A homecoming reunion for a few Stars players

On Wednesday the Stars had a little fun.
Led by defenseman Ryan Suter, the team shifted practice from an indoor facility to an outdoor rink, and the result was fantastic. Players focused on 4-on-4 and "shinny" and relieved their days as youth hockey players.

"Everyone in here is like a 10-year-old kid at heart, so for us to go out there and have fun is awesome," said Jake Oettinger, a Minnesota native. "We would have stayed out there all day if we could. It's kind of where most of us grew up playing hockey."
Suter played nine seasons for the Wild, so he called in a couple of favors and set up the practice through some contacts. He then cleared the idea with the coaches, and the weather cooperated. Had it been frigid, the coaching staff probably wouldn't have approved, but the day was perfect.
"The stars really aligned for it," Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. "Ryan Suter brought it up as a suggestion, and thankfully we had a warm enough day to do it. It was a great day, a great change of pace. The guys embraced it. We had to drag a handful of the guys off the ice at the end of the day."

The Stars have used team-building exercises since training camp, and this was one of the best. With Joe Pavelski as the oldest player at 38 and Wyatt Johnston as the youngest at 19, there is a big age gap. DeBoer said any chance to get players together helps the bond.
"I think they pay off," the coach said. "We've got a big age discrepancy in our group, so any time you can get together, it's important. Because off the ice, they don't run in the same circles."
While forward Ty Dellandrea added: "It's just nice to get all the guys out having fun, a lot of laughs. I think it was good for our group, take a little bit of the edge off and just enjoy it."
Oettinger grew up in the area and could have more than 40 friends and family in the crowd for the matchup against Minnesota. With Pavelski and Suter from Wisconsin, they should also have plenty of fans in the audience on Thursday.
"To be where I am now, I just want to enjoy every second in the NHL, and especially these games where I get to come home and play in front of my family and friends," Oettinger said. "They're the ones that believed in me since I was a little kid. When I told them I wanted to play in the NHL, they were the ones who paid for the gear and drove me everywhere and believed in me, so it's a special game."

It's also a special game because the Stars and Wild are among the teams battling for first place in the Central Division. Dallas is 21-9-6 and 7-2-1 in its past 10 games. Minnesota is 20-12-2 and 11-3-0 in its past 14.
"You just look at the standings," DeBoer said. "They've scratched and clawed their way back here and with a couple of games in hand, they're right there with us. So, this is a big four-point game, a divisional game. I'm excited about the challenge and how our group responds."
Key Numbers
32.1 percent
Minnesota ranks second in home power play success at 32.1 percent. Dallas ranks first in road power play success at 30.9 percent.
10
Minnesota forward Kirill Kaprizov has 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists) in five games against the Stars.
9
Stars forward Jason Robertson has 9 points (6 goals, 3 assists) in five career games against the Wild.
He said it
"You have to move as a five-man unit. You have to support each other. The tendency is that when there is a breakdown, it's a bigger breakdown than when you're just containing, but that's a price we're willing to pay to try to spend as little time in our own end."
- Stars coach Pete DeBoer on how the team avoids defensive breakdowns while trying to stay aggressive offensively.
Expected lineup
Robertson-Hintz-Pavelski
Kiviranta-Seguin-Dellandrea
Benn-Johnston-Marchment
Olofsson-Faksa-Glendening
Heiskanen-Lundkvist
Lindell-Hakanpää
Suter-Miller
Oettinger
Wedgewood
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.