FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Mikko Rantanen sustained a torn MCL in his knee throughout the Olympics, an harm that Dallas Stars common supervisor Jim Nill says saved their standout forward from being himself the remainder of the season.
Rantanen missed 15 games for the Stars after getting damage whereas enjoying for bronze medal-winning Finland in February. He returned for the ultimate 10 video games of the common season. He had just one purpose and 4 assists in that span, then one purpose and 6 assists once they lost their first-round playoff series to Minnesota in six video games.
“Major injury. Came back, he’s very competitive,” Nill mentioned Thursday throughout his season-ending availability. “Did he come back too soon? Not too soon, but would have been nice to have one or two more weeks to really settle in. He never really got going again.”
In 54 video games earlier than the Olympics, Rantanen had 21 targets and 51 assists. The Stars bought him in a deadline deal final season, signed him to a $96 million, eight-year extension, and he then a remarkable postseason with 9 targets and 13 assists in 18 video games once they made the Western Conference closing for the third 12 months in a row.
Dallas was accomplished after one spherical this 12 months, and Rantanen wasn’t the only player dealing with a significant injury.
Nill mentioned Rantanen didn’t have and received’t require any surgical procedure, and can profit from having some prolonged day without work alongside with so lots of their different gamers.
“We never had one game where we had a full lineup this whole season and the playoffs,” Nill mentioned. “Hard to believe, I’ve never seen that before.”
The Stars additionally go into an offseason when 45-goal scorer Jason Robertson can change into a restricted free agent and with longtime captain Jamie Benn pondering a call on whether or not to return for an 18th NHL season, all in Dallas.
“We want him to be a Dallas Star the rest of his career,” Nill mentioned of Robertson, whereas including in addition they need Benn again.
Top-line heart Roope Hintz missed the primary 4 video games after the Olympics due to sickness, then tore his left hamstring in two places on March 6 in his solely sport since. That was after the Stars in December misplaced Tyler Seguin to an ACL harm.
Miro Heiskanen, their high defenseman, missed the ultimate three video games of the common season after an indirect tear after which sprained an ankle throughout the playoffs.
Radek Faksa suffered a concussion throughout the Olympics after which, when getting near returning for the Stars, suffered a laceration on his foot after it was sliced by a skate. He performed the final two regular-season video games and all through the playoffs, however Nill mentioned the nonetheless critical harm might require additional surgical procedure.
Midseason acquisition Michael Bunting performed just one playoff sport after a groin harm late within the season.
Nill mentioned defenseman Nils Lundkvist, who took a skate to his face in Game 4 towards the Wild, might have presumably returned had that sequence gotten to a Game 7.
“A very lucky man. The skate ended up hitting him, really hit into him more than anything,” Nill mentioned. “He had stitches inside and outside, but he also had a concussion.”