Not sure about other stam classes but for my stamsorc, I like daggers because more crit = more self heals. I use Night mothers daggers or maelstrom daggers.
For my stam DK I favor penetration from maces - I run 2x VO sharp maces on him generally.

Sometimes I run 1 mace, 1 dagger on stamsorc, but that drops my crit to 63% - and for stuff like VMA or vet trials I like to be closer to or above 70% on him.

The problem with maces is that it is a percentage of remaining armor. Most cases you have already lowered their armor enough it won't make a difference in pve. I can see wanting maces for pvp though, but then you are better off not using dual wield for pvp.

So as a stamina DPS you want to use Maelstrom weapons. Without those, you lose out on too much damage and (its the harsh truth) stamina DPS isn't viable without them, aside from a few heavy attack builds or bow/bow builds. For serious content that it, like Trials. For dungeons or something more relaxed and not as hardcore, you will be able to get on just fine without the Maelstrom dual wield weapons;

That being said, the Maelstrom dual wield weapons only come in either Daggers or Axes. Generally, at least one Dagger is mandatory for all classes. The second hand weapon, is up to you. For pure single target fights, the bleed from the Axe can provide a really nice chunk of damage (and it can be empowered by the Maelstrom enchant which makes the passive bleed extremely strong). But a second Dagger will benefit you more in AoE situations or on a boss with a few adds. On some classes, Nightblade and Templar, the dual Daggers synergies really well with the class passives making those an obvious choice. For Sorcerers and DKs, its really up to personal preference.

Without Maelstrom weapons, you want 2 Daggers for sure.