Heika’s Take: Goaltending shines bright again as DeSmith leads Stars to third straight win

The start to the 2024-25 season couldn’t be going much better for the Stars.

Following a 5-0-1 preseason, Dallas is off to a 3-0-0 start in the regular season, including back-to-back shutouts. Casey DeSmith made his Stars debut on Sunday at American Airlines Center and stopped all 25 Seattle Kraken shots en route to a 2-0 win. It was probably the team’s most complete game of the first three and a sign that things are heading in the right direction.

“It feels great,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “We had a really good training camp and I think we’ve kind of carried that into the season. We’ve got some good structure in place. It’s not perfect, but it’s given us a chance to win every night. We’re getting great goaltending so that’s a good formula to win.”

DeSmith was excellent in his Dallas debut. The 33-year-old signed a three-year contract with Dallas in the offseason and had a solid camp, posting a 1.51 GAA in 120 minutes of play. On Sunday, he stepped right in and continued that run.

“That was a blast,” DeSmith said. “It just feels good to participate and help the boys get a win.

Asked about getting a shutout on the heels of a Jake Oettinger shutout Saturday against the Islanders, DeSmith said, “That’s awesome, what a way to start the season. It just shows we’re playing the right way and hopefully that keeps going.”

The duo is the first set of goalies in franchise history to each post a shutout on back-to-back nights.

The Stars have had a challenging schedule to start the season, winning at Nashville on Thursday and then flying home for back-to-back games. DeBoer said getting strong performances from players like DeSmith allows the team to handle all sorts of potential hurdles.

“What I liked about Casey’s game is he looked really calm in the net,” DeBoer said. “He looked in control.”

His teammates reflected that attitude. Matt Dumba suffered a lower body injury Saturday, so Brendan Smith jumped in and the coaching staff shuffled the defense pairs. Miro Heiskanen, who the team was hoping to return to his natural left side this season, slid to the right and played beside Thomas Harley. Smith, a 35-year-old free agent, jumped in and played 13:07 on a third pairing with Ilya Lyubushkin, who also joined the team via free agency in the summer. Meanwhile, Sam Steel scored the opening goal off a nice pass from newcomer Colin Blackwell.

Steel, who joined the Stars last season, said the coaches and players help make the transition pretty smooth.

“It’s always tough coming in and learning a new system and learning how the coaches want you to play, but I think we play pretty simple here,” Steel said. “I thought it was a pretty easy group to jump into because we’re so direct and so fast.”

Steel’s goal came off a nice transition play where Harley tossed a puck up the boards to Blackwell on the goal line, who then found Steel crashing the net. That gave Dallas a 1-0 lead at the 16:17 mark of the first period, and Wyatt Johnston doubled the lead 13 seconds later when he lifted a shot just under the crossbar after a nice pass by Jamie Benn that helped clear some space.

That was all the scoring DeSmith would need, as he held firm while the Stars were being outshot 19-10 in the second and third periods combined. That said, the Stars were protecting a lead and playing smart hockey.

“There’s a lot of communication,” DeSmith said of playing with his new teammates. “They do things the right way as far as getting back on breakouts, working together as a group of five. I just think this team has a lot of chemistry, and they know how to win. This team is always at the top of the standings, and there’s a reason for that. They know how to win.”

Dallas has made it to the Western Conference Final in each of the past two seasons under DeBoer and is a combined 13-4-2 in October under this coaching staff. There is definitely a message of starting fast, and so far it’s working.

“It’s huge,” Steel said. “I think it’s nice to not have to play catch up. It’s only three games, and there is a lot of improvement to be made, but I think for the most part we’ve been pretty solid. I think at this time of the year If you’re detailed, you’re going to win games.”

It also allows you to address any issues in a positive manner. If DeBoer wants to talk about improving shot differential or improving faceoff percentages, he can do that in a pretty good learning environment.

“I just like the way the group has approached it from camp all the way to the start,” DeBoer said. “We’ve got a long way to go and we’ve got a lot of things to clean up, but a great way to start the season. That’s what you have to do - you have to build your game block by block and I think our group understands that. There are going to be some bumps in the road – this isn’t going to be 82-0, and we know that. I think our mentality is in the right place.”

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 X (formerly Twitter) @MikeHeika.