The Dallas Stars have a new line and are reaping the benefits of the newly formed trio. Tuesday night’s loss against the Nashville Predators, albeit frustrating, had its moments. One of those moments was the continuation of the offensive excellence of the Jason Robertson-Roope Hintz-Joe Pavelski line.
A Line Combination Made in Heaven
The first time we were introduced to the trio we never knew we had been missing, was on March 23.
While they weren’t an official line combination at the time, we saw them work their magic on the power play. It seemed that Rick Bowness took notice of how well the three worked together and put them on a line for the team’s next game on March 25. It proved to be a very good decision by the Stars head coach.
In the Stars win, they led the team’s offensive effort, recording three goals and five assists. Since then, the three forwards have kept their feet on the gas. In Tuesday night’s game against the Predators, the line recorded the only two Stars goals in the 3-2 overtime loss.
It’s clear to see that this line combination has been electric so far. Hintz continues to be the offensive unit he is, Robertson is making his case for the Calder that much stronger, and Pavelski is racking up points. Through just three games together as an official line, they’ve scored six goals and show no signs of slowing down.
What Makes Them so Great?
The answer is pretty obvious; they’re the top three offensive players in the Stars lineup. Hintz and Robertson had already spent a good amount of time together, most often paired on a line with Denis Gurianov. Pavelski was then moved onto the line, and that’s when things started to take off.
One of the best aspects of this line is the type of plays they can create. Joe Pavelski’s ability to recognize a chance to create a breakout play, combined with fantastic feeds from Robertson and the speed and finish of Roope Hintz, creates a monstrous amount of offensive production.
Robertson is becoming an all-around weapon for the Stars, as he now leads the league’s rookies in assists (16) in March. Hintz has been battling a lingering lower-body injury and has been in and out of the lineup. However, when he’s in he’s one of if not the best Stars forward. Pavelski, while he has slowed down since the beginning of the season, still leads the team in points.
The sheer amount of talent on that line is astonishing, and their line chemistry is out of this world. There really aren’t any negatives to talk about when it comes to this line combination. The only problem is that nagging lower-body injury that keeps affecting Hintz’s availability.
Stars Still Need Secondary Scoring
The success of the new line is a major plus for the Stars offense. However, it doesn’t remedy all their problems. The Stars are still being outscored in winnable games. Tuesday night’s game is a perfect example. The Stars outplayed the Predators almost all game. However, they were unable to pull out a win against a team that they are competing with for a playoff spot.
The Stars still need secondary scoring to stay in the hunt for a playoff berth. Just having one line breakthrough in the scoring front isn’t going to be enough to get them into the playoffs. Dallas needs all of their lines to be able to contribute to the offensive effort if they want another chance to have a run for the Stanley Cup.
For now, the Stars can build upon the success the trio is generating on the offensive sides of things. However, it’s going to take more than just one line’s offensive production to get the Stars back into the postseason.