Nothing but time: Stars already experiencing new twists and turns of 84-game season

The NHL added two games to the regular season, and on the surface, that really shouldn’t be that big of a deal.

But what the new 84-game campaign does is remind us just how long an NHL season can feel. With the shortened training camp and preseason, we got right into games at the start of October. Now, as the calendar changes to November, it feels like we’re already deep into this thing.

Dallas is 8-5-1 after 14 games, and six teams have already played 16 times. That’s a chunk, and it has felt pretty long, but maybe the most significant point for Stars fans is just how much those 14 games have been all over the map. There have been a couple of stretches where the team has looked disconnected and in trouble. There has been one run where Dallas has looked to be a real contender. There have been moments of uncertainty complicated by injuries and cap concerns, and just the fact that every single team is its own entity and has to find its own way – and this one clearly is still looking.

When Dallas had to give Jason Robertson a raise from $7.75 million to $12 million this season, it created some challenges. Thomas Harley was already set to see his pay go from $4 million to $10.5 million this year, and Jake Oettinger is on the second year of a raise from $4 million to $8.25 million. The price of doing business in the NHL is going up, and the Stars are still catching up.

Oh sure, things will be better next season when the salary cap goes up and a few veteran contracts can be reduced, but that doesn’t eliminate the financial challenge for 2026-27.

Mix in surgery that will keep Matt Duchene out for three months, and the daily roster becomes a bit of a puzzle. This past fortnight, Dallas had games without Esa Lindell, Sam Steel, Radek Faksa, Wyatt Johnston, Oskar Bäck and Kyle Capobianco.

They adjusted…but the residual effect might have contributed to two of the worst games the team has played this year. That’s understandable.

The good news is they also had their five-game winning streak in that span, and found a way to get two points on Saturday against Columbus when they didn’t play their best hockey. Coaches like to call those games life lessons, and the Lads in Victory Green could be better for that as they go forward.

In fact, all of this duress could actually make this team stronger when it starts to near Game 84. At the very least, everyone has a better idea of what Capobianco and Dylan Hryckowian and Matthew Seminoff can do. We got a glimpse of defenseman Trey Taylor, and could see more with Capobianco out.

Arttu Hyry is staking a claim to an important spot on the roster with 14:35 in time on ice per game and a team-leading 62.3 percent in the faceoff circle. He received a nice assignment centering Jamie Benn and David Perron on Saturday, and that’s important for a team that lost Mavrik Bourque in the offseason.

And while the team as a whole is down in scoring from 14th last season (3.23) to 27th this year (2.64), the top dogs actually look pretty good. Mikko Rantanen has 17 points (7 goals, 10 assists) in 14 games, Robertson has 14 points (5 goals, 9 assists) in 14 games, and Johnston has 11 points (3 goals, 8 assists) in 12 games.

Miro Heiskanen’s 0.80 points per game shows hope that he can get back to the career-high 0.94 he had back in 2022-23, and the historically consistent team defense currently leads the league at 2.14 GAA.

So, all in all, Dallas is OK right now.

Glen Gulutzan and his coaching staff came in with some new plans over the summer to help improve puck possession and create more offensive chances – and that is a work in progress. Goalie Oettinger has sharpened his focus and is off to a solid start with a 1.63 GAA and .921 save percentage.

The good news is the Stars are still in the thick of the fight in the West, elbowing it out with Colorado and Vegas right now. The bad news is this team is not third in the league like it was last year, filling its lungs with the breathing room that makes things easier.

No, this one could be a lot tighter by April, and that could have some interesting ripple effects. Does the pressure make the team mentally tougher and prepare it for a nice postseason run? Or does the increased competition wear things down?

A concerned fan would point to the list of departed players like Bourque, Logan Stankoven, Mason Marchment, Mikael Granlund and Evgenii Dadonov and wonder if the depth is there this season. That same fan could wonder if Duchene will be good when he comes back after the new year – as well as how will the team squeeze his $4.5 million salary under the cap.

There are some moving parts this season.

Can Dallas add a player the way it did with Rantanen and Tyler Myers at recent trade deadlines? It all seems too far off right now.

And maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe this team needs the time to find out exactly what it is. Can the changes made by the coaching staff pay dividends? Can the 20-somethings who should be getting better each season get better enough by the playoffs? Can the front office work its magic with another boost in March?

That is the beauty – and the pain – of an 84-game season: You just don’t know what’s going to happen.

So hang tight and be thankful for the possibilities out there. You got nothing but time right now, so use it wisely.

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 X @MikeHeika.