What We Did and Didn't Learn about the Dallas Stars from Jim Nill's Year-End Press Conference

Jason Robertson, Jamie Benn, injuries, and more injuries

Jim Nill opened¹ his year-end media availability today (which you can watch here or in the embedded clip below) by talking about how disappointing the Stars’ first-round exit was.

It would not be the last time that word cropped up during the 45-minute press conference. I counted at least a dozen times the word “disappointing” or “disappointed” was deployed by Nill, including in his opening sentence.

“As we stand here today, the organization and myself were disappointed,” Nill said. “We have high expectations here. We didn’t fulfill that, and it’s frustrating. And what really makes it frustrating is what we went through this season. All my years in hockey, it was probably one of the most demanding regular seasons I’ve ever gone through. And that’s the whole league. That’s not only us, but the whole league.”

Nill cited the compact schedule, numerous injuries, and demanding travel as things the entire league had to deal with, and so to endure that sort of a grind only to wind up with a first-round defeat clearly isn’t sitting well with him or the Stars at large—especially after finishing with 112 points and setting some franchise records along the way.

“That’s what makes it frustrating,” Nill said. “Because we had a heck of a season. We were third overall in the league, 50 wins, top-10 in all categories other than penalty-killing². To sit here now and see we lost in the first round is disappointing.”

Nill then credited Minnesota for “getting to their game quicker and better” than the Stars were able to, and said that after speaking with the players in exit interviews, there was pretty universal agreement on a couple of things: they were very well-coached this year, and they never really got their game fully going in the playoffs.

“Why is that? There’s different reasons,” Nill said.

Nill went on to answer questions about what those reasons were (and many other things) for over 45 minutes today. But one thing I found refreshing is that the Stars have been candid about the injuries they’ve had this year, rather than refusing to discuss them in some sort of effort to avoid looking like they were “making excuses.”

There will be those who decry even mentioning injuries as the Stars’ attempt to excuse their own shortcomings. But considering how closely guarded injuries are during the playoffs, finally being able to know what the Stars were dealing with provides a lot of helpful context to the Stars’ defeat.

“The coaching staff did a great job. They came in, 50 wins,” Nill said. “I get back to the adversity of the season. I’d wake up every morning, look at my phone, and there’d be a text from Dave Zeis, our head medical trainer. I’m like, ‘Here we go again.’ And it never fazed the staff. It was next-man-up, and the players never complained about it. It was a grind, this season, all year.”

Again, acknowledging the adversity that injuries cause is not the same as excusing the team for falling short. And Nill was quick to point out that every team endured the same grind that Dallas did.

“Because of the Olympics and everything else, it was a grind for every team in the league. It was a grind. And our guys, they fought through it. There were no excuses. The coaching staff did a good job at making adjustments through all these injuries and changes.”

Those adjustments also included giving opportunities to younger players, such as Mavrik Bourque, Justin Hryckowian, and even Arttu Hyry later in the year. But when the heat of the playoffs arrived, the Stars’ thinned-out forward depth was finally exposed, as they didn’t get a single goal from anyone in the bottom-six forward group.

“We never had one game where we had our full lineup this whole season, or in playoffs, which is hard to believe,” Nill said. “I’ve never seen that before.”

As for the players they did have, Nill echoed what Gulutzan said on Monday about the Stars’ defensive breakdowns being the biggest culprit for their earlier exit.

“We gave them too many easy five-on-five goals,” Nill said. “I think that cost us the series.”

Yes, the five-on-five scoring drought is easy to point to, but Nill and Gulutzan were united in being most disappointed with the mistakes the Stars made defensively, especially considering that they lost a series of games that all felt winnable, outside of Game 1.

In fact, Nill also said he was growing concerned about whether the Stars would get back to their best form even in the final weeks of the regular season.

“I got worried,” Nill said, “We played Minnesota two weeks before the playoffs started. They came in here, I thought they sent a statement. They were showing, ‘Hey, this is what we’re gonna be doing.’ We didn’t really play that way. We won the game, so I think our guys said, ‘That’s okay, we’ve got them.’”

Nill also made an interesting distinction about how the Wild came into the series as a team that looked like it “had” to win, whereas the Stars began the series looking like a team that “wanted” to win.

Game 1 was where that difference was plain to see, as the Stars began the series with a thud. And Nill said the team is still sorting out how and why that could have happened.

