DALLAS — The Dallas Stars acquired Chris Tanev for just this reason.
to be the person shutting down Jack Eichel of the Vegas Golden Knights in the first-round playoff match. And now to square up against Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche in the second round.
Tasks that should not be taken lightly.
Tanev is definitely not someone to take lightly. He is a throwback, a playoff warrior willing to eat a puck for appetizers in order to win a game in the postseason.
However, the Stars have discovered that he is much more than that since they bought him on February 28.
“When we played against him, we knew he blocked tons of shots,” fellow Stars blueliner Esa Lindell said Wednesday. “I feel like that’s the first thing people talk about him.Perhaps I was also taken aback by how skillfully he handles the puck. Like his poise, he makes that tape-to-tape pass after holding onto it and dekes the initial forechecker.
“Off the ice, so kind and just a humble guy,’’ continued the Finnish blueliner. “I felt like right away he fit into the locker room. Now it feels like he’s been with us longer than just the trade deadline. He gives fist pumps all around and chats with everyone. Just a kind person.”
In summary, this explains why so many teams were vying for Tanev prior to the March 8 trade deadline. In addition to his unwavering toughness on the ice and his capacity to stifle opponent offensive, he possessed leadership qualities off the rink that are highly contagious within a dressing room.
It is also the reason Calgary Flames general manager Craig Conroy detested dealing him but felt he had to considering Tanev’s July 1st free agency and his team’s need to retool.
“He’s hands-down one of my favorite players,” Conroy told The Athletic via text message on Wednesday. “It’s amazing what he did behind the scenes with our guys, making sure they were always taken care of. His work ethic in the gym and on the ice was second to none. It’s always about the team.
“His ability to play through injuries is also something that stood out,’’ continued the Flames GM. “The way he treated the support staff was also second to none. I’m praying they win the Cup, because he deserves it.’’
He deserves to win the Cup, thus I am hoping they do.
Consider hearing that from the general manager who was compelled to deal the player.
You should learn a great deal about the player and individual the Stars signed from it. at this reason, Tanev was the Stars general manager Jim Nill’s top target at a trade deadline.
“Everyone knows what his game is. Really, he was the fit we were looking for, for our team,” Nill told The Athletic on Wednesday. “We needed a guy that plays solid defensively, moves the puck out of his zone, plays hard. And then the extra bonus is his high-end character, and he’s fit into our room and became one of the guys from Day 1. He’s a perfect fit.”
Naturally, the concern was that he was not being pursued by the Stars alone. As previously indicated, the Avalanche, their opponents in the second round, as well as Edmonton, Vancouver, Toronto, and even two teams that did not make the playoffs, including Ottawa, were all chasing Tanev, according to sources. The non-playoff teams expressed interest in trading for him in exchange for an extension.
Nill dealt a second-round selection plus prospect Artem Grushnikov, a young player the Flames really coveted, and he also stuck to his guns. Nill had a solid sense of the competition he was facing in the Tanev trade market.
It is a tight moment when you are trying to stick to your price but also really want Tanev.
“You never know, someone else can step up and say, ‘We’re doing this,’ and then we couldn’t have done it,” Nill said. “So you try to get a feel for what everybody is doing. And we know what our limits are, too. That’s all you can do.”
The second part, which is equally important, is doing all you can as an organization to make sure the newly acquired player fits in as quickly as possible. The trade deadline, over the years, is filled with examples of big-name additions that just didn’t work out, with not enough time for that player to find his bearings. It’s really more the norm than not.
On Wednesday, I asked Tanev what the secret is to a new player getting along with the team as soon as possible.
“I think it’s both the organization and the player, I guess. You need to be able to adapt and play how the coaches and team want you to play,” Tanev said. “They’ve also done a great job accommodating my family and I. That’s a huge part of it. It’s not like I’m 20 years old anymore and you’re fine living in a hotel. You’ve got a wife and kid (16 months old). That’s a big part of my life, obviously. So that can be a huge adjustment.”
How did the Stars make sure Tanev felt welcomed?
“I mean, Jim Nill picked up my wife at the airport,” said Tanev. “That was pretty cool for that to happen.
“We were on the road when I got traded, so my wife (Kendra) actually got here before me,” continued Tanev. “Jim picked her up at the airport to make sure she got settled in and everything. That’s so incredible. How many GMs would do that? It just shows how good a person he is.”
On Wednesday, I asked Tanev what the secret is to a new player getting along with the team as soon as possible.
