David Castillo

My latest: last night, Jake Oettinger was the goalie he's always been billed as and then some. But the rest of the year has been less kind to Dallas' star netminder. Which Oettinger can the Stars expect this postseason and does the data give us clues? dmagazine.com/sports/2026/03…

Jake Oettinger was unreal last night. That has not been the norm this season. So, which version of him will the Stars get as the playoffs near? Make time for this outstanding deep dive from @DavidCastilloAC: dmagazine.com/sports/2026/03…

Postgame recap of Dallas' rope-a-dope in Colorado (plus my preview of the matchup beforehand). dcastillo.substack.com/p/stray-observ…

Pretty ugly period for Dallas, who simply never had possession. Amusingly, both teams had the same amount of high danger chances at 2. The Stars have perfected this tightrope hockey, but it might better to adjust than merely absorb in this case.

While it didn't score, when you consider that it's without Rantanen and Hintz -- and that Colorado has a solid penalty kill -- that was a pretty good-looking power play by Dallas.

extremely NHL to prioritize *the first round* and not better matchups farther down the line 🤦‍♂️

Really dig this pickup. It's always hard to do anything other than trust Dallas' amateur scouts, but more than that Jack Anderson has the perfect profile for Cedar Park.

Postgame recap of Dallas' somewhat wild loss to Utah, in which I would argue they played better than the score indicated. dcastillo.substack.com/p/stray-observ…

Postgame quicktake: I actually thought that was a solid game by Dallas. Utah played them tough, and when the breaks went their way, the score spiraled but it never felt like the team did. That PK late in the 3rd was insane. A loss more unfortunate than bad. Just saying.

Some tough looks by Dallas on defense, but this is just the natural ebb and flow of talented hockey colliding with talented hockey. Ignore the standings, and Utah has one of the most complete attack systems in hockey. This one's been a banger IMO.

Wyatt Johnston: elite.

I wish we got more discussion about the faceoff on Utah's second goal. Dallas won the faceoff but lost possession. Seems important when emphasizing the importance of faceoffs to distinguish between faceoff wins and clean faceoff wins.

DJ Steel puts Dallas up 1-0 over Utah. Absolutely fantastic pace to this game so far.

Today's edition of Stars Stuff: a philosophical word on Thomas Harley, Dallas' 15-game point streak being about more than historical comparisons, and previewing what should be a quality matchup tonight between the Stars and the Mammoth. dcastillo.substack.com/p/stars-stuff-…

Wyatt Johnston: elite.

Anytime someone asks me what I think about the NHL's Department of Player Safety. (Good on Judd Moldaver of course)

Even though is about Ottawa, it could very well be about Jake Oettinger, and the paradox of playing the net well (or not well) in front of a good defense.

guys being dudes

Updated Dallas Stars prospect pool ranking along with comments about Emil Hemming, Cameron Schmidt, and their pipeline ranking. dcastillo.substack.com/p/scott-wheele…