First Shift 🏒
The Stars opened the 2025-26 regular season as one of the top scoring teams in the league.
In more recent games, they have had a harder time getting goals.
So as they move forward in the Glen Gulutzan era, there is an understanding that this will take some time. After scoring just four goals in the past three games, Gulutzan said there is a process to finding the right groove.
“It's never linear,” the new coach said. “It's up and down, you get hot and you get cold. Fifty-goal-scorers don't score, usually, in fifty straight games. Same thing with us, we'll find it.”
Gulutzan said the relationship between offense and defense is important in the NHL, and while the Stars did light up the scoreboard in games against Winnipeg, Colorado and Minnesota, they had some deficiencies that showed up in losses to Vancouver, St. Louis and Columbus. On Thursday, Dallas was much better defensively and that helped get the game to overtime before Los Angeles won 3-2.
“We've been really hammering on the details of defense, and you could see tonight we didn't give up a lot,” Gulutzan said. “The scoring will come, especially with this group.”
Dallas ranked third in the NHL in scoring last season at 3.35 goals per game. It ranks 19th this season at 3.00. Four players are averaging at least a point per game.
That said, there is a balance to pushing for more and staying calm.
“I think at times we can be gripping our sticks, because we want it so much,” said Rantanen. “But we just have to stay focused and do what comes natural.”
A big part of that is finding cleaner ways to break out the puck. Dallas did that on Thursday, but it has been an issue at times.
“It's frustrating,” said Heiskanen. “You want to be really good at breaking the puck out and it makes the whole game a lot easier, and you just have to find ways to do that. I think we are just maybe thinking too much or trying too much once in a while and just simplify a little and make it a little easier for everyone.”
Bottom line, the smoother you are as a team, the easier it is to score.
“I think we played better today than what we have been playing lately,” said center Roope Hintz. “But we need to cash in more. We had good looks tonight, but it’s still not good enough because we have to put those in the net. So, we have to find that somewhere in the next game.”