But having his mind at ease now is also a big part of how perfectly he fits in. Tanev had a difficult time in Calgary earlier in the season when trade rumors were circulating and he was aware of what would eventually happen.
“Early on, it was tough,” Tanev conceded. “I felt, as December started to hit, it just became something that you got used to. Playing in Canada, we’re always the late game and you’re watching games before and you see your name out there.
“And then you’re going, ‘Hey, Connie, are you trading me now? What’s going on?’ I mean, we had such a good relationship,” Tanev said of the Flames GM. “He was really upfront and honest with me, so it made that part a lot easier.
“But as time went on, it just got to being background noise.”
Although Tanev did not want regular updates, his agent, Newport Sports’ Wade Arnott, kept his client informed about a changing trade market.
“With Wade, I said if something was fairly close, let me know,” Tanev said. “Otherwise, I don’t really want to know. There were a couple of times where he thought, ‘Hey, be prepared, it might happen now.’ It didn’t end up happening and ended up happening closer to the deadline instead.
“There were a few months of that, where there were a couple of close calls.”
Prior to July 1, there will be more significant decisions. Since both Arnott and Nill decided to postpone contract talks until after the playoffs, no talks have taken place as of yet. In addition, given their salary-cap predicament, it is unclear just how proactive Dallas will be able to be. However, I believe that the majority of the teams that attempted to trade for Tanev this season will make an offer if he is available on July 1.
That’s all for later.
Game 2 is scheduled for this Thursday, following Colorado’s 4-3 overtime victory in the series opener. When our interview with Tanev started on Wednesday, it was evident that was his top priority and nothing else.
“Obviously not the result we wanted last night, especially after being up 3-0,” began Tanev. “There’s a lot of room for improvement. I definitely can be better. They’re a fast team, a lot of plays off the rush, right? So they’re going north a lot with a lot of speed, and we need to do a good job being connected with our partners out there.’’
In the first game, neither coaching staff concealed their goals. When MacKinnon was playing, the Stars wanted Tanev to be on the ice as much as possible. When Tanev was not on the ice, the Avalanche made every effort to slip MacKinnon outside.
Peter DeBoer, the head coach of the Stars, does not always pursue his matchups with such vigor. But it would be foolish not to attempt this one.
“Tanev’s been invaluable for us,” DeBoer said Wednesday. “I think in order to chase some of that stuff, it’s personnel-based. You have to have guys that you think are worth chasing for those matchups, that are that effective.”
DeBoer thought back to his time in San Jose, when he had Justin Braun and Marc-Edouard Vlasic, a great shutdown duo.
“They consistently played against (Connor) McDavid and MacKinnon, and we would chase that because they were really effective at it,” he said. “Chris Tanev is an effective guy in those types of roles.”
In his first-round matchup with Eichel, Tanev was excellent.
“Takes away time and space very efficiently,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said in a text message. “Good stick and uses his body well to dictate where he wants you to go — usually away from the good ice. Always in the shooting lane and willing to front and eat pucks, particularly on the PK.”
With MacKinnon and linemates Mikko Rantanen and Valeri Nichushkin, maybe the most dangerous forward line in the NHL, things are about to get more difficult for Tanev.
“Yeah, they’re fast. All three are big and powerful guys,” said Tanev. “And all three are on the same page, they know what they want to do with the puck. If they have a play, they’re going to make it. If not, they’re going to put the puck behind us and try to beat us to it.”
“Because they can skate and because they’re so physical,” he added.
“That’s our big challenge. I think we can bring the puck out better than we did (in Game 1). They got a lot of first touches on pucks, and that’s what we want to do. We want to get there first and get it moving.”
I asked Tanev how it feels to know that, if it is feasible, he will also receive the tap after Avs player No. 29 jumps over the boards. You are searching for it the entire night.
“It’s the playoffs, right? It’s the time where you got to step up,” said Tanev. “I mean, it’s about playing against the best players and playing more. That’s what it takes, right? Everyone has to up their game a little bit. It’s such a fine line in these games. It’s usually one play that determines everything.”
This series will be greatly impacted by this matchup. However, Tanev is unable to ignore Thursday night’s Game 2.
“Right now, it’s about being better than last night and getting a win tomorrow,” he said.
“Everyone, including myself, needs to elevate their game a little bit.”
(Top photo of Chris Tanev: Kavin Mistry / NHLI via Getty Images)
