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DALLAS — After their coaches left the locker room Thursday night, Dallas Stars players kept the doors closed for at least 10 minutes and held a meeting of their own, The Dallas Morning News reported.
It came after an 8-3 home loss to the Winnipeg Jets. Dallas led 2-0 after one period at American Airlines Center, then gave up 5 goals in the second.
Not since Nov. 8, 2016, had the Stars allowed 8 goals in a game. They lost 8-2 in Winnipeg that night.
Jamie Benn And David Perron Describe The Closed-Door Meeting
Every player has to look in the mirror after a night like Thursday, captain Jamie Benn said. He called it ugly and unacceptable while speaking with reporters.
In his official postgame interview, Benn also talked about an honest conversation in the room and the momentum Dallas let slip in the second period.
“I think it was just something that needed to happen for our group,” Benn said of the meeting.
David Perron is used to taking the lead in players-only meetings. In his fifth game with Dallas, he took a back seat and watched how his new team handles them.
Expectations in that room are high for Perron. A group gets closer when it can talk through what needs to be said.
“When you go through a tough patch, teams react, and that’s what we did,” Perron said.
Perron had given Dallas a 3-2 lead at 11:14 of the second period. His deflection of a Thomas Harley point shot was his first goal as a Star.
Glen Gulutzan And Jake Oettinger Point To The Stars’ Mindset
Players always talk, Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said, and meetings after the coaches’ meetings happen all over the league. He described a veteran group that cares and knows where its mistakes are.
Dallas played one of its better first periods, Gulutzan said. Then Dylan Samberg scored 1:11 into the second, and the Stars started trying to win that goal back right away. Gulutzan said that was the wrong mindset.
Gulutzan said the answer is to “stay with your game and keep building it back up.”
Jake Oettinger was pulled one minute into the third period after allowing 6 goals on 27 shots. He liked the first period and pointed to the high-end skill on Winnipeg’s roster.
Oettinger said it looked as if Dallas “thought they were just going to roll over and let us win.”
The same thing happened at home against the New Jersey Devils on Oct. 27 and the Montreal Canadiens on Oct. 29, Gulutzan said. Dallas lost those games 5-1 and 5-2. He said effort and character were not the issue.
Against Winnipeg, the Stars opened the door with self-inflicted mistakes, Gulutzan said. The Jets’ power play and top players are executing at a high level, he said.
Dallas (10-6-2) hosts the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT. The Florida Panthers visit Sunday at 7 p.m. CT.
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