Sheldon Souray wants to stay

The 2011-12 season ended in disappointing fashion for the Dallas Stars, as they barely missed the playoffs after stumbling to a 3-9-0 record down the stretch. But for veteran defenseman Sheldon Souray, in many ways, it was a highly successful year.

After spending the previous season exiled in the AHL, the 35-year-old blue-liner signed a one-year free agent contract with Dallas last July, and throughout the course of the year, re-established himself as a valuable NHLer, both offensively and defensively.

The first challenge was to prove he could stay healthy following two injury-plagued seasons in which he totaled 77 games combined. While he did miss some time with various ailments, Souray still skated in 64 contests, his second-highest figure since 2007.

He also demonstrated that he could still thrive on the power play and still possessed the devastating slap shot that earned him the nickname ‘Hammer.’ Exhibit ‘A’ was the four goals and 13 points he amassed over the season’s first 14 games, pacing the Stars to a sensational 11-3-0 start.

Souray’s offensive contributions slowed after opponents began to focus more on him, and he finished the year with six goals and 21 points overall. But even so, he showed he could still excel defensively, posting a career-high +11 rating, tied for first among Dallas defensemen - and fourth on the squad overall - with rookie Philip Larsen. Souray also proved to be a key cog on the Stars’ penalty killing unit.

“I think there were some question marks, but I think a few of those things have been answered,” said Souray, who averaged 20:27 of ice time, of his performance this past season. “I just came in here to do what they wanted me to do, and I think I did that without making any noise. Did I want to play in different situations and do some different things? Yeah, for sure, but I think this year was a year to do what was asked of me, be a good teammate, and I think I did that. That’s what I wanted to do. And I got the chance, I’m thankful for the opportunity here.”

Utilizing his solid 6-foot-4, 237-pound frame, Souray also provided an important physical element, enhanced by a bit of a nasty streak that made opposing forwards think twice about camping in front of the Dallas net.

“Making sure they’re not getting easy routes to the net or standing in front of the net for free tips and setting up a tent around there, you got to make sure they’re not too eager to take that puck to the net,” said Souray, whose 90 blocked shots ranked fifth on the squad, regarding his defensive zone objectives. “As a big body, you just want to be strong, maybe have them take a little longer route to the net.”

Souray was often paired in the second half of the season with gritty veteran Stephane Robidas, as they were counted upon as a shutdown defensive pair that helped minimize the effectiveness of opponents’ top scorers.

“It’s a good responsibility, I think we’re made for that, we take a lot of pride in that,” Souray said. “We want to make sure we’re playing hard against those guys and limiting their opportunities, and just being hard on them. You ask our top (offensive) guys, they play against D pairs that are hard on them and it makes for a long night… so we’re just trying to be responsible and hard on those guys and not give up too much.”

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