If you want to see who has stood out for the Stars’ AHL affiliate in Texas recently, you just have to look back at last year’s taxi squad.

Players like Ty Dellandrea, Rhett Gardner, Joel L’Esperance and Nick Caamano have come on for Texas recently, as they’ve found their stride a season after mostly practicing (and not playing) in the NHL.

“You can’t rush or predict some of those touches and some of those valuable that you get from playing games,” Texas coach Neil Graham said in a phone interview last week. “I think now that they’ve all had their reps and the timing, you’re seeing some of their confidence shine through and they’re starting to make plays on both sides. They’re just playing with more swagger, and they’re playing the way that originally earned them those spots on the taxi squad.”

The most noticeable contributor — and the one that might have the greatest impact in Dallas down the line — has been Ty Dellandrea.

Dellandrea has 15 points in his last 16 games, including back-to-back two-point games vs. San Jose over the weekend. On the season, the 2018 first-round pick has 27 points in 38 AHL games this season. He has played just one NHL game this season.

Graham said Dellandrea’s rise has coincided with primarily playing center. Both in the NHL and AHL, Dellandrea has bounced between his natural center position and right wing. But now he’s stuck at center, and produced results.

“He’s been playing with pace, he’s been making plays through the middle of the ice,” Graham said. “That’s something I wanted to see grow in his game was some possession, some poise.

“He’s done a nice job changing his speeds, where he’s wanting pucks through the middle of the ice on breakouts, he’s accelerating out of the zone, but then he has the adaptability to change his speed through the neutral zone to either wait for a linemate to catch or catch a push-middle player that was already ahead of him. He’s done a nice job really playing with some poise with the puck.”

Dellandrea is a right-handed center that profiles as a middle-six player in the NHL.

Gardner, meanwhile, is a defensive center that can be used to match up against other teams’ top lines. His offensive production will not wow anyone (he has no points in his last 11 games), but Graham said Gardner has been more aggressive and is “playing on his toes again.”

“I just think he’s playing with more confidence,” Graham said. “When a puck’s on his stick, he’s not immediately looking to dump it or move it or get rid of it. He’s skating, maybe drawing a defender closer to him to then make a play before moving the puck.”

Caamano, along with Riley Damiani, has missed the last three games after both players were injured on Feb. 15 against Grand Rapids.

L’Esperance leads the Stars with 16 goals this season, and has 21 points in his last 16 games. However, L’Esperance’s status as an unvaccinated player make it unlikely that he is recalled to the NHL this season, especially since the Stars have six more games in Canada this season.