Raffl was added as a free agent in the summer. He played most of his career with the Philadelphia Flyers, and new Stars goalie (and former longtime Washington Capital) Braden Holtby was familiar with Raffl when the two were combatants in the past.
"He's always one of those guys we knew would show up every night," Holtby said. "Hard guy to play against, so it's good to have him on our team. He does everything, can fit any type of role and I think that's important. Extremely honest player, brings it every night."
Faksa is a longtime Stars favorite who struggled last season with a nagging wrist injury. He rehabbed it in the summer and now feels much better, he said.
"For sure, I feel great," he said. "I had a great summer, I prepared very well. My wrist finally feels better than last season, I can shoot normally."
Faksa had four seasons of double-digit goals before slipping to six last year. He's been the leader of the shutdown line, but he also has offensive skill. While he was expected to get moved away from the power play a little this season, he's showing up on the man advantage and even in the shootout.
"He's been our best forward, every game, he's been getting rewarded," Bowness said. "But he was injured last year, he had a bad wrist all year, and that really affected his play, it affected his offense. I think you're going to see more offense from Faksy. He's playing hard, he's making great plays, and that's the confidence with feeling healthy."
Bowness said Faksa's improvement has been holistic.
"He stayed here all summer, he worked his butt off, he's in great shape, and it shows," Bowness said. "It's not just the physical side, it's the mental side. Mentally, he knows he's fit, he knows he's strong, and that's carrying over on the ice."
