By Will Martin
Woe are you long suffering Stars fans. You have been agonizing over the absence of a playoff visit for quite some time. Back in 2008 there were dreams of “1999” dancing in the hearts and minds of Stars fans when the team fell one game short of a Stanley Cup showdown. It has been a drought that has created quite a thirst.
That kind of letdown has been hard to stomach for five years …but there is hope. A new star is rising. Tyler Seguin at 21 years of age with his speed, creativity, and aptitude makes this all the more interesting. It was speculated that Tyler Seguin needed a new start after an interesting three-year run in Beantown which included trips to the Stanley Cup. What was his reaction to the news of the trade at the time? “I am very excited for the new experience [in Dallas]. I am very excited in earning the respect of my new teammates, the management, and definitely the fans,” said Seguin.
If one were to address allegations of a lifestyle of a 21-year old with all the talent in the world with a penchant for seeking a good time you might be a little off the mark. Kids will be kids after all. I defy anyone to have the kind of success Tyler Seguin had in three years under the tough microscope of Boston and not get into an occasional run-in with those whom we deem a ‘hater’ of incredible talent!
In today’s information age there is always smoke but rarely fire as in a story but not necessarily proof. Imagine yourself getting drafted at age 17 by the Boston Bruins and then you are hoisting a trophy mere months after turning 18 (he turns 22 on January 31st). All that early success for a youngster is enough to make most old people resent the fruits given to the kid.
Time has a funny way of evening things out and revealing the truth. While 2013-14 will go down as a season with new realignments and matchups and rivalries, we also are seeing an incredible amount of talent in the Western Conference as the Stars will be hard-pressed to keep up and make the playoffs in 2014. Yet many of the chess pieces are in place for multiple checkmates.
With that said one might wonder how excited and how dedicated Tyler Seguin was to want to connect with Jamie Benn on the front lines as the No.1 line as little as four months ago in training camp? Any pressure to perform alongside the captain, Tyler?
“We’re becoming good friends off the ice and I think that’s only going to translate to good things on the ice. Through training camp, preseason, I feel like every day with practices we’re getting to know one another and we bring two different games to the table,” said Seguin.
Boston is renowned for being a passionate but tough sports town. Was there a level of pressure that allowed him to thrive while there and thus be ready for whatever challenges Dallas presented? “I think that over the course of my short career, I guess you could say that I’ve seen all types of pressure, whether it’s been the regular season or playoffs not producing or the Stanley Cup final, you’ve just got to go the same way. You’ve got to be putting enough pressure on yourself as it is. You’ve got to perform and stay consistent. It was nice to get things going,” said Seguin.
Back in October there was a week of reunion road trips for a few of his teammates and himself for a game with the Boston Bruins. More than a few people in the media made a big deal about the idea of having a clean slate in Dallas. The return trip to Boston was a good one as he would figure in the win with a nice goal near game’s end. It would seem more than plausible that the team of Seguin and Benn were thinking back to September and finding the right mix of kryptonite and gunpowder.
It happened again December 7 as Seguin would get a natural hat trick with a four-goal outburst in the second period of a 5-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. The first win over the Broad Street Bullies at home since March 13, 2007 . The week Mike Modano became the all-time American scoring leader.
This is the very thing the Dallas Stars have been enjoying when Number 91 is on his game and utilizing his speed and agility. It might not be this year with the new realignments, but the Dallas Stars have a hell of a duo a la Ruth Gehrig, Durant-Westbrook, McGwire-Canseco, Kobe-Shaq, Swann-Stallworth with the line of Benn and Seguin.
The Dallas Stars, injury depleted though they may be sans Stephane Robidas and Trevor Daley, now serve notice to the rest of the NHL that the old guard gets deputized in the new southwestern baptism of trial by ice.
