First Shift 🏒
The Stars’ defense is a work in progress.
That’s an interesting statement when you consider they have been among the best in the NHL in goals against and shot suppression for the previous two seasons. Even so, they moved past Chris Tanev, Ryan Suter and Jani Hakanpää in the 2024 offseason. Mix that with recent injuries to Miro Heiskanen and Nils Lundkvist, and you have Ilya Lyubushkin, Cody Ceci, Matt Dumba and Brendan Smith all new to the group this year. Oh yeah, and Lian Bichsel is a 20-year-old rookie who is starting to take on bigger minutes, so the mercurial nature of this group is real.
So far, the team has been swapping players in and out and changing pairs, and it still seems to be working well. That’s a sign of a good team.
“Every time you put guys in, you learn a little more about your group and who you feel comfortable with come playoff time,” said Stars coach Pete DeBoer. “We’ve asked a lot of different guys in our depth to step into big roles, and they have all helped us win. It hasn’t been perfect, but they have all helped us win games.”
Both Dumba and Smith have been key players in depth situations, and the two veterans allow the Stars to manage Bichsel, who recently dealt with an injury. Just as important, Ceci has forged a relationship with Esa Lindell since coming over in a trade from San Jose on Feb. 1, and Lyubushkin has gained chemistry with Harley since Heiskanen’s injury.
Harley has been on a roll since coming back from the 4 Nations Face-Off, where he played for Team Canada, and he credited Lyubushkin with helping him find his game.
“He’s awesome, he’s the best,” Harley said. “He’s solid defensively and he’s always letting me go up the ice and play offense. There’s a lot of positivity going around in that partnership.”
That’s part of the impressive nature of the team under the current coaching staff. They move pieces in and out, and they still find a way to make it work. Tanev was acquired at the 2024 trade deadline last season and was a key factor in the playoffs. Then, he signed with Toronto, and the changes had to take place all over again. Yes, players like Heiskanen, Harley and Lindell are key, but so are the new guys.
“If you’ve got a good team, it’s usually because you have good veterans, a lot of them on expiring deals,” DeBoer said. “That’s just part of it, so I think that turnover is inevitable.”
But handling the turnover is a skill. While Harley is soaking up extra minutes and Bichsel seems to be carving a permanent spot in the lineup, the Stars still have to make sure the group of defensemen is functioning at the highest level. Dallas only deployed five defensemen in games for long stretches of last year’s playoffs, and that hurt in the long run. Right now, Dumba and Smith are battling to be regulars, and that’s a huge part of what this team needs for the postseason.
“It’s testing our depth,” DeBoer said of the injury to Heiskanen. “We’ve bent but haven’t broken. If Miro is out, then everybody in the depth area has to find another level for us, that includes those guys. They’ve had some good moments, but if we want to get to where we need to get to, all of those guys need to elevate down the stretch.”
