• HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • Site Index
  • NHL Salary Caps
  • Hockey 101: A Beginner’s Guide
  • Join Our Team
  • Free Newsletter
  • Store
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
Home
Dallas Stars

It’s Time for the Young Stars to Shine

By Jordan Dix January 24th, 2016

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

If you haven’t paid close attention to the Dallas Stars this season and just glance at statistic sheets every so often, you may not know that they are currently stocked with a good supply of talented young defensemen. Perhaps even to a fault. John Klingberg has established himself as one of the premiere offensive-defenseman in the game while players like Jyrki Jokipakka, Patrik Nemeth and Jamie Oleksiak have been in and out of the lineup.

Why?

Not one of those last three players mentioned has truly established themselves as NHL regulars but at the same time, they are entirely too good to spend any significant time in the AHL. They also all require waivers to be sent down and would certainly be claimed by another team should they be sent down. So unless a trade is on the horizon, they are stuck in roster purgatory. And just to make things a little more interesting, Esa Lindell just received a call-up and has played the last few games.

Lindell has been the best Texas Star defenseman so far this season and has lit up the scoreboard as well (7G-18A-42GP). He looked alright in his first NHL game, not awful but not spectacular either. His call-up shows what little confidence the front office and coaching staff have in Jokipakka, Nemeth and Oleksiak right now. With Benn out for the foreseeable future, those players need to take advantage of the opportunity if they plan on staying in Dallas for much longer.

Jyrki Jokipakka

The man they call Kevin has had his share of ups and downs this season.

Jyrki Jokipakka

Jokipakka has been in the lineup more often than Nemeth and Oleksiak, generally playing with Jordie Benn. He has played in 36 games and scored his first two NHL goals this season. He has also added four assists. While Jokipakka’s 51.07 corsi-for-% is the lowest of the three, the rest of his game been a little more complete. Only one regular defenseman on the Stars (Jason Demers) has been on the ice for fewer goals. Of all the Stars’ regular defensemen this season, only Jordie Benn has fewer giveaways than Jokipakka.

He takes the fewest penalties of any player on the team while still being relatively physical.

The one knock on Jokipakka is he has played somewhat sheltered minutes, especially when you compare him to the rest of the defensemen on the team. His offensive-zone-start-% (ZSO%) at even strength is 56.47, well ahead of anyone else on the Stars blue-line. Even with that, he has been the more consistent player out of him, Nemeth, and Oleksiak.

Patrik Nemeth

You have to feel for Patrik Nemeth. He joined the Stars late in the season in 2013-14 and was an important piece in the Stars’ playoff appearance. The next season he made the team out of training camp and Stars’ fans finally thought they had the big defensive-defenseman they had been missing for so long. And then this happened. (Warning: Skate Blade Injury Video)

This happened very early last season. Nemeth just hasn’t looked the same since and quite frankly that isn’t all that surprising. Is his mindset different, playing the game a bit safer? Maybe, and nobody could blame him if he is. However I think the larger part of Nemeth not being able to find his game again is the fact that he missed almost an entire season in what was a crucial development year.

His numbers in just 11 games aren’t terrible. His ZSO% is 48.54, one of the lowest on the team. He’s posted a 51.57 CF% in his appearances but that is good for a -4.14 CF% relative to the rest of the team during that time span. Flip that stat towards high-danger chances given up and it looks better for Nemeth. His high-danger-scoring-chances-for-% is 56.25 at even strength during his games. That is good for a 9.91 HSCF% relative to the rest of the team which is the best on the Stars. He’s been good at suppressing quality chances during his limited time on the ice this season.

We’ll see if he can put a good stretch together. It’s gotta be tough being in and out of the lineup but he needs to make a case to be a regular.

Jamie Oleksiak

It is really tough to get a read on big Jamie Oleksiak. I’m sure the thought of trading him has crossed Jim Nill’s mind, as he probably holds the most value of the three fringe defenseman despite being the least-impressive of the three in their NHL careers. The fact remains that he is a very big body (6’7″ 250 lbs) and is a former first round pick. The issue with Oleksiak as he just hasn’t seemed to be able to play as big as he is.

Jamie Oleksiak

He doesn’t have a booming shot from the point. He doesn’t clear the crease like a maniac. He doesn’t do most of the “big guy” stuff that you would expect him to and it has led him to be pretty ineffective at the NHL level.

