The Dallas Stars shall be without defenceman Miro Heiskanen for Game 3 against the Colorado Avalanche, but it surely appears he isn’t far off a return.
Head coach Pete DeBoer gave an update on Heiskanen ahead of Wednesday’s game.
Via Pierre LeBrun:
“DeBoer says same lineup for Stars tonight. Heiskanen stays out but Stars coach says “he’s getting closer.”
Heiskanen hasn’t played since January 28 attributable to a knee injury. In the course of the regular season, he had five goals and 20 assists in 50 games. By the sounds of it, he could suit up in Game 4. The Finland native is a key player for Dallas and would supply them with an enormous boost on the back. His presence is irreplaceable.
The Stars have struggled at times without Heiskanen within the lineup. They lost seven straight to shut out the campaign, which ended their possibilities of locking down the No. 1 seed within the Western Conference.
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It took the whole lot Dallas needed to beat the Avs in Game 2, and DeBoer knew a 0-2 deficit would essentially end their season, despite overcoming that very same hole last 12 months:
“I mean our season [was] on the road, let’s be honest,‘’ DeBoer said. “We got away with it [an 0-2 deficit] last 12 months in the primary series against Vegas. But you’re probably not going to go to that well again this 12 months and are available up winning. So we knew our season was on the road.‘’
Heiskanen has been skating each day for the Stars, and it’s only a matter of time until he gets the green light. He played probably the most minutes of any player within the postseason in 2024 by a protracted shot, averaging over 28 minutes per game.
Dallas needs him back not only for this series, but in addition if they’ll finally recover from the hump and win a Stanley Cup.
Hopefully, he’s within the lineup for Game 4.
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