dellandrea said. "I've always been a pretty motivated person, and if a challenge comes my way that's no problem, you've just got to work through it and do what needs to be done. Took the challenge as Flint being a rough team and wanted to try to turn that organization around."
The Stars love Dellandrea's character. And they love the way he plays. Dellandrea had a strong showing at the NHL Prospect Tournament in Traverse City, Michigan in September and he fared well at Dallas' training camp. He played in one preseason game and did not look out of place. The Stars signed Dellandrea to a three-year entry-level contract before he headed back to juniors.
"He's just a good all-around player," said Stars GM Jim Nill.
"He reminds me of Mike Fisher in Nashville. He does everything right. He's got good skills. He can put points up, he can be responsible. He's the type of player that coaches love. He's the type of guy they are always going to be tapping on his shoulder, minute to go in the game and you need a goal or if you need a big kill. He's that type of player."
And Dellandrea is showing that with Flint this season, despite the team's struggles.
Dellandrea Stats: Flint (OHL) | 17 GP | 6 G | 11 A | 17 PTS | -14 | 13 PIM

In the system

Here's a look at how other Dallas prospects playing in North American Juniors, college, and Europe have been faring so far this season.

North American Juniors

LW Jason Robertson (2nd round/2017) scored two goals in three games over the weekend giving him 16 goals in 19 games for Kingston of the OHL this season. Robertson is tied for third in goal scoring in the OHL and leads the league in shots on goal with 209. Among Robertson's 19 goals, four have come on the power play, and two have come shorthanded.
Robertson Stats: Kingston (OHL) | 19 GP | 16 G | 8 A | 24 PTS | -2 | 14 PIM
C Liam Hawel(4th round/2017) has recorded points in five of his last six games (three goals, three assists) and has 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) in 17 games for Guelph in the OHL. Hawel ranks fourth on the team in scoring.
Hawel Stats: Guelph (OHL) | 17 GP | 8 G | 10 A | 18 PTS | -1 | 8 PIM
C Riley Damiani(5th round/2018) has picked up 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in 17 games with Kitchener of the OHL. Damiani is tied for the team lead with eight points (three goals, five assists) on the power play. He's won 51.9 percent of his faceoffs (149 of 287).
Damiani Stats: Kitchener (OHL) | 17 GP |6 G | 9 A | 15 PTS | -3 | 6 PIM
C Curtis Douglas (4th round/2018) has tallied nine points (six goals, three assists) in 17 games for Windsor of the OHL and is tied for the team lead in goals and is tops on the team with a plus-nine rating.
Douglas Stats: Windsor (OHL) | 17 GP | 6 G | 3 A | 9 PT | +9 | 20 PIM
C Brett Davis (6th round/2017) has recorded 13 points (six goals, seven assists) in 14 games with Kootenay in the Western Hockey League. Davis' six goals are tied for second on the team.
Davis Stats: Kootenay (WHL) | 14 GP | 6 G | 7 A | 13 PTS | -15 | 4 PIM
D Dawson Barteaux (6th round/2018) has registered 12 points (one goal, 11 assists) in 16 games for Red Deer of the WHL. Six of his points (one goal, five assists) have come on the power play. Barteaux ranks second among Red Deer defensemen in scoring.
Barteaux Stats: Red Deer (WHL) | 16 GP | 1 G | 11 A | 12 PTS | +2 | 2 PIM
RW Jermaine Loewen (7th round/2018) has 10 points (six goals, four assists) in 11 games with Kamloops of the WHL. Three of Loewen's goals came Oct. 27 when he notched a hat trick in a 6-2 win over Portland.
Loewen Stats: Kamloops (WHL) | 11 GP | 6 G | 4 A | 10 PTS |-5 | 9 PIM

NCAA

C/LWRhett Gardner (4th round/2016) scored three goals and was a plus-four in North Dakota's 5-0 win over Wisconsin on Friday. Gardner, a senior, has four points (three goals, one assist) in seven games this season. Gardner has won 66.2 percent of his faceoffs (92 of 139).
Gardner Stats: North Dakota (NCHC) | 7 GP | 3 G | 1 A | 4 PTS | +5 | 15 PIM
LW Riley Tufte (1st round/2016) has four points (three goals, one assist) in eight games for Minnesota-Duluth, which is ranked No. 1 in the country. Tufte, a junior, leads the Bulldogs with 29 shots on goal.
Tufte Stats: Minnesota Duluth (NCHC) | 8 GP | 3 G | 1 A | 4 PTS | -2 | 6 PIM
G Jake Oettinger (1st round/2017) stopped 37 of 38 shots as Boston University won its first game of the season, knocking off No. 13 Northeastern, 4-1, Saturday. Oettinger, a junior, is 1-4-1 with a 3.72 goals against average and .894 save percentage.
Oettinger Stats: Boston University (Hockey East) | 1-4-1 | 3.72 | .894
D Joe Cecconi (5th round/2015) has recorded six assists in the past four games for the University of Michigan. Cecconi, a senior, has eight assists in seven games for the Wolverines.
Cecconi Stats: Michigan (Big Ten) |7 GP | 0 G | 8 A | 8 PTS | -2 | 4 PIM

Europe

DJakob Stenqvist(6th round/2016) has recorded seven points (three goals, four assists) in 15 games for Bjorkloven in Sweden's second highest league. Stenqvist is playing on the top defensive pair and averaging 19:06 of ice time per game. His three goals are tied for fifth among league defensemen.
Stenqvist Stats: Bjorkloven (Allsvenskan) | 15 GP | 3 G | 4 A | 7 PTS | -1 | 4 PIM
C Jacob Peterson (5th round/2017) has tallied seven points (five goals, two assists) in 15 games for Bjorkloven in Sweden's second league. His five goals are tops on the team, and he ranks second in both goals and points among junior players in the league. Peterson, who at 19 is the youngest player on his team, is centering the second line and averaging 14:31 of ice time. He ranks 12th in the league in faceoff percentage at 56.7 percent (106 of 187).
Peterson Stats: Bjorkloven (Allsvenskan) | 15 GP | 5 G | 2 A | 7 PTS | +3 | 2 PIM
C Oskar Back (3rd round/2018) has picked up seven points (three goals, four assists) in 15 games with Karlskoga in Sweden's second league. His seven points are tied for second among junior players in the league. Back, who is the youngest player on the team at 18 years old, has been playing on the second line recently and is averaging 17:53 of ice time this season. Back ranks 13th in the league in faceoff percentage at 56.4 percent (128 of 227).
Back Stats: Karlskoga (Allsvenskan): | 15 GP | 3 G | 4 A | 7 PTS | -1 | 4 PIM
RWAlbin Eriksson (2nd round/2018) has recorded four assists in 15 games for Skelleftea in the Swedish Hockey League. His four points are tied for 11th among junior players in the SHL. The 18-year-old Eriksson, the youngest player on the team, is averaging 8:01 of ice time while playing in a bottom six role.
LW/C Fredrik Karlstrom (3rd round/2016) has three points (one goal, two assists) in 13 games for Linkoping in the SHL. Karlstrom is averaging 11:52 of ice time.
Karlstrom Stats: Linkoping (SHL) | 13 GP | 1 G | 2 A | 3 PTS | +1 | 2 PIM
G Markus Ruusu (6th round/2015) is playing for HIFK in Finland's top league where he is 2-4-3 with a 2.82 goals against average and a .886 save percentage.
Ruusu Stats: HIFK (Liiga) | 2-4-3 | 2.82 | .886
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mark Stepneski has covered the Stars for DallasStars.com since 2012. Follow him on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.