Heika: Dallas Stars seem to be embracing attitude Tyler Seguin once preached

Dallas Stars beat writer Mike Heika recently hosted a chat to talk all things hockey. Here are some of the highlights:

Question: During Tyler Seguin's first year here, he said the Stars had to learn to "hate to lose" after a loss. Boston had that attitude. Do you think the Stars are learning that finally? And if so, what is driving that?

Heika: I do think they have that attitude. It would be easy to say Jamie Benn is the leader. He has been here longer than any other player, and he has been through the down years, so you can sense his motivation. But everyone has his own story. Seguin talks about losing in the Stanley Cup finals and how it was one of the worst feelings ever. Sharp and Oduya are coming from a team that has been through it all. Antti Niemi seems extremely competitive. I think it is something that they're sharing, and something that is magnified by the fact they know how good this team can be.

Question: Can't remember the last time I saw a Stars comeback that was like the one in Minnesota. This team seems different.

Heika: There hasn't been one that big in a while (officially 2007), but they have been very good in third periods this season, and the comeback was part of that. Dallas was outscored 101-74 in third periods last season. They are outscoring opponents 34-17 this season. That is a significant difference.

Question: Were Saturday's first-period difficulties more the result of the back-to-back, or the stronger competition of the Central Division, and how does that bode for future Central matchups?

Heika: I think back-to-back and a motivated Minnesota team. Dallas was coming off a big win and Minnesota was coming off a disheartening loss, and that seemed clear in the first period. The Central will be tough, but the Stars seem excited about testing themselves with some tough divisional games.

Question: Didn't the Wild want to play the Stars in an outdoors game? Do you see one of those in the team's future?

Heika: It's a difficult thing to sort through. These decisions get made by NHL officials, television executives and teams. The Stars were thought to be the perfect opponent for an outdoor game, because of their history in Minnesota. However, Chicago was chosen as the opponent. The Wild, I believe preferred to go with Chicago because of their rivalry with that team and the national cache of three Stanley Cups. I believe television execs agreed with that decision. I'm not sure on the Stars doing an outside game. There is no natural rival. It also might be tough to hold at AT&T Stadium because of the prep time. We'll see. There are no talks ongoing at this time.

Tyler Seguin has scored 11 of his 13 goals on the road, as Stars lead NHL with 10-2-0 road record

CALGARY, Alberta - Maybe it’s the snappy white uniforms.

Maybe it’s the chance to play the villain.

Maybe he prefers being the hunted rather than the hunter.

Whatever the case, Tyler Seguin is tearing it up on the road this season. He leads the league with 20 points in 12 road games, including 11 of his 13 goals this season. On Saturday, he started the Stars’ four-game road trip off on the right skate when he popped in the overtime winner against Minnesota.

It was the kind of thing that has happened to him on the road more this season, where he received a perfect pass from linemate Jamie Benn, and he pretty much had to shoot. At home, he has tried to be more cautious, more selective, but things have just clicked on the road.

“I think maybe I shoot the puck more on the road, it is a simpler game,” Seguin said. “Honestly, though, it really doesn’t seem that different to me. I think maybe they’re just going in on the road.”

There are some interesting theories you can ponder, though. Stars coach Lindy Ruff has been using the top line more in a defensive role this season and has been asking Seguin, Jamie Benn and Patrick Sharp to be strong checkers against the opposing team’s best scorers. Because Ruff gets to match lines more at home, the message seems clear that those players are the hunters.

“I’ve been thinking a lot more about my D-zone coverage, and that’s probably more a concern at home just because of the way we’re used,” Seguin said.

On the road, the Benn, Seguin and Sharp line typically draws the other team’s best defenders, and that allows them to concentrate a little more on offense. Still, Seguin is the outlier in the group. Benn has 12 of his 18 goals at home. Sharp has 13 points at home and seven on the road.

“It’s probably just a small sample size and might be a little bit of a fluke,” said Sharp. “If anything, it’s a credit to Seggy, because he’s getting the other team’s best players on the road, and he’s finding a way to succeed even though he has to fight through that.”

Sharp said he does notice Seguin improving his all-around game. The 23-year-old center worked hard in recent years to improve faceoff success, and he currently sits second on the Stars at 55.9 percent. Now, he’s turning that focus to his two-way play.

“I’ve watched him from both sides, and I think he is getting better,” Sharp said of seeing Seguin as an opponent and as a teammate. “I think you look at something like his faceoffs, and he found a way to improve a lot in a short time. He’s a guy who works every day to make himself better, and you love to see that.”

Does that explain scoring 11 of 13 goals on the road in the first 24 games? Probably not. But whatever the case, it’s helping the Stars win. Dallas has the best road record in the NHL at 10-2-0, and that’s been a key with three four-game road trips in the first 27 games of the season.

Had the Stars not been able to find success as the visitor, things might not be going as smoothly as they are for Dallas.

“If you’re winning, it helps,” Ruff said of the road. “The road trips can bring a team together. We’ve played a pretty good brand of hockey on the road, and we want to continue that.”