If there was a week on paper that was designed to be a great measuring stick for the Dallas Stars, it was this one.
Start off with a desperate divisional opponent on the road. Then head into the home of the top team in the Western Conference. Finally, follow it up with a home game against the best team in the league.
The way the Stars got their results wasn't always pretty, though it did feature a couple glorious offensive outbursts, but they answered the bell as well as anyone could imagine. Yet another four-goals-in-a-period outburst, this time the second, gave the Stars a 4-3 home win over the Washington Capitals and checked off the final box in a week that will go a long way toward shaping how others view this team.