Bowness said the Holtby does a great job of giving off a Zen vibe.
"He's very calm, he's been rock solid back there," the coach said. "We feel very confident with him in net. He handles the puck really well, he moves it to the right area, he's very poised, and that gives you a lot of confidence when you look back and see him."
Holtby did that when the Stars were under fire at times in the second period, but he said he also feels good playing behind a team that works very hard to keep chances to a minimum.
"That's pretty typical of the start in the year," Holtby said when asked about the inconsistent play of the Stars so far. "The good thing is we haven't got sucked into other team's game plans. That's a big positive."
Once again, the team struggled to score, and Bowness had to start breaking up lines again. He moved Jamie Benn back to center on a line with Tanner Kero and Denis Gurianov, and said he liked that line. He also put Hintz with Radulov and Jacob Peterson, and said that was good. That left Tyler Seguin centering Joel Kiviranta and Luke Glendening, and that also worked.
Hintz continues to fight his way back from offseason surgery. He didn't play in the preseason, and that means there's some work to do. The same goes for Seguin and Radulov, who played in the preseason, but also are recovering from surgeries.
"It's going to take some time, no question," Bowness said. "Seggy has missed a lot of time, Rads have missed a lot of time, we're just going to have to be patient with them."
That patience is easier when the team wins. Battling through a hectic overtime to get two points in a shootout gives Dallas a 2-2-0 record with no points surrendered to Western Conference teams, and that's a world better than last season.
Plus, it's just good to prepare for a lot of close games.
"There's a lot more coming," Bowness said.
You can count on that.
Be there when Texas Hockey comes home this Friday as the Stars face the Los Angeles Kings at American Airlines Center! The festivities begin with Party on PNC Plaza at 5:30 p.m. and all fans are encouraged to be in their seats by 7 p.m. Don't miss out, get your tickets now!
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heikais a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.