Preseason is approaching, and it’s time to look at the Dallas Stars roster more closely. The team had to move on from some big players like Chris Tanev, who brought some defensive depth down the lineup, and some young stars are poised to leap forward. Let’s briefly look at who might have the highest time on ice in the upcoming season.
Miro Heiskanen will undoubtedly lead the Stars in average time on ice (ATOI) yet again. As the arguably most dependable and talented player, he’ll keep that title — especially given the lack of Tanev on the roster. Alongside him, Thomas Harley will continue to be relied upon. These top pairing partners led the team last season in ATOI at 24:32 and 21:01 minutes, respectively. In the playoffs, Heiskanen’s time on ice jumped by four minutes to 28:11. Expect to see similar, or higher, numbers for these two defensemen.
Esa Lindell had the second-highest time on ice during the Stars playoffs, averaging 24:45, and was just behind Harley in the regular season. While his future partner is unsure, as a valued defensive defenseman, he will play heavy minutes.
Perhaps Lindell will be paired with Matt Dumba, a newly signed player, during the summer. Dumba has played 20+ minutes for most of his career, which nicely mirrors Lindell's numbers. The rest of the Stars' defense is comprised of more depth players, who would not be trusted with playing a third of the game. Dumba could continue to fill that gap.
Looking at the forwards, linemates Jason Robertson and Roope Hintz lead the regular season with nearly identical numbers over 18 minutes. They’ll continue to carry that weight. But emerging next to them is Wyatt Johnston.
Johnston led all Dallas forwards in the playoffs with an average of 20:38 minutes on ice, up over three minutes from the regular season. Given his stellar performance, this is no surprise, and I’d expect to see that trend continue.
As with Johnston's rise, the Stars have more young talent emerging. While probably not playing the heaviest minutes to start, it would not be out of the question to see Logan Stankoven take on a more significant role as the year progresses. Managing some of the veteran players' minutes is crucial to their effectiveness. This young energy can help alleviate that strain and maximize the production of the forward group.