The Stars wrapped up their Development Camp today and there were some notable players making good impressions....
The newest Stars first rounder Riley Tufte really turned heads. I've read some glowing reports on him in his first appearance. He still needs 2 or 3 years of college hockey before he makes the move to Cedar Park and the AHL, but so far those that were there in person are raving about him. Folks were really blown away by his hands and skating for such a huge, and raw, kid. Sounds like he's going to be a fun one to track as he works his way up the depth chart.
Denis Gurianov dispelled a lot of worries after his poor showing with Lada Togliatti of the KHL. Seems the reason for those poor numbers was landing in the doghouse for making it known he plans to pursue an NHL career. Once that news was out they buried him on the depth chart and did next to nothing to help him hone his skills. Petty move, but now he'll start the season in Cedar Park with an organization who's committed to seeing him grow. Add in a guy like Rich Peverly who's been hands on and very active in teaching the Stars prospects and things look like they're headed up for Gurianov, and his fantasy owners.
Speaking of that news about Gurianov, the writer who broke it Sean Shapiro is a must follow for all things on Dallas Stars prospects. Seriously he's a freaking gold mine of info and opinion. He writes for his own website, Wrong Side Of The Redline, the Austin Statesman newspaper, and Today's Slapshot among others. He also has deal through Patreon, where for $3 a month you can get all kinds of prospect reports and other Stars insider info. That just launched so the content is a little thin at the moment but will grow quickly. If you aren't reading his work you need to start, All of it, free or pay-to-read, is awesome.
And in good news for the whole organization the Stars goalie prospect pool has gotten a nice boost. None of them are close to even being an NHL backup, but it sounds like there are now at least some goalies to work with after the Jack Campbell debacle. Philippe Desrosiers in particular stood out as fans hoped he would, and should. He's firmly in the mix for the starting job in Cedar Park this season along with Maxime Lagace. Sean Shapiro noted that Phillippe has made big straides with rebound control which had been an achilles heel of his. Hopefully Desrosiers can land the starting gig this season for Texas. If he does grab the bull by the horns and succeeds and can hold that success for a couple of years maybe the Stars will have something...finally.
Devin Shore was very impressive in his return from season ending shoulder surgery last season. He'll be at or near the top of the list for any callups.