For the Dallas Stars, having a blue collar defenseman who does all the dirty work necessary to win games is an untold luxury. Much like the job of an offensive lineman in football, defensive defensemen do the dirty jobs that don’t grab the headlines, and seldom make the highlight reels.
A decade of defense
Making his NHL debut on January 19th, 2016, Lindell played a handful of games during that season before becoming a full time Star the next season.At 31 years of age, we could very well see another 10 years of the defensive defenseman in the lineup. Lindell hasnt had any significant injuries to date that look to stop him from playing into his 40s. Such as Brent Burns, or Zdeno Chara before he retired after 2022. Either way Stars fans will be happy for Lindell who’ll be playing in Dallas for many years to come.
Right now it’s almost impossible to imagine Lindell playing for any other team. Last season, Lindell signed through 2030 to stay in Dallas. This wasn’t the first time Lindell signed a long-term contract to be a Star. Back in 2019 Esa signed a multi year deal too. Lindell likes it in Dallas, and Stars fans are happy to have him around.
Blue collar, and greasy
Blocking shots. Killing penalties. Disrupting opposing offenses. Physicality.
This is what Lindell brings to the Stars’ lineup every time he’s in the lineup. No off days when he’s in the lineup. Lindell is sure to bring his A game, which many people might consider boring hockey, every night. The kind of hockey that quietly supports wins more often than not.
Minutes eater
When called upon, Lindell does whatever it takes to win. On Saturday November 8th, Lindell spent the last five minutes of the game on the ice to help secure a win at the Nashville Predators. Gulutzan saw that his Stars clawed back from a 2-0 deficit against Nashville that day. Leaving Lindell on the ice for the remainder of the game propelled the Stars to hold onto that lead they built. It worked out. Lindell and the Stars didn’t need to go past 60 minutes of play, nor did they choke away the game in regulation.
Thus far, Lindell averages about 23 minutes on ice a game. Dallas’ team identity starts with a structured defense first. Having somebody who works hard every shift, has that defensive focus, and frequently kills penalties earn big minutes a night. This is why Lindell is one of the Stars leaders in the TOI stat.
Photo credit: The Sporting News
As a bonus, Lindell is currently leading the Stars in the somewhat controversial plus minus stat. This statistic (+ -), is a stat a lot of people don’t like, because just because you’re on the ice whether it’s a goal for or against, it doesn’t always mean you were responsible for that goal scored while you were out there. Lindell leads the Stars for goals for when being one of the five guys in green on the ice. At this moment, he’s a plus eight.
Featured photo: Matthew Pierce
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Categorized: Stars