Nostalgia at its finest: Memories of past success intertwined in Stars’ current surge

The bad thing about getting old is the kids don’t get your witty references (and by “kids,” I mean 33-year-old Tyler Seguin).

The great thing about getting old is you’ve seen a lot of great stuff, and you’ve got plenty of memories to keep you company.

It’s been an interesting month in StarsLand. Daryl Reaugh was honored with the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award by the Hockey Hall of Fame, so we were able to look back at his career and soak up the aura of greatness that surrounds him. After that, Joe Nieuwendyk and Ralph Strangis were inducted into the Dallas Stars Hall of Fame, and both looked back on the unexpected hockey fairytale that took place here in Texas.

Finally, the new “The ‘99” jersey was released this week and the memories were so thick we had to brush them away from our faces, to steal a phrase from Terence Mann.

Without getting too wrapped up in hyperbole, this has been a truly electric ride. Since moving to Texas in 1993, the Stars have the second-best record in the NHL. Even if you include the incredible success of Vegas in the last nine years, the Stars still have the third best winning percentage. That’s shocking, really.

And it allows us to appreciate what is happening right now and put it in perspective. We have seen greatness constructed, we have read the ancient scrolls of Bob Gainey and Ken Hitchcock. We know how difficult the process can be…and how sweet the reward.

Nieuwendyk was the perfect nominee this year. When he came to the Stars in 1995, the team had recently moved from Minnesota and was still being formed. The plasma was messy, and the scientists were in the trial-and-error phase.

But after Nieuwendyk came Darryl Sydor, and then Sergei Zubov, and then Pat Verbeek and Dave Reid and Shawn Chambers. Gainey mixed in key cogs like Mike Keane and Brian Skrudland and then topped it off with Ed Belfour and Brett Hull. The weaving of this blanket is the tale that keeps fans warm at night and helps them sleep.

That is what the past can do for you.

But as we watch Jim Nill work his magic, there is a chance this version can be just as good…or better. Think about it. That group had a good deal of 30-somethings. This group does not. Sure, Mike Modano was 28 and Derian Hatcher was 26, but they were among a few home-grown exceptions at the time.

This squad is built around the 2017 NHL Draft that brought Miro Heiskanen, Jake Oettinger and Jason Robertson to Dallas. This squad has 22-year-old Wyatt Johnston and 24-year-old Thomas Harley. When you look at the roster and the contracts, the hope is the lads in Victory Green are just entering their window of contention – and that’s coming off of three straight trips to the Western Conference Final.

Now, they still have to do it; but man, what an opportunity.

When you sat at American Airlines Center and watched the excitement generated from the new uniforms, there was a real feeling of nostalgia. The old font on the scoreboard, the videos of commercials past, the memories of just how fun it was to discover this odd sport that combined graceful speed with brutal bloodlust…”that was awwwesome,” to quote Chris Farley.

There we go again with the obscure references.

But that’s what the old folks do around the holidays. We talk about how much better it was back in our day and hold up the ghosts of playoffs past. Of course, we also know when the kids come up with something pretty special themselves – and the Stars seem to be doing that right now.

As Carly Simon said, “These are the good old days,” and that’s a pretty fantastic place to be…at any age.

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on X @MikeHeika.