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The Dallas Stars announced a series of roster moves today and among them was the release of forward Jonathan Cheechoo from his tryout with the club.

Cheechoo, the former 50-goal scorer, had some good opportunities with the Stars, playing on a line with Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro to start camp and then getting a look on a line with James Neal and Brad Richards during a preseason game.

"He's a good player, he's played well but you've got to be better than the people that we've got in the top positions," said Stars coach Marc Crawford. "No disrespect, but our guys in the top positions said to us that no one is taking our spot. You really have to outplay somebody. It's unfortunate, but that's where it is.

"Jonathan is a good pro and is a real honest person. He gave us great effort and we could have very easily kept him, but we felt it would be better to let him try to find something else."

Cheechoo played in two preseason games for Dallas, registering no points, four shots on goal and a minus-two rating. He was one of 18 players trimmed for the Dallas roster on Sunday.

Here are some notes from today’s practice in Frisco. The Stars split the roster into an NHL group and AHL/prospects group.

“We thought it was important to get our NHL group together for their first practice of the season,” said Stars coach Marc Crawford.

The NHL group was on the ice first and went for close to two hours.

“Today we worked a lot on our systems. We worked a lot on our breakout and we worked on our net drive,” said Crawford. “We worked a long time and we really slowed practice down for the detail of our coverage and we slowed practice down for the detail of our forcechecking. It’s tedious work and we ran a little bit longer, but I thought it was a great practice.”

Some other noteworthy items from the practice:

*Adam Burish played right wing with Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro today, replacing Jonathan Cheechoo. Those three will play together as a line in Saturday’s preaseason game against St. Louis. As for Cheechoo, he’ll play left wing in Friday’s preseason game against Colorado and might play on a line with Aaron Gagnon.

“We want to see how Cheechoo does in a different type of role,” Crawford said. “We want to give him a chance, so you’ve got to play him on the power play and in scoring situations. You’ve got to play him to show his talents.”

*Tom Wandell (shoulder) skated with the team for about 45 minutes Thursday.

“He’s still coming, but he’ll be a good week away,” said Crawford. “If he’s lucky he’ll get a [preseason] game in at the end and if we don’t we don’t. It’s unfortunate.”

*Ray Sawada (knee) practiced Thursday.

Here were the practice lineups used Thursday. Kari Lehtonen Richard Bachman and Tyler Beskorowany were the goalies for the NHL group and Brent Krahn and Andrew Raycroft were the netminders for the AHL/Prospects group. Severin Blindenbacher skated with the NHL group to even out the pairings, provide a right shot and the coaching staff wanted to get a better look at him as well, according to Crawford.

NHL Group:

Neal-Richards-Eriksson
Morrow-Ribeiro-Burish
Brunnstrom-Benn-Ott
Sutherby-Petersen-Segal
Barch-Wandell-Cheechoo

Grossman-Robidas
Daley-Niskanen
Skrastins-Blindenbacher
Fistric-Woywitka

AHL/Prospects Group:

Wathier-Morin-Rallo
McCulloch-Gagnon-Vincour
Tousignant-Roman-Sawada
Gazdic-King-Sceviour
M. Neal-Glennie-Backman
Tassone

Lukowich-Larsen
Jordie Benn-Fortunus
Ludwig-Coyle
Monast

CHARLOTTETOWN, Prince Edward Island -- Here are some players to watch during Dallas Stars training camp, which begins Saturday. Everybody's worth a look, but these are some notable ones in my opinion. Some of them will need to be impact players this season. Some will push to play in the NHL this season. And some are expected to big parts of the team in years ahead.

1. Kari Lehtonen, G: Some people would look at the Stars’ decision to hand over the No. 1 goaltending job to Lehtonen as a gamble. The talent is there, but Lehtonen’s been injury prone during his career and that’s cause for concern. But the 26-year-old Finn changed his conditioning routine over the summer and said he’s healthy and in the best shape ever as he comes into camp. If the Stars are going to show improvement in the goals against department -- a big sore spot last season -- Lehtonen will need to deliver.

2. Brenden Morrow, LW: Morrow wasn’t himself on the ice last season. Coming off ACL surgery had a lot to with that. The hope is he can move beyond that now because the Stars will need their captain back to form if they are going to push forward and push for a playoff spot this season.

3. Mike Ribeiro, C: Ribeiro, who is Morrow’s center, had a down season as well. He struggled to adjust to coach Marc Crawford’s push the pace style and ended up being the subject of trade rumors this summer. GM Joe Nieuwendyk said Ribeiro is staying put and Ribeiro, who worked hard this summer, looks like a focused, determined player heading into the season. An effective Morrow-Ribeiro combination would be a big boost for the Stars.

4. Jonathan Cheechoo, RW: The former 50-goal scorer is in came on a tryout basis. His production has dropped way off in recent years, but if he can regain some of his old form he’d give the Stars a right shot that can score, something the team could use. He’s going to get a look on the right side with Morrow and Ribeiro in camp.

