Duchene was on the receiving end of a hit from Minnesota's Jacob Middleton that made contact with his head. The 34-year-old Duchene was shaken up on the play but skated off the ice under his power, although he was not able to return to the game. Duchene has two points (1G / 1A) in three games this season and will create a sizable void in the Stars' top-six if he misses any time.
Ilya Lyubushkin will be a healthy scratch on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild, allowing Petrovic to draw into the lineup for his season debut. The 33-year-old Petrovic has played only five regular-season NHL games since 2019-20 but has been a regular with the Stars over the last two postseasons, playing 24 combined games, potentially earning himself a larger role with the team in 2025-26.
Lyubushkin will be a healthy scratch for the first time this season, allowing Alex Petrovic to make his season debut on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild. The 31-year-old Lyubushkin is averaging 12:56 time-on-ice, recording one point (0G / 1A), a +3 plus/minus, and six penalty minutes through two games.
The Stars have had a spread-out schedule to begin the 2025-26 season and will roll with Oettinger between the pipes for a third straight contest on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild. Oettinger and the Stars are 2-0-0 to start the season, but have faced some adversity defensively. The 26-year-old netminder has a 3.84 GAA and .875 SV% through two games. Dallas enters its home opener on Tuesday as -189 home favorites against a Minnesota team that played last night and defeated the Los Angeles Kings 4-3 in a shootout.
Back has not played yet in 2025-26 but appears to be nearing his return to the lineup after practicing on Monday. The 25-year-old Back made his NHL debut last season, scoring 16 points (4G / 12A) in 73 games in a fourth-line role with Dallas.
Motivated to make a case for Team USA's starting goalie at the Olympics, Oettinger will be hard-pressed to showcase his talents this season, beginning with a season-opening matchup against the current favourite for Team USA, Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets. The 26-year-old Oettinger posted a 2.59 GAA and .909 SV% in 58 games last season (36-18-4) but will need to elevate his game to materialize his goals. Dallas enters the matchup as slight -109 road favorites against Winnipeg.
Hryckowian had a strong preseason, recording one goal, two assists, five shots, and eight hits in five games. He was initially assigned to the AHL for cap-related reasons, but returns to the NHL roster after Jamie Benn and Oskar Back were placed on IR. Hryckowian ranked second on the Stars' AHL affiliate in scoring last season with 60 points (22G, 38A) in 67 games.
Benn suffered a collapsed lung after a hit during a preseason game and is expected to be reevaluated at the end of October. The 36-year-old is entering his 17th NHL season and has only missed two games across the previous four years. In 2024-25, he had 16 goals, 49 points and 70 PIMs in 80 games played.
Erne joined the Stars for a PTO in training camp and has been rewarded with a one-year, two-way contract. With Jamie Benn and Oskar Back both on Injured Reserve, Erne could have an opportunity to crack the Stars' opening night roster on the fourth line. The 30-year-old Erne last played in the NHL in the 2023-24 season and has 91 points (41G / 50A) in 379 career games.
Dallas will be without their captain for an extended period after it was announced Thursday that Jamie Benn will undergo surgery for a collapsed lung and will be reevaluated in four weeks. The 36-year-old is entering his 17th NHL season and has only missed two games across the previous four years. In 2024-25, he had 16 goals, 49 points and 70 PIMs in 80 games played.
Benn missed practice on Tuesday with an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day as the Stars begin their preseason schedule. The injury is not expected to be serious, and the 35-year-old is expected to be ready for his 17th career opening night when Dallas starts their season on October 9th in Winnipeg. Benn will look to bounce back from a down season in 2024-25, after he put up 16 goals and 49 points in 80 games played.
After an impressive first campaign with Red Deer in the WHL, Jaxon Fuder has earned himself a three-year, entry-level contract with Dallas after going undrafted last season. The 19-year-old forward is expected to return to Red Deer for a sophomore campaign in 2025-26, where he had 11 goals, 26 points and 91 PIMs in 46 games played.
Bastian provides very little offence, combining for just 37 points (15G / 22A) in 156 games over the last three seasons with the Devils, but he brings plenty of physicality. Bastian ranked 29th in the NHL in Hits/60 (min 500 TOI) last season and 26th in Hits/60 (min 1500) in the last three seasons. As a team, Dallas was second-last in the NHL in hits in 2024-25.
Dallas managed to move some much-needed salary on Thursday after trading Matt Dumba ($3.75M cap hit) and a 2028 2nd Round Pick to Pittsburgh for Vladislav Kolyachonok. Kolyachonok is a 24-year-old defenseman entering his fifth NHL campaign, having recorded two goals and seven points in 35 games played between Utah and Pittsburgh last season.
Antonio Stranges will return to Texas (AHL) for a fourth consecutive season after Dallas announced they had signed the 23-year-old to a one-year, two-way extension. The shifty forward was Dallas' 2020 4th-round pick (123rd overall) but has yet to make an NHL appearance despite picking up 18 goals and 43 points in 55 games played in 2024-25 with Texas (AHL).
Dallas has signed their 2024 5th round draft pick (158th overall), Niilopekka Muhonen to a three-year, entry-level contract on Tuesday. The 19-year-old Finnish defenseman spent 2024-25 in Medicine Hat (WHL) after being selected in 1st round of the CHL import draft and had four goals, 17 points and a +20 plus/minus in 60 games played.
The Dallas Stars traded Faksa's $3.25 million cap-hit to the St. Louis Blues in the previous offseason. After spending a season with the Blues, scoring 15 points (5G / 10A) in 70 games, he returns to the Stars on a three-year, $2 million AAV contract. The Stars drafted Faksa 13th overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.
Despite free agency opening up, Dallas has secured forward Colin Blackwell for two more seasons after he signed a two-year, $1.55 million contract ($775,000 AAV) on Tuesday. The 32-year-old forward will provide Dallas with much-needed bottom-six depth in 2025-26 after posting six goals and 17 points in 63 games played last season while averaging just 11:34 TOI.
Dallas' captain will return for a 17th season with the organization after it was announced Thursday that the Stars had agreed to a one-year, $1 million contract with Jamie Benn. The contract is full of bonuses, which could reach as high as $4 million AAV if all are achieved by the end of the season. In 80 games in 2024-25, the 35-year-old veteran had 15 goals, 49 points and 70 PIMs while holding down a bottom-six role.
