When the Dallas Stars re-signed Anton Khudobin last offseason, the expectation was that he and Ben Bishop would once again be the Stars’ tandem throughout the 2020-21 NHL season. No one could have anticipated Jake Oettinger starting 24 games, not even Oettinger himself:
“I didn’t really know what to expect, honestly, at all,” Oettinger said. “I had no idea what my role was going to be coming in. Obviously, I got to play a lot this year, which was great. I think there were a lot of highs and lows. I know it’s pretty cliche, but I just learned so much about what it’s like in the NHL.