The Dallas Stars will begin their Western Conference Semifinals matchup with the Winnipeg Jets tomorrow night. The fact that the Stars were able to beat the Avalanche in seven games without Miro Heiskanen or Jason Robertson is a testament to the roster that Jim Nill built over the offseason last summer. Robertson's presence against the Jets would be a huge sigh of relief, and Pete DeBoer hinted at that this morning before the team traveled up to Winnipeg.
Pete DeBoer had Jason Robertson practicing with Wyatt Johnston and Mason Marchment on the third line this morning, along with the second power-play unit. While I'm not getting my hopes up about him returning tomorrow night, Robertson's injury is going away fast at the right time in the playoffs. The Stars will need him back for round 2 against the Winnipeg Jets. He is the leading scorer on the Dallas Stars during the regular season, and getting him back would add more nitrous to the Stars' offense. He was on a scoring tear before getting injured in the final regular-season game in Nashville.
With Robertson returning to the lineup either tomorrow night or Friday, I wouldn't expect him to get many minutes right out of the gate. The last thing you want to do is immediately put a lot of stress on that knee, and it gets re-injured. I'm sure Robertson could contribute to the Stars' effort to take down the Jets on a minutes restriction. If he continues progressing in the right direction, DeBoer would give him more minutes as the series goes along.
Another player that should be returning along with Robertson is Miro Heiskanen. The Stars will also need their top defender against the best team in the Western Conference this season. While his return could come tomorrow night, I would bet on Robertson returning before Heiskanen does. He had a more serious injury that required knee surgery. The Stars aren't putting him on the ice unless the doctors believe he's 100% or Miro is comfortable getting hit down low.
The Stars won't announce whether Robertson or Heiskanen will return tomorrow night until tomorrow afternoon. Right now, things are looking up for both players, possibly returning against the Winnipeg Jets in games 1 or 2. Right now, all Stars fans can do is wait until the announcement that they will return to the lineup. Whether they begin the series tomorrow or Friday, having Heiskanen and Robertson back in the lineup will be good. Playoff teams would have a tough time slowing down the Stars at full strength.