“Why is that? I don’t know. I’ve talked to the players about that,” Nill said. “They just didn’t have it. They didn’t have it, and it’s disappointing. You’re at home. I thought Game 1 and Game 5 was a little bit of that.”

Nill said his primary concern was where his team was at “emotionally and mentally,” which was especially disappointing considering how resilient of a group the Stars had been all season. But there was no mistaking the fact that the team just didn’t have everything they needed when the playoffs arrived.

“I just saw the energy level starting to come down,” Nill said of his late-season concern. “‘Are we just waiting for the playoffs, and now we’re gonna crank it up?’ ‘Are we getting worn out with the injuries, not having the bodies we had?’ I don’t know. That’s what we’re gonna try to figure out.”

When asked whether that might mean the team needs to make some changes to bring in different players to provide that emotion in crunch time, Nill said the team already has players who can do that. As evidence of that fact, he pointed to the last few years of deep playoff runs, where the team’s energy and emotional drive were clearly present.

In the end, it may just have been a perfect combination of various misfortune—at least, that’s what the Stars are hoping.

“Was this just one of these years where we’re just battling? That’s what we’re gonna figure out,” Nill said.

Some personnel and system changes will happen, Nill said, though they sound likely to be minor rather than major ones, barring a serious breakdown in Jason Robertson extension talks (which we’ll get to below). And really, the bones of the team are good ones, with nearly all of the core players locked up for years to come. It’s not like major makeover could really happen even if there were an appetite for one, and there isn’t—not yet, anyway.

“I’m not blowing this up,” Nill said. “We’re too good of a team.”

The Stars GM also mentioned just how much hockey the team had played over the last two years in particular, along with many of their top players being at both the Four Nations Face-Off last season and the Olympics in this one. So getting a longer summer this year before a less-condensed schedule in 2026-27 could end up being a positive thing that comes out of a negative playoff result.

To that end, Nill also confirmed that four or five players on the Stars (one of whom was Thomas Harley) had the opportunity to play at the IIHF World Championships, but they all declined in order to give their bodies the rest and recovery they need.

As for those worn-out bodies themselves, let’s dig into what else we learned about those injuries today.

The Stars were even less healthy than we knew

As for the specifics of those injuries, let’s start with the biggest one: Mikko Rantanen suffered a torn MCL at the Olympics and had to play with a bulky knee brace for the rest of the season as a result.

The injury won’t require surgery, but Nill acknowledged that Rantanen just didn’t have enough time to get back into his best form before the playoffs began, pointing to how Rantanen simply wasn’t as strong on his feet, particularly when trying to roll off players in the corner with the puck or fighting at the netfront.

When asked whether he could see signs of Rantanen being less than his usual abilities, the longtime hockey scout and current Stars GM was candid: “I saw it almost daily.”

“Did he come back too soon?” Nill asked rhetorically. “Not too soon, but it would have been nice to have one or two more weeks to really settle in. He never really got going again […] I never really thought he was himself.”

For Rantanen in particular, Nill said, a little extra time to heal will do him good. Rantanen has never missed the playoffs in his NHL career, Nill said, so giving his body a bit more recovery time should be a good thing in the long run.

Nill also revealed today that Arttu Hyry suffered a high-ankle sprain in Game 5, and that and in watching his shifts back, I believe Ryan Hartman caused the injury on this hit in the neutral zone away from the puck, where Hyry’s leg gets caught underneath him.

Nill didn’t mention the play specifically, but he did say Hyry’s injury came from getting “slew-footed,” so the above clip would seem to fit. Hyry went immediately to the bench after the hit midway through the first period. He would try it out again for two shifts in the second period, but he was lost for the series after that.

Sam Nestler had previously reported that Nathan Bastian had to have a screw inserted into his broken finger after blocking a shot off his hand late in the season. He would have been available at the start of the second round, Nill said, had the Stars advanced.

It was also revealed that Miro Heiskanen played through not only a torn oblique muscle, but also a sprained ankle. Oskar Bäck played with a sprained shoulder in the postseason after missing games with a wrist injury back in October, and Lian Bichsel also suffered a sprained shoulder at the end of Game 6. None of those injuries should require anything more than rest and recovery over the summer.

That is not yet the case for Radek Faksa’s foot, which may indeed need more than the one surgery it already got this season.

