Stars shuffle deck in effort to find right mix with lineup

ANAHEIM, Calif -- The evolution of the Stars' practice has been intriguing this year under first-year NHL coach Jim Montgomery.
The former college coach has had to learn to adapt to a more hectic schedule that includes significant travel, and so his off-days have often been used for recharging as much as learning. But with a two-day break in the schedule, Montgomery on Tuesday decided to throw a lot of stuff at his team.
The result was a peek into what he is trying to accomplish 30 games into an 82-game season.

"It is a tough balance, depending on what we're trying to accomplish in practice," Montgomery said of decisions to juggle up lines or seek consistency. "Today, I didn't care. I wanted to see different guys go with different people, especially in 2-on-1s and 3-on-2s."
The Stars ran some unique line combinations that looked something like this:

Forwards

Devin Shore - Tyler Seguin - Alexander Radulov
Jamie Benn - Martin Hanzal - Jason Spezza
Valeri Nichushkin - Radek Faksa - Tyler Pitlick
Mattias Janmark - Jason Dickinson - Blake Comeau

Defensemen

Esa Lindell - Miro Heiskanen
Gavin Bayreuther - Roman Polak
Joel Hanley - Taylor Fedun
The logic is that Montgomery wants to break up the top line, which has been a bit stale, and also wants to maybe get Valeri Nichushkin back in after being a healthy scratch in three of the previous four games. But, the coach juggled his lines a great deal Sunday in a 4-2 loss to Vegas, so he easily could go right back to his regular lines Wednesday against Anaheim.
That's why the timing of this move was both interesting and possibly nothing all at the same time.
"We have to be ready to play with anyone. We've done that forever," said captain Jamie Benn. "You change throughout the year. For the most part, everybody has two lines, so you are prepared when you do change. If things are going good, you stick with the regular line. If they aren't, you go to the next line. It's not that big of a deal."
And Montgomery said sometimes switching things up in practice can allow a coach to see different things. He said the players have improved their intensity, and that has made the practices easier to manage -- and to experiment in.
"Our practice consistency, our work ethic and our focus has been way better as the season has progressed," he said. "We don't lay eggs anymore, and that was we felt as a staff had to change as far as our attitude toward practice. I think the players have bought in, and the leaders have led that way, especially Jamie Benn."

On Tuesday, the coach was focused on sparking the power play, and those changes likely will result in a different strategy. While the Stars scored two power-play goals Sunday against the Golden Knights with the second power-play unit, the man advantage fizzled in the third period with a chance to tie the game.
Because of that, Montgomery and assistant coach Todd Nelson had the blender working. The coaches ran two balanced units at practice Tuesday and implored the two units to compete against each other for power-play goals.
"I think creating two balanced units will allow us to work at a higher pace on the power play," Montgomery said. "I think also with the way the power play has been, I'd like to create inner competition within our team. Having stars on both units creates that internally, which is healthy and also allows me to go with whoever's freshest."
One unit Tuesday included Bayreuther with Seguin, Shore, Radulov and Faksa. The other had Heiskanen with Lindell, Benn, Spezza and Hanzal. There was a lot of strategy involved with the decisions. Hanzal returned recently from spinal fusion surgery and had a strong net-front presence for one of the power-play goals Sunday.
Montgomery said he hopes Faksa can do the same thing with his power-play unit.
"I like the idea of having workers in the middle of the ice," Montgomery said. "Marty Hanzal with Jamie and Shore with Faksa will allow us to retrieve more pucks, which has been a little bit of a problem for our power plays."
Hanzal understands the concept and said it's logical hockey strategy.
"That's what they want me to do, be in front and try to screen the goalie," Hanzal said. "On the power play, we have to have one guy in front of the net, that's the basic stuff."
Of course, being able to juggle "basic stuff" with more unique practices can be helpful for all. It's just knowing how to get the right mix.
"You never know what a coach might see, so we're always open to anything," Benn said. "I like it. I think it's good to try different things."
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heikais a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika, and listen to his podcast.