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Ice Hockey recruiting
Hockey team recruits for the future While focusing on the current team, Stars GM Doug Armstrong keeps an eye on the future with a dedication to building a strong farm system While there is much uncertainty of what the new collective bargaining agreement will look like in the National Hockey League, one thing is evident -- drafting and adding young talent to your farm system will be vital to building and maintaining a quality team in this league. And it's been that way for many years.
Championship teams' foundations are built from within. Sure, a free agent or two can help put you over the top, but you have to build the foundation first. Armstrong knows this better than anyone and has been making moves to stockpile young talent that will form the Dallas Stars of the future. "We've been making an effort to restock the pond in our minor leagues for several years now," Armstrong said. "We're committed to accumulating good young talent that we can grow." "(Assistant General Manager) Les Jackson and I work closely with our scouting staff and know what players we want to take on draft day," Armstrong said. "Over the last few drafts there have been opportunities to trade down to get more picks and still get the players we wanted. Those extra picks are valuable assets to use in trades or to draft more kids that are the future of the franchise." The key for Armstrong in this effort over his tenure as general manager has not been just accumulating draft picks, but top draft picks. All told, he has made deals to stockpile 19 draft selections in the first three rounds over the four drafts from 2002-2005 (this includes four picks the Stars now have in the first three rounds next year). Currently, those 19 top picks are the third-most of any team in the league during that time span (only Washington and Edmonton have more). When one looks at the future of the Dallas Stars, the first names that jump out are the ones that have already garnered some NHL experience -- Niko Kapanen, John Erskine, Trevor Daley, Steve Ott, Antti Miettinen, Mathias Tjarnqvist, Mike Smith and Dan Ellis. The Stars drafted every one of these players. |
And Dallas' hockey staff is hopeful that a good number of these players take the next step and make a solid contribution to the Stars this season.
"As we've said, some of our younger players will be counted upon to fill some important roles," Armstrong said. "The best avenue to keep the Dallas Stars playing at a competitive level every year is to keep phasing young talent into the main group."
Two more young players that may have a big impact on the Stars very soon were both acquired before the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.
The first came in April when the Stars made a significant investment towards their youth in signing winger Junior Lessard to a pro contract. Already 23 years old, he may have a chance at cracking the Stars' lineup sooner rather than later.
Lessard won the 2004 Hobey Baker Award as the top collegiate player in the nation, leading the country in both goals (31) and points (61) in just 44 games as a senior for Minnesota-Duluth. He increased his point total in each season of college, scoring a combined 52 goals over his last two campaigns. Lessard was selected to the 2004 American Hockey Association first team, the All-America first team, and was named both the uscho.com and insidecollegehockey.com National Player of the Year.
"We were very happy Junior decided to join the Dallas Stars," Armstrong said. "He could have signed with any NHL team. The fact that he won the Hobey Baker Award tells you that he's got some scoring talent. When a player wins that award, he grabs everyone's attention.
Bowling draws attention to how comfortable a person is in their shoes. There is a psychological need to feel very confident at the bowling alley, and the wrong shoes can make you feel uncertain about your form, causing you to lose confidence when you most need it.
Coffeyville Community College participates in several athletic activities as a member institution of the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference and the National Junior College Athletic Association.
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