Minnesota Wild right wing Danila Yurov (22) shoots the puck as Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen (4) defends during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)
Matt Krohn/AP
The Dallas Stars’ opponent for the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs is set.
Starting as soon as April 18, Dallas will face the Minnesota Wild in a best-of-seven series to kick off its pursuit of its first Stanley Cup title since 1999.
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While the matchup has been set, home-ice advantage has yet to be determined.
Here are five things to know about Stars-Wild.
A lot and a little history all at once
Despite being rivals for decades, the Stars and Wild have faced off only twice in the playoffs — in the first rounds in 2016 and 2023. The Stars won both series in six games.
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Nevertheless, those series have had memorable moments that reopened old wounds, like when Matt Dumba injured Joe Pavelski in the 2023 series after a controversial hit.
The animosity between the teams runs deep and stems from the Minnesota North Stars’ 1993 move to Dallas, leaving the State of Hockey without an NHL team for seven seasons.
Minnesota is looking to end a lengthy drought
The Wild are playoff regulars, just like the Stars, but haven’t had much success in recent years when getting there.
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Minnesota has lost its last eight first-round playoff series, including twice to the Stars in that span. The Wild haven’t reached the second round since 2015. They haven’t made the conference finals since 2002-03.
The Stars, on the other hand, are coming off three consecutive trips to the conference finals. Yet again, they find themselves facing a grueling first-round opponent. Last season, they faced rival Colorado in the first round and went to seven games. The year before that, they faced the defending-champion Vegas Golden Knights and needed seven games to beat them.
Now, they’ll face the third-best team in the West.
Showdown between elite defensemen
Minnesota made its blockbuster move months ahead of this season’s trade deadline, acquiring Norris Trophy winner Quinn Hughes from Vancouver.
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Hughes has recorded 74 points in 71 games this season between Vancouver and Minnesota and averages over 27 minutes of ice time per night. He is again in contention to win the Norris Trophy, awarded to the league’s top defenseman.
Dallas has a superstar defenseman of its own to go head-to-head with Hughes. Miro Heiskanen has 62 points in 75 games this season for the Stars and is averaging over 25 minutes of ice time per night.
He’s also supported by star defensive defenseman Esa Lindell and two-way defenseman Thomas Harley.
Hughes can be an X-factor for Minnesota, so Dallas needs Heiskanen — and its other defensemen — to be at their best as well in the series.
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Skilled netminders on both sides
Both Dallas and Minnesota have relied on two skilled netminders down the stretch of the season.Â
The Wild have taken more of a tandem approach, regularly using both Filip Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt.
Gustavsson has 28 wins in 48 games, recording a .909 save percentage and 2.59 goals-against average. Wallstedt has 16 wins in 32 starts, recording a .914 save percentage and 2.67 goals-against average.
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Expect Gustavsson to start Game 1, but the Wild have another option if needed.
Dallas, on the other hand, will likely ride with Jake Oettinger throughout the playoffs. The netminder has 65 games of playoff experience and has recorded 31 wins in 50 starts with a .900 save percentage and 2.61 goals-against average this season.Â
Backup Casey DeSmith has been solid as well, putting up even better numbers — a .910 save percentage and 2.34 goals-against average. DeSmith, however, has only appeared in five playoff games in his career.
Chance at revenge for Jason Robertson?
Stars forward Jason Robertson can show Wild GM Bill Guerin just how skilled he is.
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Guerin snubbed the forward from Team USA’s Olympic roster this year, despite leading all Americans in points. The United States went on to win gold without Robertson.
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That gave Robertson extra time to rest and prepare for a deep playoff run. He passed 40 goals for the first time in three seasons, recording 89 points in 77 games.
Robertson’s career playoff numbers (.79 points per game) haven’t been as strong as his regular season numbers (1.07 points per game), but the first-round series against Minnesota is a prime opportunity for him to prove otherwise.
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