5. Matt Niskanen, D: He’s coming off a disappointing season that saw him register a team-worst minus-15 rating. He’s worked hard in the offseason and a big improvement in his game would be a big boost for a Stars defense where any improvement will need to come from within at this point.

6. Tom Wandell, C: He’s worth watching to see how he bounces back off ACL surgery. He had the other knee done a few years back, so he knows the routine. He’s looked pretty good skating in Frisco, but if he’s slow starting out of the gate, then Marc Crawford might have to adjust his line plans.

7: Fabian Brunnstrom, LW/RW: The question surrounding Brunnstrom is where he fits among the Dallas forwards. After a solid rookie season in 2008-09, he fell off the map last season. He has NHL level offensive talent, but he’s struggled to find consistency. He needs to play in the top six forward group to be effective, but there may not be room for him.

8. Brent Krahn, G: He’s going to get a chance to land a backup spot in Dallas, but only if he can beat out veteran Andrew Raycroft. Krahn was a first round pick of Calgary in 2000, but has had his career derailed by knee problems. That issue seems to be behind him now and he was excellent in the AHL last season, but missed time due to sports hernia surgery and a concussion. This is a big chance for Krahn to finally break through into the NHL.

9. Philip Larsen, D: He’s the Stars' top defense prospect and he’s close to becoming a regular player in the NHL. He might need time in the AHL to help him adjust more to the North American game, but the smooth skating, highly skilled defenseman is knocking on the door.

10. Severin Blindenbacher, D: The Swiss defenseman was an under-the-radar free agent signing in July. Crawford has liked what he’s seen from Blindenbacher as he’s skated out in Frisco prior to camp. He’s played in the Swedish Elite League and in big tournaments on the international stage, so he has experience against quality competition. Time will tell if he’s NHL worthy, but he’s worth watching.

11. Scott Glennie, RW: The Stars’ 1st round pick (eighth overall) in 2009 didn’t get to skate with the team at last year’s camp due to a groin injury. He’s made nice strides over the past year, and it will be interesting to see how he fares on the ice at his first NHL camp. He’s expected to play his final year of junior hockey in the WHL this season.

12: Jack Campbell, G: The Stars' first-round pick (11th overall) in 2010 is still a few years away and he'll play junior hockey with Windsor of the OHL this season, but the fact that he is a high draft pick and this is his first NHL camp make him worth a look, especially to see how he stacks up against other goaltending prospects Tyler Beskorowany and Richard Bachman.

I’m back in town and spent some time out in Frisco today. Jonathan Cheechoo, who has been invited to training camp on a tryout basis, is skating with other Stars players right now.

Cheechoo said the Stars had been in touch with him throughout the summer before they finalized the invite to camp.

“They’re going to give me a good shot at it. That’s all I want, a chance to come out and prove myself,” Cheechoo said. “It looks like a good fit for me with the style they are trying to play and the people they’ve got here.”

Stars coach Marc Crawford said the plan is for Cheechoo to get a shot on the right side with Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro during camp.

“Those are fantastic linemates,” Cheechoo said. “I played against those guys quite a bit when I was in San Jose. You know what they bring and if you get a chance to play with those guys you’ve got to do everything you can to take advantage of it.”

Cheechoo’s had some injury problems in recent years. He had double hernia surgery and he’s also had work done on his knees. He’s hoping the injury issues are behind him.

“I feel really good,” he said. “This is the best I’ve felt coming into a camp in a long time.”

But he wasn’t using the injuries as a reason for why his production has slipped over the years. He scored 56 goals in 2005-06 with San Jose. Last season with Ottawa he had 5 goals in 61 games.

“It's no excuse. You’ve got to just come out and perform and I didn’t do that last year,” he said. “I think I need to prove that I can still do what I know how to do.”

Here’s some video of Cheechoo and the Stars skating in Frisco today.

Stars coach Marc Crawford doesn’t like to put numbers on his lines as in first, second, third and fourth, but he does know you need a total of four good lines these days if you are going to compete for a playoff spot.

“Your top guys end up playing a lot of minutes because of power play and penalty killing situations, but you need to be able to roll four lines in the Western Conference or you won’t last the rigors of the season,” Crawford said.

The process of putting together those four good lines will start at training camp in Prince Edward Island in a little more than a week. Nothing’s definite yet and it will be a process. There are prospects that need to be evaluated and players need to be given a chance to show their stuff, but eventually those lines will start to take shape.

“When we get into games three, four and five that’s when you start looking at guys in their actual roles. That’s when you’ll see it unfold a little bit more,” Crawford said. “For the first week to ten days we want to see the other people and give them good opportunities to show us what they’ve got.”

Crawford has some ideas on what he wants to try with his lines in camp and the preseason. One of them involves right wing Jonathan Cheechoo, who will attend camp on a tryout basis. The former 56-goal scorer will be given an opportunity to play on line with left wing Brenden Morrow and center Mike Ribeiro.

