On the reality of the Stars defense and the Nils Lundvist

Some thoughts on the whole situation that seems to be the hot-button topic this week.

You know all about American Thanksgiving and the NHL.

How the teams in playoff positioning when the turkey is carved are typically the ones in similar spots come April and May.

It’s when dividing lines are drawn, teams below the cut at that point are either rebuilding or trying to do the improbable. One way or the other, they get a new narrative coming out of Thanksgiving

Teams above the cut typically move into a weird mushy area of exceptions. And those with actual expectations move into the frustrating territory where each win becomes an outlier and each loss is a reason to panic.

This brings me to the Dallas Stars and this past week.

The Stars cranked the Tampa Bay Lightning 8-1 on Saturday. Two nights later they were tuned up 4-0 by the Lightning.