Stars push to keep special teams bar high

Both GM Jim Nill and head coach Pete DeBoer have cautioned during training camp that getting both special teams ranked in the top five in the league will be a difficult feat to repeat.

That doesn’t mean they won’t try everything they can to do it again.

Friday was a big day of special teams practice for the Stars, and the workouts reveal both promise and challenges. On the power play, Dallas has added Matt Duchene and Craig Smith, as well as the possibility of young defensemen Nils Lundkvist finding more ice time. On the penalty kill, both Luke Glendening and Joel Kiviranta have moved on, so they will have to be replaced.

All in all, though, the Stars seem to be in a pretty good place once again when it comes to special teams. They were fifth on the power play at 25.0 percent and third on the penalty kill at 83.5 percent, creating some high expectations.

“Both special teams were really good last year,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “I think the power play, our first unit was exceptional, our second unit . . . we want to have a more dangerous second unit this year, and I think Duchene and some of that depth allows us to have some looks in those situations so we can have two dangerous units. The PK side, we lost some key penalty killers in Glendening and Kiviranta, so there are some jobs there up for grabs, and some ice time. Those are big shoes to fill to keep that penalty killing where it was last year, which was a big asset for us.”

The first power play unit returns intact. And while Roope Hintz is currently sidelined by an upper body injury, the chemistry between him, Jason Robertson, Joe Pavelski, Jamie Benn, and Miro Heiskanen should once again be smooth. Robertson posted 41 points on the power play, while Heiskanen had 34, Benn 30 and Pavelski 27. Dallas would love if the second unit could help support that, and it seems the addition of Duchene could be a boost.

Duchene had just 13 power play points for a Nashville team who finished 27th in the league last season, and that’s one of the reasons he was available as a free agent. The season before, though, Duchene had 29 power play points and the Predators finished sixth in the league, so he has a history of succeeding with the man advantage.

Dallas has some strong options on the second unit, as Tyler Seguin, Wyatt Johnston, Evgenii Dadonov and Mason Marchment offer strong forward options. Last season, Veteran Ryan Suter (1:35 in power play time on ice per game) and youngster Lundkvist (1:22 in power play time on ice per game) split the duties of running the second unit, but it looks like Lundkvist will get the chance to up his responsibility this season.

DeBoer was asked if there was any discussion to using Thomas Harley in that role, and he said the Stars will concentrate on Harley’s penalty killing for right now.

“I think that’s what Nils is built for,” DeBoer said. “I think Thomas Harley has offensive capabilities and I think he’s going to grow into that as his career develops. But I think we like the idea of a right shot up there and I think with Harley, we really want to get him killing penalties.”

The organization embraced that philosophy when they sent Harley to the AHL last season and it paid off. The first-round draft pick worked on his defensive mindset and became a much better all-around player. And while Suter, 38, is expected to see his time reduced on the power play, he still should be one of the team’s regular penalty killers.

“Sut’s was good,” DeBoer said when asked how the veteran reacted to the possible reduction in power play time. “Everyone has got pride. Everyone wants more. Sut’s has been a very good penalty killer for us, and with our depth, we’re trying to get everyone involved in different roles. I think Nils is built more for power play than penalty killing. Sut’s has been a consummate pro with those conversations.”

In fact, DeBoer said he likes being able to allow players to focus on one unit or the other. Sure, some players have to do a little bit of everything, but it is good when they can embrace a role.

“On both special teams, it can’t be just another shift,” DeBoer said. “You’ve got to take pride in that job. For Thomas Harley, it starts with penalty killing. I want him to take real pride in killing and shutting people down and clearing pucks and not getting scored against. And with Nils, he’s got to grab that second unit and make it effective.”

Ty Dellandrea is a good example of a player getting excited about special teams. The 23-year-old center is expected to get additional penalty kill time after Dallas lost its leading PK forward in Glendening (2:17 of PK ice time per game). Not only was Glendening a fantastic penalty killer, but he also took more faceoffs on the kill than any other Stars player and won 54.6 percent. Dellandrea won 50.8 percent of his total draws last season but was just 36.0 percent on the penalty kill faceoffs.

DeBoer said Dellandrea has addressed that area over the summer.

“I think Ty is built that way, and I think that’s what makes him effective,” DeBoer said. “I talked to him over the summer, and I told him we’re going to need him as a right shot faceoff guy to replace Glendening, and he immediately went to work on his faceoffs. He’s taken a lot of pride in that at camp. He’s a smart guy. He understands where he’s needed.”

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 @MikeHeika.