“We’re hopeful that he finds lightning in a bottle and that he finds some instant chemistry with who we are going to play him with in training camp,” Crawford said. “We can give him a pretty good center to play with and he’s a scorer, so initially we are going to try him with Ribeiro and Morrow.

“You want to give a guy like that a great opportunity. Let’s see if he can come in and do what he’s done in the past. A good way to do that is to give him a good opportunity.”

The opportunity given to Cheechoo on the Morrow-Ribeiro line will give the Stars another opportunity to line up Jamie Benn at center, where he played a lot last season when Ribeiro and Tom Wandell went down with injuries.

“Nothing is written in stone. We know that Jamie Benn with Morrow and Ribeiro works and we can quickly move to that, but we wanted to give Jonathan a good opportunity and we wanted to continue to see Jamie Benn at center. It allows us to do both those things, in training camp anyways. “

Benn is one option on the Morrow-Ribeiro line if Cheechoo doesn’t work out. Brandon Segal is another, said Crawford.

The plan for now, however, is for Benn to play center and to be paired with Steve Ott on a line. And when it comes to his lines, Crawford is thinking pairs and then will try to see which of the remaining forwards will round out the trio.

“We’re pretty committed to Brad Richards and Loui Eriksson. James Neal would certainly be there should he be there. If he’s not, there’s an opportunity for someone,” said Crawford, referring to Neal not being signed to a contract yet. “We’re committed to Ribby and Morrow. Otter and Benner is an experiment. It’s training camp. We like [Adam] Burish and Wandell because we want more edge and determination.

“And the other guys – Toby Petersen, Krys Barch, Brandon Segal, Brian Sutherby and Fabian Brunnstrom – they are in the battle for those complementary positions.”

And Crawford said he expects some of the team’s minor league forwards, such as Aaron Gagnon, to push for spots as well.

Checked in with Stars coach Marc Crawford today and asked about right wing Jonathan Cheechoo, who will attend the team’s training camp on a tryout basis.

“We’re hopeful that he finds lightning in a bottle and that he finds some instant chemistry with who we are going to play him with in training camp,” Crawford said. “We can give him a pretty good center to play with and he’s a scorer, so initially we are going to try him with [Mike] Ribeiro and [Brenden] Morrow.”

Crawford said with Cheechoo on the right wing of that line, Jamie Benn will start camp at center and will be paired with Steve Ott. Benn is one of the options to play with Morrow and Ribeiro, but for now he’ll get the look at center. The plan is also to see if Tom Wandell and Adam Burish work together as a pair on a line. Players will be be slotted in on open spots with those pairs. If James Neal isn’t around to start camp, then someone will need to be slotted in on the left side of Brad Richards and Loui Eriksson.

Nothing is set in stone long-term, but that’s how they’ll start. It will be a work in progress. That's why they have camp and a preseason. I’ll have more on the line stuff in a future post.

Frisco notes

Brent Krahn was the latest player to join the morning skates in Frisco today. Krahn said he made the 33-hour drive from Calgary and arrived yesterday. The final leg of that drive included picking his way through yesterday’s stormy weather in the region.

“Driving down from Oklahoma City yesterday, it was just atrocious,” Krahn said.

Krahn and Andrew Raycroft – the two guys who will battle for the backup goalie spot in camp and the preseason – were the goaltenders for today’s skate.

“I’m anxious to get going,” said Krahn. “I’m looking forward to the challenge. The challenge is great. All you can ask for is the competition and the opportunity. That’s exactly what I have and I’m ready to get at it.”

Did an interview with Brad Richards today about his home province of Prince Edward Island, where the Stars will hold training camp starting next week. I’ll have more on camp in PEI next week.

I asked him about his hip, which he had surgery on during the offseason. He said everything is fine on that front and he’s good to go. I asked if there’s been any talks about a contract extension with the Stars.

“Nothing really,” Richards said. “Just little conversations, but nothing to speak of really."

Richards, whose contract runs out at the end of the 2010-11 season, noted that the Stars have been trying to to sign other players who needed contracts for this season.

Here's some video of today's skate in Frisco.

The Dallas Stars have announced that right wing Jonathan Cheechoo will attend the team's training camp on a tryout basis.

"We're pleased that Jonathan has accepted our invitation to come to our training camp," Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk said in a team release. "He has shown the ability to be an effective scorer in this league. He's a competitor and we're going to give him an opportunity."

Cheechoo, 30, played 61 games with Ottawa last season, registering 14 points (5 goals, 9 assists).

Cheechoo, a right shot, was originally drafted by San Jose (2nd round/29th overall) in 1998. He’s picked up 305 points (170 goals, 135 assists) in 501 career NHL games.

His best season came in 2005-06 when he won the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy as the NHL’s top goal scorer, tallying 56 for the Sharks.