Ten in: Stars have lots to like and plenty of room to grow through first 10 games

The first month or so of an NHL regular season never fails to fascinate me.

As the puck drops in early October, 32 teams go from a 0-0-0 deadlock to pinballing across the standings board. It’s as if someone dips a brush into a bucket of paint and then, instead of making a calculated and precise stroke, they just whip the brush with ferocity and send drops splattering all over the blank canvas. After beginning on a level playing field filled with potential, teams are scattered in all sorts of different directions.

And with that often comes the desire to overreact. For instance, it feels just as silly to say that the 4-4-2 Tampa Bay Lightning (who have won two Stanley Cups in the past six years) are sinking, as it does to say that the 8-2-0 New Jersey Devils (who have missed the playoffs in 10 of the last 13 years) are primed for a championship run. After all, it’s still October. We have half of fall, all of winter and half of spring before we can make some more concrete observations. A simple Google search of the 2018-19 Lightning, 2018-19 St. Louis Blues and the 2022-23 Boston Bruins can provide any further proof you may need.

But nonetheless, the knee-jerk opinions still run rampant through the various mediums of the hockey world. That holds true even in Big D, as the Dallas Stars roll through an October that has already posed a number of challenges.

There have been highs, like the three-game win streak to kick off that included 14 goals scored. That was accompanied by a quick drop, in the form of an 0-3-1 skid that saw the Stars outscored 16-7. To top it off, they once again found a high in their current three-game win streak that includes two comebacks and a shutout. All the twists and turns have left plenty of room for hasty assessments, both good and bad.

So, after sifting through the hot takes, where does that leave us? Well, it leaves us with a Dallas Stars team that is 6-3-1 through the first 10 games and sitting pretty nicely, all things considered.

If we take the recency bias route, Tuesday’s 1-0 win over the Washington Capitals was arguably the team’s most complete victory of the season. Jake Oettinger was spectacular in net, stopping 24 shots for his 13^th career shutout. Meanwhile, the Dallas power play clicked for the game’s only goal as Tyler Seguin flung a puck towards the crease that deflected off of a Washington defenseman and into the net. The Stars defense shut the door from there, allowing just six shots on goal in the third period.

The win secured head coach Glen Gulutzan points in seven of his first ten games back behind the Dallas bench and matched former head coach Pete DeBoer’s record in his first 10 games with Stars. It’s also a better mark than Rick Bowness, Jim Montgomery, Ken Hitchcock (in his second stint) and Lindy Ruff posted in their first full seasons behind the Dallas bench.

And when you consider that the Stars won Tuesday’s game against the best defensive team in the NHL without some key players in Roope Hintz, Matt Duchene, captain Jamie Benn, forward Oskar Back and defenseman Nils Lundkvist, the victory looks even more impressive.

“When your depth is being tested, other teams can match up pretty good against you and you aren’t getting the matchups you’re looking for night in and night out because you just don’t have the depth to maneuver pieces around,” Gulutzan said on Wednesday. “What we’re trying to do right now, our focus isn’t on scoring. It’s always on parts of our game and that’s one of them, but our focus is on grinding out good defensive wins and generating offense. That might be the only concern I had about last night, is that we didn’t generate a lot.”

To sum it up, there seems to be plenty to like about the Stars’ first ten games as well as a list of things to improve upon and polish. Both can be true, and one could argue that it’s an ideal spot for any team to be in as we approach November. After all, what good is it for a team to have no higher bar to strive towards with so much season left to play?

“This is the time of the year that you certainly don’t want to get behind and be playing chase,” Gulutzan said of the first three weeks. “If you were to look at the schedule at the start of the year with Colorado, Winnipeg and Washington, you would take a record of 6-3-1. However, you always want to play better and you want more. That’s just what the League is. We’re still pushing to get more. It seems like it never gets easier, and it doesn’t.”

He makes a good point. After all, four of the Stars’ six wins have come against top-10 teams from last season. On top of that, the team has won games from 5-4 to 1-0, securing them via both strong starts and comeback efforts.

The offensive side of the puck boasts a certain dichotomy at the moment. On the one hand, the Stars currently sit tied for 30^th in 5v5 scoring in the NHL. The even strength attack certainly has some holes, many of which seem fixable with a dose of good health to injured players. The first three games of the season offered a glimpse at the potential.

But on the flip side, the power play is scalding hot. It’s 11-for-35 on the season for a 31.4% success rate, which sits third-best in the NHL. They’ve scored six goals on the man advantage in the last four games alone, including each of the last three game-winners. Seven different players have a power play goal, too. Assistant coach Neil Graham has had no problems so far with pushing the right buttons with both PP units in his first NHL season.

On the other end, the Dallas defense is starting to look like its old self under assistant coach Alain Nasreddine. After allowing at least three goals in six of the first seven games, the Stars have shored up in their own end and allowed just four combined goals in the past three games. The same success is starting to be seen on the penalty kill. Dallas allowed seven power play goals in the first six games, including three games with multiple PPG against. In the past four games, however, they are 9-for-11 and are starting to once again look like one of the NHL’s top clubs while shorthanded.

Meanwhile, Oettinger has held opponents to two or fewer goals in four of his last six starts after surrendering eight in the first two games against the Jets and Avalanche. Similarly, Casey DeSmith put together a strong 23-save start in Sunday’s win over Nashville after allowing five goals in his season debut.

One of Gulutzan’s top goals upon being hired was to get the Stars to ramp up the physical element of their game. That wish has been granted so far as Dallas is currently tied for the 11^th most hits per game at 22.7 after placing last in the previous two seasons at 16.5.

15 different Stars have scored a goal already, while 19 of 22 skaters have a point. The depth is proving to once again be effective and capable, especially as the injuries have piled up in the early going. But it hasn’t stopped the team from finding solutions from period to period and game to game.

“I enjoy it because we dig in here,” Gulutzan said. “We’ve got a great coaching staff and we dig in here. You only control what you can control, and we’re really dedicated in there. Grammer, Nas, Pelts, Reeser and Stan, the whole crew is trying to win and get better. It’s been fun for me in that aspect.”

And that’s what this is all about, right? Finding ways to win while also committing to growing and evolving. Oh, and having fun amid all of the twists and turns.

So far, the Stars seem to be doing all of the above. And there isn’t much more you could hope for through an intriguing first 10 games.

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Josh Clark is a writer for DallasStars.com. Follow him on X @Josh_Clark02.