Dallas Stars News: Injury Updates, Opening Night Roster Finalized

The Dallas Stars are just hours away from kicking off their 2018-19 regular season. But before they do, there are some housekeeping items to take into account. Here’s a quick rundown on the latest Stars news as you prepare for puck drop.

It’s almost here. In a little over 24 hours, the Dallas Stars will begin a new journey by kicking off their 2018-19 regular season campaign.

But before that happens, there are some final decisions that must be made and unexpected occurrences that must be planned for. The Stars are already deep into dealing with both of those scenarios.

So, before we dive into regular season play and set sail on another eight-month excursion with twists, turns, and new developments, here are some final housekeeping items to take into account so you can be completely prepared for opening night.

Injury updates

As much as they may hope and pray for it, there is rarely an opportunity for any hockey team to begin the season unscathed. In other words, a team rarely has the chance to enter the season with a completely healthy roster.

More from Blackout Dallas

The Dallas Stars won’t be any different.

As of Wednesday morning’s practice, there are likely a few regular starters that will be dinged up when the Stars drop the puck on Thursday night. Players like Stephen Johns, Valeri Nichushkin, and Martin Hanzal could all be on the sidelines for the first game of the year.

Johns is currently dealing with post traumatic headaches. After only playing in the first preseason game, he’s been sidelined and has been very limited in practice time. He did practice on Wednesday morning, skating alongside newly acquired defenseman Connor Carrick on the fourth pairing. Johns will miss the season opener, leaving the Stars to either slot in Carrick or Roman Polak to fill his place.

Valeri Nichushkin, on the other hand, is considered day-to-day with a lower body injury. His last preseason action was on Sep. 26 against the Avalanche. He is considered a possible option for Saturday’s game against Winnipeg. But with that in mind, he will not play in the season opener against Arizona. That leaves a spot open in the lineup for Gemel Smith or Brett Ritchie to likely fill.

And finally, Martin Hanzal is still on the injured reserve while recovering from spinal fusion surgery in the offseason. His timetable for return looks to be around late November or early December.

The 2018-19 Dallas Stars roster

The Stars also announced their lineup for opening night on Tuesday afternoon. After weeks of planning, experimenting, and trimming the initial 60-man roster from training camp, the team has their final 23 lined up and ready to go for Thursday.

Here is how the roster shaped out:

Forwards

Jamie Benn, Blake Comeau, Jason Dickinson, Radek Faksa, Roope Hintz, Mattias Janmark, Valeri Nichushkin, Tyler Pitlick, Alexander Radulov, Brett Ritchie, Tyler Seguin, Devin Shore, Gemel Smith, Jason Spezza

Defensemen

Connor Carrick, Miro Heiskanen, Julius Honka, John Klingberg, Esa Lindell, Marc Methot, Roman Polak

Goaltenders

Ben Bishop, Anton Khudobin

There’s no guaranteed word on how the lineup will shake out for the game against Arizona considering the injuries, but Jim Montgomery has been working on it. Over the past few days, he’s tested out various combinations on offense, defense, and special teams in an attempt to find what lineup clicks the best. We’ll see what he’s thinking come morning skate on Thursday.

For the full story and breakdown of the roster, click here.

Besides that, it’s just about time to prepare for opening night.