“It was pretty serious, and it still is serious,” Nill said. “It [affects] how his foot works. Amazing he played. We didn’t think he was gonna play at all […] He may require further surgery. It was a very serious injury. Fluke of nature. A sixteenth of an inch either way and nothing happens. It got him in just the right spot. It was a ligament that [got] cut. He’s seeing a specialist still. He may need further surgery for it.”

Nill said they still don’t know what Faksa’s timeline will be when it comes to potential surgery and training camp next year, as the injury is an unprecedented one.

“Never seen it. Our trainers have never seen it,” Nill said. “That was part of the problem: We didn’t know the time frame. He went to the specialist, and they said he’s out. Is it career-ending? We didn’t know. They did the surgery, and it’s really never happened before. So we were just kind of going off timing. He was great. He got back. We didn’t know if he was gonna play at all.”

Thomas Harley suffered a broken foot in November, Nill said, which “kind of put him behind the eight ball.” But despite coming back from that injury to play in top form at the Olympics for Team Canada, Harley struggled to meet the high bar he set last season for multiple stretches during both the regular season and the playoffs.

“Nobody was more disappointed than Thomas,” Nill said. “You won’t find a more direct young man than Thomas Harley. He had the right read on himself, so I didn’t have to say much. He knows he’s gotta be better.”

Adam Erne suffered an MCL sprain earlier in the Stars’ season after his extensive recovery from hip surgery last season. (And just from what I could see, Erne may have been fighting through some lingering pain later in the season as well.)

Roope Hintz won’t require any surgery for his twice-torn hamstring, which Nill said was nearly healed before Hintz re-injured it in what was termed a “setback” a couple of weeks ago. Nill bemoaned how losing both Hintz and Tyler Seguin (ACL surgery) hurt the Stars on faceoffs in particular, as the two forwards were top faceoff-takers for Dallas, in addition to being very good hockey players overall.

“Tyler Seguin might have been playing the best hockey I’ve seen since he’s been in Dallas, to tell you the truth,” Nill said. “All-around game, he was playing as good as I’ve seen him play, and playing responsible. That was a big loss for us.”

Nils Lundkvist suffered a concussion when his face was cut by Michael McCarron’s skate in Game 4, Nill said. Lundkvist had to have stitches on both the inside and outside of his mouth, but the concussion is what kept him out for Games 5 and 6. Lundkvist may have been available for Game 7, Nill said, if the Stars had pushed the series that far. (They did not do that.)

Michael Bunting missed around three weeks with a groin injury late in the season that prevented him from really getting his game going, and Nill said Tyler Myers also had a small groin injury, too. Nill said Myers had some moments he would like back, but that the veteran defenseman knows he has to be better. The hope will be that Myers settles into a more stable third-pairing role next season, whereas Bunting will probably command a higher salary than can fit into the Stars’ cap structure right now, so I’d expect him to explore free agency.

Nill also confirmed that Sam Steel had a groin injury late in the year, as Gulutzan had divulged previously. Ilya Lyubushkin also was revealed to have injured his shoulder earlier in the season as well, though he came back to play some decent hockey later in the season and even the playoffs.

Jamie Benn’s return sounds probable, but younger players are ready to step up

Jim Nill was asked about Jamie Benn’s potential return today, and Nill said he wants Benn to come back, as does the whole organization. That matches what Glen Gulutzan and Tyler Seguin both said on Monday.

“I want him back. I think he wants to come back, but I’m gonna give him that time [to decide]. He needs to go through this and figure this out,” Nill said.

Nill also confirmed that if Benn does come back, he would also retain the captaincy. And that’s only logical given that Benn’s presence on this team would make him the most important voice in the room regardless of what letter was on his sweater.

I’ve already detailed my thoughts on the Benn situation, so I won’t repeat myself. But right now, it certainly sounds like Benn may indeed run it back for another year.

Regardless of how that all shakes out, the next generation will have to step up next year. Nill said that appears to already be happening, as players like Wyatt Johnston, Mavrik Bourque, Justin Hryckowian, and Nils Lundkvist all told him in exit interviews that they want to have a stronger voice in the dressing room next year.

As for who the next captain of the Stars might be whenever Jamie Benn does hang up his skates, Nill said he’s got some ideas—but he’s not telling what they are just yet.