Oleksiak has seemed to make efforts to be a more physical player this season. He has 37 hits in just 11 games which is close to the 40 that Jokipakka put up in his 36 appearances. He’s posted a solid 53.53 CF% in his 11 games but a -0.29 CF%rel in that time frame. Much like Jokipakka, he has been pretty sheltered in his minutes, starting over 55% of his shifts in the offensive zone compared to the defensive zone.

Everyone is holding out hope that he can still be something great, but his time in Dallas might be running short.

One Must Step Up

The Stars are struggling in large part to the defensive side of their game. One of these guys has to make a stand and permanently grab this spot on the blue line. It would do a number of things.

It would increase the confidence of the player stepping up, leading to a better overall defensive game for the team as a whole. That confidence rubs off on players in front of him and if the players in front of you trust you, they are probably going to score more.

It would make at least one of the other players expendable, allowing the Stars to to potentially trade one of them in a package for a better player or for future talent.

They need one of Nemeth, Jokipakka, Oleksiak, or even Lindell to step up and take on the spot full-time. The uncertainty has gone on far too long.

  • Tags
  • Esa Lindell
  • Jamie Oleksiak
  • Jyrki Jokipakka
  • Patrik Nemeth
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Get theScore App Now!
Recent Posts
Jan 20th 3:15 PM
Column

Red Wings Wednesday Weekly: Hockey is Back Everyone!

Jan 20th 2:35 PM
Chicago Blackhawks

Blackhawks Seeing Hot Starts From Some but Serious Concerns Linger

Jan 20th 2:20 PM
NHL Entry Draft

2021 NHL Draft Rankings: Baracchini’s Top 75 Rankings

Jan 20th 1:50 PM
Philadelphia Flyers

Flyers’ Goaltending & Defense Among Standouts Through Week 1

Jan 20th 1:37 PM
Archives

Jets’ 5 Greatest U.S.-born Players

Jan 20th 1:15 PM
Philadelphia Flyers

Flyers Bounce Back Against Sabres but Lineup Questions Remain

Jan 20th 1:05 PM
Buffalo Sabres

Sabres Broadcaster Rob Ray Makes Light of Potential Brain Injury

Jan 20th 12:55 PM
Colorado Avalanche

Avalanche Power Play Sets Tone Again in 3-2 Victory Over Kings

Jan 20th 12:45 PM
Columbus Blue Jackets

NHL Rumors: Oilers, Maple Leafs, Canadiens, Stars, Panthers, More

Jan 20th 12:37 PM
Archives

3 Best Trades in Senators History

Editor’s Picks
World Junior Championship All-Time Leading Scorers

World Junior Championship All-Time Leading Scorers

2021 Guide To the World Junior Championship

2021 Guide To the World Junior Championship

Masthead

Newsletters

RSS Feeds

Privacy Statement

Contact Us

About THW…

Founded in 2009, The Hockey Writers is a premier destination for news and information on everything hockey. Updated daily with news and features from over 130 writers worldwide. Over 2 million monthly readers now come to THW for their hockey fix.

© The Hockey Writers 2020. All rights reserved.
logo
  • HOME
  • Hockey Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • North Division
    • Calgary Flames
    • Edmonton Oilers
    • Montreal Canadiens
    • Ottawa Senators
    • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Vancouver Canucks
    • Winnipeg Jets
  • East Division
    • Boston Bruins
    • Buffalo Sabres
    • New Jersey Devils
    • New York Islanders
    • New York Rangers
    • Philadelphia Flyers
    • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Washington Capitals
  • Central Division
    • Carolina Hurricanes
    • Chicago Blackhawks
    • Columbus Blue Jackets
    • Dallas Stars
    • Detroit Red Wings
    • Florida Panthers
    • Nashville Predators
    • Tampa Bay Lightning
  • West Division
    • Anaheim Ducks
    • Arizona Coyotes
    • Colorado Avalanche
    • Los Angeles Kings
    • Minnesota Wild
    • San Jose Sharks
    • Seattle Kraken
    • St Louis Blues
    • Vegas Golden Knights
  • World Juniors
  • CHL
    • Ontario Hockey League
    • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
    • Western Hockey League
  • THW Podcast Network
  • Store
  • FREE Newsletter
  • Search THW
  • More…
    • Join Our Team
    • The THW Archives
    • Prospects
    • The Goalie Page
    • NHL Salary Cap Information