The Dallas Stars headed to Pennsylvania on Saturday for a quick two-game trip on a four-game losing skid that saw a lot of mediocre hockey. They snapped that streak on Saturday with a 6-3 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins, and left the state with three out of four points after a 2-1 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday.
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It was important for the Stars to stack up some points to secure home ice in the playoffs, but more importantly, they needed to get back to their game. Back to the basics. It wasn’t perfect, but they found that game on Saturday. On Sunday, both teams looked tired, and the Stars grinded out a point.
Here are four takeaways from the last weekend in March.
Mikko Rantanen Returns
Mikko Rantanen’s last game for the Stars was Feb. 4 after being hurt in the semifinals at the Olympics in Team Finland’s matchup against Canada on Feb. 20. The Stars have seen some big injuries to big players this season, and Rantanen’s was just another hurdle for both him and his teammates to jump over.
The 29-year-old winger had a goal and an assist in just under 19 minutes of action on Saturday, and his presence was felt throughout the game, especially on the power play. With the Penguins up 2-1 partway through the second period, the Stars scored two power-play goals in exactly three minutes, and both of them were directly because of Rantanen.
On the first goal, Rantanen was at the right point and passed the puck to Matt Duchene in the right circle. Duchene passed it back up to Rantanen, and Rantanen slid across the blue line, opening up a massive hole in the slot for Jason Robertson to snipe home the game-tying goal. On the second, Rantanen backhanded a perfect pass to Robertson from the right boards to the slot. Robertson then circled back, drawing defenders to the left side of the ice, and sent it back to a wide-open Rantanen, who hammered a one-timer past Stuart Skinner for his 21st goal of the season.
“A little rusty, obviously,” Rantanen said after Saturday’s game. “It’s a lot different than practicing, you know? You can do a lot of things in practice, but games are a little different. Sometimes you think it’s faster than it is.”
It took a few shifts to get his feel back, but as the game went on, it was clear what the Stars had been missing for the last month, even if they won way more games than they lost in that time.
“We got a lot of power plays, so I got the puck a lot. I think that helped me get into the game. But, overall, the body felt good.”
Robertson didn’t seem surprised at all by Rantanen’s immediate impact.
“You know him,” Robertson said. “Anyone, it takes a little time to come back from injury, but his puck skills were there and his shot was obviously there. It’s only going to get better.”
Robertson Scores No. 40
Before the Stars were in Dallas, they were the Minnesota North Stars. In the history of this franchise, in both cities, they have had two 40-goal scorers in the same season just five times. Except that it had never happened in Dallas until this weekend.
With that power-play goal on Saturday, Robertson joined Wyatt Johnston in the 40-goal club, hitting the mark for the third time in his six-season career. In his first season, he scored 17 in a 51-game COVID-shortened season, so maybe he would’ve hit it then, too.
Robertson has been overlooked and underrated for a lot of his career. Maybe that’s just my opinion, but based on the recent conversation around him being left off of Team USA, I don’t think it is. Either way, what he has done in a Stars uniform is incredible.
Since moving to Dallas, the Stars have had seven 40-goal seasons. Mike Modano, Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin, and Johnston are the first four. The other three? Robertson.
I don’t know what he’s going to get paid this summer if the Stars extend him, or what he gets paid if he hits the open market. What I do know is he will be worth every penny, and probably more.
Injuries Continue to Pile Up
It might not look like it in the point column of the standings, but the Stars have been hit by injuries all season, and it’s not letting up for them at all. 2025-26 has seen Seguin out for the season, Duchene miss significant time, and Rantanen and Roope Hintz hurt at the Olympics. While Rantanen returned this past weekend, Hintz still remains out with a lower-body injury and is not set to return until at least April 13. Nathan Bastian is out until at least Tuesday with a hand injury, and Radek Faksa is out until at least April 15.
Over the course of the weekend, three more Stars went down, and the timelines are unclear. Newly acquired Michael Bunting is considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury after leaving Sunday’s game, and Sam Steel is out until at least April 2 with a hip injury.
Arttu Hyry Nets First NHL Goal
While the Stars didn’t get the win on Sunday, their lone goal was a big one. Arttu Hyry, a 24-year-old Finnish rookie, scored his first NHL goal against the Flyers.
At 17:53 of the second period, Hyry sniped a perfect shot from the left circle under the crossbar, shorthanded no less, for his first goal in 18 games in the NHL.
“I saw their guy kind of struggling with the puck and with his balance,” Hyry said after Sunday’s contest. “Kind of guessed on that and got the puck. It’s just nice. Shoot it as hard as you can and hope it goes in.”
Next Up For Dallas
The Stars finish up the month and this four-game road trip against the Boston Bruins on Tuesday, before hosting the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday and the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday in two of five straight at home. Those five games are their last games at American Airlines Center before the playoffs.