“I’m not gonna divulge it, but I’ve been thinking about it,” Nill said of his thoughts on the next captain. “I know the time’s coming. We’ve all got a window.”

Nill laughed when asked (jokingly) whether the player he’s been thinking about plays forward or defense. He then gave a little more detail about the potential candidates for the captaincy down the road.

“There’s three or four guys in there,” Nill said, “And we can go different directions—younger, older, in-between. Something we’ll think about. But right now, Jamie’s still the guy, and we’ll go from there.”

Nill also added he would want Jamie Benn to have some input with regard to who the next captain of the Stars is, whenever that time comes.

Jim Nill wants to re-sign Jason Robertson

Jason Robertson is the biggest question looming over the Stars’ summer, particularly coming off a season featuring what Robertson himself called the best hockey he’s ever played. And to hear Nill tell it, he anticipates Robertson playing a lot more of that same high-quality hockey in Dallas over the coming years.

“My plan is to reach out to his agent here in the next week or so,” Nill said. “That’s our focus, is to get him signed. He’s a big part of our team. We drafted and developed him, and we think we want him to be a Dallas Star for the rest of his career.”

Despite the nature of contract negotiations, Nill also didn’t skimp on praise for Robertson’s playoff performance this year.

“I thought he played as well as he’s ever played,” Nill said. “He trained hard […] he’s dedicated. He worked hard all summer, came ready to go. I thought his skating got better and better, and I thought his physicality got better. He started to manage the physical parts of the game in corners, managing the front of the net. He did a great job.”

The situation right now (as Stars Thoughts readers know by heart at this point) is that the Stars have just $11 million in cap space for next year to sign Robertson and a couple other forwards at the bare minimum. However, Dallas can free up some more cap space, and the most likely way to do so is by moving Ilya Lyubushkin’s $3.25 million cap hit.

The Stars had to spend a second-round pick to trade Matt Dumba in the final year of his contract last summer, but the hope for Dallas will be that Lyubushkin is a more desirable asset than Dumba was. Whatever it takes, however, it sounds like the Stars expect Robertson will be deservedly taking up a good chunk of whatever cap space they do have in the coming years.

For now, it’s simply about figuring out how big that chunk needs to be.

“In negotiations, there’s always a number that both parties…we gotta find that number,” Nill said.

“Now, if the player wants an amount that’s totally unacceptable, then it’s a different story,” Nill said with a chuckle. “But I don’t anticipate that. Our plan, it’s clear, is to get him signed.”

Nothing is done until it’s done, but from what Nill said today, it sure sounds like the Stars are still planning to have Robertson in the fold next season. We will see if that plan comes to fruition over the coming weeks.

Miscellaneous Notes

• Nill gave Matt Duchene a lot of credit for how he came back from his concussion this year, particularly when the team was dealing with other injuries later in the season.

  • “He’s a guy that stepped up,” Nill said. “Probably had one of the best playoffs he’s ever had.”

• Nill was also very candid about Jake Oettinger’s need for more consistency, saying the big issue this year was that when Oettinger’s game dropped, it dropped off too far and took too long to get back into form.

  • “He’s shown he’s elite. He can be elite,” Nill said. “When I talked to him, I said, ‘Instead of being good for seven or eight games out of ten, let’s be good for nine out of ten.’”

• Assistant coach Alain Nasreddine has been re-signed. Nasreddine entered the ‘25-26 season in the final year of the original four-year contract that he started as a member of Pete DeBoer’s staff in 2022), but Nill said today that the entire coaching staff will return next season.

  • “It’s a good group. They work well together. They all take turns presenting. It’s just a good group,” Nill said.

• The Stars’ GM also said he doesn’t know exactly what it would look like, but he believes teams should be rewarded more than they are right now for winning the Presidents’ Trophy. It’s a big accomplishment, and the playoff alignment simply doesn’t seem to reward them enough for doing it, he said.

• Nill also believes the Stars can re-sign Mavrik Bourque (“get Mavrik done,” in his words) without having to wait on sorting out the Jason Robertson deal. I’d expect the Arttu Hyry RFA situation is also in that camp, so don’t be surprised if we see one or both of those sorted out before the Robertson situation is cleared up.
  

1. Before the cameras went on, Nill added some kind words for my longtime colleague Taylor Baird, who wrapped up her final season covering the team for NHL.com.

2. Dallas’s PK finished 13th in the league.