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1. At the moment of writing this question, the Stars are on top of the Pacific division and they have looked very impressive at times this year. What’s behind this sudden improvement compared to the two last seasons?
Ben: I don’t know that it’s as sudden as it might appear. Last season the Stars had a lot of bad breaks in addition to some tough injuries, inconsistent play in net and weak defense. Even still, they were in the hunt for a playoff spot until the last couple weeks of the season. But, the biggest change between last season and this one is the man in net. The Stars have gotten really strong play from Kari Lehtonen in net. In addition, youngsters James Neal and Jamie Benn are showing that their good play last season wasn’t just a fluke.

2. Do you think the Stars will be able to keep up this play for the rest of the season? How far can they go?
Ben: Yes, I think the Stars are showing that they’re a team to be taken seriously. The Pacific Division is going to give them a run for their money, though. As of Saturday night, the gap between the first place Stars and the last place Phoenix was four points. That’s five teams separated by four points; not a lot of room for mistakes. I’m not sure the Stars have the defense to hang with the big dogs in the West for a deep playoff run, but then again if you get a good locker room together, the unexpected can happen. I do think Dallas will make the playoffs this season and I expect them to make it to the second round, at the very least. But, as a Stars fan, I’m always dreaming of Stanley Cup glory…

(Again, you can read the rest of the interview here.)

Big D Hockey was asked to contribute to the “Testimonials” portion of the preview, which I did.  You can see my thoughts about this seasons’ Stars team near the end of the preview, along with some thoughts from Mark Stepneski of Andrew’s Dallas Stars Page, Cole Jones of The Other 6 Seconds site, Chelsea and Kristine from Stop Hitting Robidas (best Stars blog name EVER) and the ever-insightful Brandon Worley from Defending Big D.

This brings me to an e-mail I received a couple of weeks ago (I’ve been meaning to mention it, but with the holidays here in the U.S. and being on vacation, things were slid to the back burner). I’ll share with you the majority of it:

A few days ago, the NHL donated 6 autographed items (including an NHL hat signed by members of the 08-09 Dallas Stars team) in support of my new initiative: “The Hockey Volunteer” , which has been founded to bring hockey to kids in underprivileged parts of the world and share happiness and the virtues of hockey with them, one puck at a time.

This dream venture officially began less than a month ago, but for me, it unofficially began 2 years ago when I was hired by the New York Islanders to work on their Project Hope initiative that focuses on Northestern China. Through Project Hope I got to see first-hand how hockey can vastly improve the lives of children, and I want to share that joy with children all around the world.

The first destination I will be traveling to will be in Ladakh, a region in the Indian (disputed) state of Jammu and Kashmir (yes, Kashmir) in the Himalayas. Over the past few weeks, support has been pouring in from all around the real and digital world, as coverage and donations have been increasing.

Upon my return, I plan to rapidly work towards expanding this program, and applying for grants from foundations, NGOs, governmental bodies, and increasing support from the NHL and IIHF.

My website (http://hockeyvolunteer.blogspot.com) describes in detail why I am doing this (my motivations, passions, and why Kashmir), the links to the ebay auctions, and links to the websites that have already shown support.

The gentleman doing this, Adam Sherlip, is trying to raise funds through auctions on his site, and through donations. The more money he raises translates into more equipment for these kids (they’re in need of sticks & skates). He accepts donations straight through his website, and he’s listed all of the items donated by the NHL on eBay, along with an autographed, Olympic game-used stick of Team USA star Angela Ruggiero.

I hope you’ll all take a few minutes to visit his site and lend support to this worthwhile initiative. Visit him at his site and if you’re on Twitter, follow him. Think about how much hockey has changed YOUR life, and imagine bringing that joy to an underprivileged child. Good luck with your work, Adam, and keep us posted here at Big D Hockey!