The Dallas Stars are off to a 1-5-1 record early on, and struggling to create much offense. They’ve scored just 13 goals through those seven games, but will get a boost soon with the return of Corey Perry. Today they also brought back young forward Denis Gurianov, who will get another chance to prove he can stick at the NHL level.
Gurianov, 22, played three games with the Stars earlier this season but found himself back in the minor leagues last week. It didn’t take long for him to earn a recall however, recording a hat trick on Friday night against the Iowa Wild. Gurianov scored 20 goals and 48 points in 57 games with the Texas Stars last year, really finding his game after early career struggles.
Selected 12th overall in 2015, there were questions surrounding Gurianov’s work ethic in his first few professional seasons. In the Stars’ 2018 Calder Cup run, the 6’3″ forward was even made a healthy scratch despite being one of the team’s best goal scoring threats in the regular season. In 2018-19 though things changed, with a more invested player dominating the AHL competition on a routine basis.
With Dallas struggling, perhaps they’ll give Gurianov a longer opportunity to see what he can do at the NHL level.