The irony for Esa Lindell is that everyone pretty much expected this.
The 22-year-old is among the best rookie defensemen in the NHL and the best overall rookie of the eight that have played for the Stars this season. And yet few are surprised by that fact.
"If you say he has exceeded expectations, we might have set them too low," said Stars coach Lindy Ruff when asked if Lindell had done better than expected. "We thought he was going to be a really good player, and I think he's proven that. Wherever you want to put those expectations, he's been a steady performer throughout the whole year.