CEDAR PARK, Texas – My itinerary for Wednesday night calls for a Psychedelic Furs show at Emo’s but after attending Saturday’s Texas Stars and San Antonio Rampage game; I want more of that instead.
First off, credit goes to the Austin hockey fans. Playing head-to-head with the Texas Longhorns and Kansas Jayhawks game the Stars drew 6,286 (with very few San Antonio fans) to the rink. (Don’t worry about Texas, they drew over 92,000). This kind of drives home my point (elsewhere) Austin is ready to support something other than AAA hockey and baseball. (Although some say the Longhorns are Austin’s pro team).
I can say one thing about the Stars, I may slip and call them the Dallas Stars somewhere in this article. They were the dominant team during Saturday’s 4-3 loss to the Rampage. Although they outshot San Antonio 48-21 (to be fair the Rampage played an overtime game the evening before). After watching the parent Stars out east against the Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes the style of play between the two Stars team is similar.
The difference in this game was the goaltending. I will come out and say it directly; although Ontario’s Peter Budaj might have something to say about it, San Antonio’s Calvin Pickard will garner attention as the AHL Goaltender of the Year and perhaps the MVP award. Pickard was the flat out difference in this game as he weathered a first period attack which projected to over 60 shots on goal.
It was different for Texas goaltender Maxime Lagace who gave up a soft goal to erase a 1-0 lead and a second one less than four minutes later. Bystanders, including PHN Editor Mitch Cooper, told me this game was out of the ordinary for Lagace. So my opinion remains open on him, but not a favorable first impression.
Pickard
I have sympathy for this player. Here is a guy who acquitted himself quite well in Colorado last year with a save percentage better than any goaltender on the team. Yet, he was sent to the AHL by the Avalanche because the organization wants him to play full time instead of serving as a backup. I can see the premise, and the Avalanche do respect his chances to be a number one. Yet, here is a guy who could be racking up NHL service time (and salary) but is playing in a league which he is finished with.
That being said, although both teams were frustrated with the officiating, Pickard seem to spin a bit out of control after the Stars third goal. It was poor timing in my opinion as the Rampage were trying to hold on. Other than that, A+.
Johns
As I mentioned I don’t have a favorable first impression regarding Lagace, but Stephen Johns is 180 degrees out in my book. Acquired in the Patrick Sharp trade, I came away very impressed with this player. As a commodity right-handed defenseman are basically the equivalent of a left handed pitcher in baseball.
I believe the only thing keeping him in the AHL is the fact Dallas has seven defensemen who are fully capable of NHL play with Jamie Oleksiak being given a chance to make his mark in the loop.
I saw a player with a hard shot, the willingness to battle and from my vantage point of one game, a player who was in position. John’s is 23 and in my opinion is going to be a player the Stars (Dallas) can think about in 2016-17 as an option for at least a third-unit player.
Three Stars of the Game?
Often times the three star selections are made by the media. Not only in this game, but in countless others, the three stars are chosen by point totals, or horrors, by scoring the game-winning goal in overtime after doing zero plus during regulation. The scoresheet should not determine the stars of the game and when, without scoring points, will a defensive player be a star?
In this game Mikko Rantanan was named the first star after he picked up four points, including two goals. He had a decent enough game, but his two goals were arguably preventable. The Avalanche’s first round pick had an okay game, nothing special and certainly the points were far greater than his effect on the results.
Did he have the same impact on the outcome as Pickard did? No way. Without the San Antonio netminder’s efforts we are looking at a 6-4 Austin win.
Then I saw it
Jason Dickenson was selected late (29th overall) in the first round of the 2013 Entry Draft. During this game I truly was wondering why. Then it happened.
Midway through the final period the rookie center picked up a loose puck in the attacking zone, wheeled through a few San Antonio players and faked Pickard out to cash in. It was one of the best individual efforts I have seen in a long time. Dickenson is 20 years old, if Dallas GM Jim Nill uses the same system as his former Detroit organization does, Dickenson will be in Austin for a couple of years and then compete for a role in the NHL.
This ain’t your dad’s AHL
I was happy to say hello Brien Rea who serves as the Director of Broadcast and Media Relations for the Stars. Perhaps this is a sign of the times, but I have to admit I was wondering if the Stars held a radio market in Austin.
Then I went into the press box and my how things have changed! Not only was Brian on the radio, he was on television! I went through the box and I saw the game ops area which rivals the NHL game ops I have seen.
This was followed by watching my fellow reporters. All kinds of things were going on. They were watching televised replays from AHL Live, Twittering, following other games on the internet, etc. and etc.
Then I was told there was no need to go to the media scrum because the interviews were replayed on You Tube! (Note: I don’t go to the interviews if I don’t have a deadline. I find most players, coaches, etc. are more likely to be more open after a practice. I also can stay out of the way of the reporters who do have a deadline).
But man, I cut my teeth at Dallas Fair Park and the building in Tulsa where surely the gondola would collapse at any minute. Twitter? We were mainly happy if a mouse didn’t show up in the box in some cities. This media box was exceptional and as always there is an element of hockey history with former NHL players scouting.
Anyway, I sure am glad I didn’t purchase tickets for the concert. The San Antonio and Texas (Austin) rivalry is alive and well. I am currently advising the folks in my office to attend on Wednesday.
I am going to ask PHN Central to get ahold of Brien at the Stars and watch what promises to be a highly contentious rematch.
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