Stars Return to Playoffs, but the Window is Starting to Close

On March 20, 2026, the Colorado Avalanche became the first team to lock in a spot in this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs. Now obviously, we would not be alone. It's a 16-team tournament, the ultimate Sweet 16 in sports (with all due respect to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament). So who would be the second team with a shot to get it? The Dallas Stars. Of course it's Dallas. They've racked up quite the point total due to the big streak they've been on, and they entered this Sunday with a chance to get into the big dance.

All Dallas would need is one more point in the standings to get in. But there's a problem. They were defeated in regulation by the Vegas Golden Knights. Reilly Smith broke a 2-2 tie late in the third period, and it held up. No points for Dallas. But as Seth Rollins can attest to, there is always a Plan B. Dallas's plan B: a Kings loss. Kings were in Salt Lake City against the Mammoth, and the game did end up going to OT, where Nick Schmaltz put in his second goal of the game. Kings lost in OT, and them losing a point was exactly was Dallas needed to get in.

The Stars are in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the fifth straight year and the seventh time in eight seasons. The stretch began in 2019, which saw them make it to double OT in Game 7 of Round 2--a game that saw Dallas ruin Ben Bishop's head standing performance by not being able to put two shots together. The 2020 bubble saw the Stars actually reach the Stanley Cup Final but come up two wins short, and after missing out in 2021, the Stars made it back and reached Game 7 again, and this time, it was Jake Oettinger's turn to be let down by his teammates. Of course, they faced Calgary in that series, and Game 7 ended with an OT goal by the late, great Johnny Gaudreau.

The last three years saw Dallas face that same dead end: the Conference Finals. Three straight Final Four appearances, and nothing to show for it. Vegas knocked them out in 2023, and in each of the last two years, it was Edmonton. So Dallas, despite spending the last two postseasons getting huge help from the refs, have nothing to show for their playoff stretch. So what the hell makes them think that this year will be any different?

First off, I want to point out a glaring issue I have with Dallas' playoff clinch graphic: they left out the points leader. Jason Robertson is tied for the team lead in goals with 38, but he has seven more assists than Wyatt Johnston. His 82 points make him the lone player (as of now) who will clinch a point/game season. Johnston's 75 points place him second on the team, and let's talk about Mikko Rantanen. This is Mikko's first full season with the Stars, and it had been going well until a lower-body injury a month ago. Rantanen and Roope Hintz have both been sidelined, so Dallas is quite shorthanded, but they've somehow held it together for the most part.

Jake Oettinger continues to be that strong presence in net for Dallas. A record of 29-10-6 with a 2.56 GAA, a .903 SV%, and a pair of shutouts. Miro Heiskanen is again racking up points and serving as Dallas' top defenseman; he has 59 points (9G/50A) so far this season, which is fourth on the team behind Robertson, Johnston, and Rantanen.

The Stars sit five points out of first place, and most likely, they are looking at a first round meeting with the Minnesota Wild, which would be the second such meeting in four years. Dallas' three straight West Final losses have resulted in a Cup window that is closing quite quickly. Even if they do get past Minnesota, they're not getting past Colorado. I do sense a backward step for the Stars this year, and if that happens, it'll make the Mikko Rantanen deal from last season look like an absolute waste. Remember: Rantanen was supposed to be that missing piece to get them a Cup, but he went cold in his last eight games of last year's playoffs. If we see another year of that, one has to believe that the Dallas window will continue to close, if not become entirely shut altogether.