April was one of the Dallas Stars’ better months this season. They were finally strung together a couple of wins, victorious in 10 of 17 games. Jason Robertson continued to make his case for the Calder Trophy, Tyler Seguin started skating with the team and is nearing a return, Denis Gurianov and Jamie Benn are getting back to their old selves, and the Stars are two points out of a playoff spot.
Jason Robertson Continues to Impress
April was another spectacular month for Robertson. The rookie continued to make his case for a Calder nomination with 18 points. He is one of the league leaders scoring at 5-on-5 and is just one point behind the Minnesota Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov for the rookie scoring title. Kaprizov, who up until March looked like he was going to run away with the Calder, has 41 points.
Going into Thursday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Robertson was on a nine-game point streak, the fifth-longest for a rookie in franchise history. Sadly, he didn’t extend it to ten as the Stars were shut out by the Lightning.
Tyler Seguin Nearing a Return
The Stars have had a rough time when it comes to injuries. However, there’s some good news. Seguin is nearing a return. He hasn’t played yet this season as he recovers from offseason hip surgery This month, he started skating with the team and is expected to return within the next week or so if everything goes according to plan.
His return would be huge for the Stars. While they’ve done well without him, they’ve missed having Seguin’s offense in the lineup. Dallas is in the midst of a very close playoff race with just six games left to play, and having Seguin back would help tremendously.
Denis Gurianov and Jamie Benn Have Found Their Game
Before this month, both Jamie Benn and Denis Gurianov were in a slump. At the beginning of April, Gurianov had just six goals in 33 games. Since then, he’s recorded five goals and nine points. It’s nice to see him return to form after a quiet start to the season.
Benn also broke out of his slump after being moved to center the second line. Before then, he had just four goals in 29 games. The change has helped reignite the captain’s confidence. On April 24, he scored the game-winner in overtime, something Dallas had previously struggled to do, and on April 26, he did it again.
He’s been scoring at even strength and on the power play, which means he’s finally getting back to the Jamie Benn we know and love.
Season-Ending Road Trip Not off to a Great Start
The Stars began their seven-game, season-ending road trip Thursday night against the Lightning. Let’s just say it didn’t start well. The Stars’ offense was stifled by the defending Stanley Cup Champions in the 3-0 loss. This was not the way they wanted to start the road trip, to say the least.
While it’s not going to put them out of a playoff spot, the loss didn’t help. With just six games left (all on the road), this is going to be a huge test for the roster, and it would have helped to get that first win. However, the Stars will be back at it May 1 against the Predators and still have a chance at making the postseason.
Final Thoughts
While it was far from perfect, April was a pretty good month for the Stars. They remained in the hunt for a playoff spot and have navigated their way to the final month of the shortened and bizarre 2020-21 regular season. Whether or not their season will continue past May 10 is undecided; however, if this season has shown us anything, it’s that this Stars team will not go down without a fight.
