Dallas Stars face tough questions after waiving defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok, who was swiftly claimed by the Boston Bruins. Is losing a promising young asset a setback for the Stars’ Stanley Cup ambitions, or simply a necessary move amid roster crunches and injury woes? Joey Erickson unpacks whether the price was too high, the logic behind keeping veterans like Capobianco, and how the front office’s decisions fit into the team’s championship blueprint. Struggling at 5-on-5, the Stars need rapid improvements in shot quantity and offensive zone pressure to maintain their position as NHL’s second-best team. Key discussion points include Thomas Harley’s injury recovery, Matt Duchene’s impact, and the escalating arms race in the Central Division as Minnesota surges with Quinn Hughes. Erickson evaluates potential trade targets, explores Tyler Seguin’s injury implications, and weighs Dallas’s chances against division rivals. Can the Stars adjust in time to stay ahead in hockey’s most unforgiving division?
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0:00 – Kolyochonok Waiver Reaction
Joey Erickson discusses whether waiving Vladislav Koliochonok was a mistake, breaks down the Stars’ roster decisions, and analyzes the context around losing a young asset.
10:51 – Stars’ 5-on-5 Struggles
The focus shifts to Dallas’ 5-on-5 play, the recent dip in shot quantity, and expected goals differential. Joey Erickson digs deeper into why the Stars need to generate more offense at even strength and recaps how recent injuries have impacted the lineup.
22:45 – Central Division Gauntlet
The show closes with analysis of the Central Division arms race, Minnesota’s run, implications of the Quinn Hughes trade, and why the Stars may need to make additional moves to keep pace with their rivals.
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13 Comments
The hardest thing about losing Koly is that he was the silver lining from Nill's Matt Dumba mistake. Now that he was lost for nothing, the Dumba signing is a full negative. Bad signing. And now we had to give away a 2nd to get him off the books.
Holy Koly, this was bad
Not ideal but that's the biz i guess
The fact that we keep having to have Stars vs Avs early is a joke. I would love a restructuring. Koly waiving was also a mistake. Should have kept him in the farm.
They are only taking good shots. Which seems frustrating at times, but it's working so far.
Since November 1, Colorado is 2 points ahead of Dallas, and 1 point ahead of Minnesota.
Doesn't matter; Florida already exposed Dallas as frauds this season.
We’ve still got some good talent in Cedar park. Are we really questioning the thinking of Nill? I think he’s proven he knows what he’s doing. I liked Kolyachonok but the business is what it is. It’s not a huge deal. We’re still good. I’m not worried.
Dallas top paid defensive players not as good as the lower paid guys.
Pay me millions and I will at least check somebody!!
The forwards are doing their part, keepers doing their part.
Top $$ defense sucks.
Need 3 lian bischels in the back.
I really liked the way Koly stepped up when we needed him.
I think we depend on the HR pass from our end too much. Instead of working our way up the ice, we like to pass from our zone through the neutral zone to their blueline. Which results in a lot of icings, and as a result face offs in our end. Which we havent been too great on winning lately. I wish we were more precise with our passing and execution through the neutral zone. The backwards pass out of our zone really bugs me too. I miss the days of Modano just taking it and going up ice and entering on his own. His mindset was, “here I come, try and stop me if you can”. And I love that kind of thinking. Rantanen has that. Wish more of the guys played like that. Confidence with the pill. I think knee ok overall. We’re in a good spot. We’ve looked flat the last three games. Even in the win against LA. Just want them to have more urgency. Maybe they will tonight and tomorrow in Cali?
Also a reminder that the playoff format is chosen by the broadcasters who want to know as early as possible what the markets will be.
We'll see if we pick up a new blueliner…I'd rather lose Nils…One thing that worries me about a trade is not shutting Seguin down for the rest of the season. If we get anyone I want Rasmus or Tuch