How the versatility of Roope Hintz benefits the top line

When Pete DeBoer started training camp in Cedar Park this season, he had a few revelations.
One was just how big and fast Roope Hintz really was in person.
Bottom line, the 26-year-old center might be the best athlete on the team, standing 6-3, weighing in at 215 pounds and possessing maybe the fastest feet in the club. Yet the quiet Finn has been able to fly under the radar for much of his career.
Not anymore.

Hintz has signed an eight-year contract extension that will average $8.45 million per season, making him one of the highest paid players on the team, and making him a much more familiar name in the NHL.
"He's a foundation piece, and it's well-deserved," DeBoer said Wednesday.

Hintz has worked himself into a very good place in his NHL career. Not only does he have a long-term extension that kicks in next season, he is centering one of the best lines in the league. Hintz is in his third season as the pivot on a line with Joe Pavelski and Jason Robertson. That trio is having its best season ever under the new coaching staff, and the numbers are pretty mind-blowing.
Robertson ranks second in the NHL with 36 points (19 goals, 17 assists) in 23 games. Hintz has 24 points (8 goals, 16 assists) in 22 games. And Pavelski has 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 23 games. Each has upped his point per game total from last season, and the group has taken a giant step forward while still getting a great deal of attention from the opposition.
"They're playing great and leading us," said defenseman Esa Lindell. "He's a huge part of that."
Hintz has worked hard to get where he is. He was drafted 49 overall out of Finland in 2015 and came over to play for the Texas Stars in the AHL in 2017. Hintz tallied 35 points (20 goals, 15 assists) in 70 games his first AHL season and then split time between the AHL and NHL the next year. After that, he was in the NHL for good and he helped the Stars to the 2020 Stanley Cup Final. In 2020-21, he landed on that line with Pavelski and Robertson, and he has been a point-a-game player ever since.
"When they put us together, it just kind of clicked," Hintz said. "We've got great chemistry and then we were building the chemistry. When you get to play more with certain guys, you get to know what they do on the ice and then it's easier to play together. We've been together so long and now it's getting easier."

DeBoer said Hintz is also one of the team's best defensive forwards, which allows the coaching staff to use him in several different situations. Just like former Stars coach Ken Hitchcock did with Mike Modano, Hintz can go head-to-head with the best players in the league, and the Stars are confident their line will have more points at the end of the night.
There are some who believe Hintz should be a candidate for the Selke Trophy, given to the best defensive forward in the league each season.
"If you're going to talk about a guy in a Selke conversation, every decision they make on the ice has to be about what's best for the team," DeBoer said. "Putting the puck in the right place, getting off at the right time, not turning it over, not being reckless - all of those things. When you ask a guy to produce 100 points a year and do all of those things, that's rare air."
And that's why the Stars feel Hintz is worth the contract. Yes, eight years is a long time and $8.45 million is a high cap hit, but with Hintz centering the top line, much more of the team falls right into place.
"You can't win without a guy like that," DeBoer said, comparing Hintz to Kings center Anze Kopitar. "He's big and fast, powerful. I remember reading Rick Bowness' comments on him and what a good two-way player he is. When you're signing a No. 1 center, they have to be able to create offense, make other people better, but they also have to be able to go up against the best players in the league and tilt the ice in your favor. There's only a handful of guys who can do that."
The Stars believe they have that player in Hintz. And Hintz is happy to be here. He said he loves the city and his teammates and is excited about the opportunity to try to win it all here.
"It's nice I can stay here," he said. "Great city, great fans, great organization, great team. It's great to stay here."
And possibly show a few more people just how good he can be.
"With the size that he has, it's tough to play against him," said defenseman Esa Lindell. "I'm lucky to have him on my side. I go against him in practice and it's a good challenge every day. He's been flying a little under the radar with people in the league, so it's good to see him getting the contract and getting his name out in the game."

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.