Dallas Stars are about to embark on an exciting journey under the guidance of a new GM and a new head coach. First the owners decided to bring in Jim Nill as the general manager. Here is a guy who was in Red Wings and was highly instrumental in the team lifting not one, not two but four Stanley Cups. Nill then decided to bring a new coach and his focus turned to none other than Lindy Ruff. Ruff had coached Buffalo Sabres for a decade and a half. He has extensive experience in the field and is also one of the most respected coaches in the business today. The combination looks good and if the two of them get their way then it won’t be too long before Stars are shinning at the top.
Dallas Stars have made quite a few moves in the offseason to get back on track. Nill and Ruff have worked together to bring in the kind of quality that is needed to propel the team to heights it once enjoyed. The core of the squad is there and it is one with a lot of talent and skill. The arrival of Ruff and Nill got fans excited and their transfer in the offseason has taken it up a notch or two. A lot of them are expected to buy Dallas Stars tickets to make their voices heard and who can blame them because after all this is what loyal fans do.
The Formation
Dallas Stars, as they are currently known, were incepted in early 1990’s but they trace their actual formation back to the year 1967. That was when Minnesota North Stars joined the hockey fraternity as an expansion team. The team recorded a decent first season (1967-1968) and went 27-35-15 which was good enough to bring them a playoff berth. North Stars made multiple appearances to the playoffs during 1960’s and 1970’s but didn’t go any further than that.
The franchise was then bought by the Gund Brothers who owned Cleveland Barons and merged the two teams together in 1978. That helped a great deal and North Stars won the conference title in 1981 and also made it to the Stanley Cup finals where they would end up coming short against Islanders. Two division crowns followed in 1982 and 1984 before they went on to win their second conference title in 1991.
The Birth of Dallas Stars
North Stars were bought by new owners in early 1990’s and they moved the team to Texas in the year 1993 to form Dallas Stars. They got off to a flying start and made it to the playoffs in each of their first two seasons. Stars got their hands on the division championship in the year 1997. They followed that up by not only retaining the title but also adding the Presidents’ Cup to the trophy cabinet next year.
Stanley Cup Win
Stars had a lot of momentum on their side and were absolutely flying now. They made the most of that in 1998-1999 season. The team went on an excellent run to win the division title and the Presidents Cup. They went on to face Avalanche in the conference finals and came out on top in that series. Stars then took on Buffalo Sabres and lifted their first Stanley Cup by coming out on top by four games to two in that epic series. They did the conference and division double next season but could not retain the Stanley Cup.
Dallas Stars won another three division titles between 2001 and 2006 but the wheels began to come off shortly afterwards. Only two postseason appearances have come since then, the last of which was at the end of 2007-2008 regular season. The team is now entering a new era, one that everyone is quite intrigued about. They need to keep going and never lose faith. They have been making all the right moves recently which hopefully will lead to a glorious future.