Nils Lundqvist’s last shift was in the middle of the second period against the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night. Ilya Lyubushkin went down the tunnel the same game, but returned later. Matt Dumba took a puck to the lip.
So far this season, the Dallas Stars have been lucky – an ongoing theme over the last few seasons. If you want to take a deeper dive (or follow along on Twitter/X/BlueSky) or even just a website, the place to go is NHLInjuryViz. Right now, those four games missed by Dumba are the only blemishes for the Stars defense.
Brendan Smith has filled in as needed, and Dallas has enjoyed a positive defensive game – one that has been reliable since the 2016/17 season.
But what happens to the Stars defense if the team is hit by with injuries. Especially prior to the trade deadline, where the team could be expected to make a defensive acquisition for a Stanley Cup run? There are a few realistic choices with the Texas Stars.
Tried (somewhat) and True
Alex Petrovic
The 32 year old, right shot, defender has the trust of the organization, especially after his seven game playoff stint with the NHL club last spring. Petrovic is a defense first defender. In Cedar Park, he is a reliable mentor to prospects and gets top pair minutes, including heavy penalty kill minutes.
That said, Petrovic has seen his offense tick up the last few seasons, especially since the 2022/23 campaign when he paired with Ryan Shea as the top +/- AHL duo for the year. Petrovic is a safe choice, and given the organizations propensity to error on the side of caution, he is the likely first option for a call up.
Petrovic has played 264 NHL regular season games with a stat line of 5/45/50 over his career, but without much time since 2019. In Texas this year, he’s slashing 3/5/8 over 12 games.
Kyle Capobianco
Capobianco is new to the Stars organization, but he joins as the current Eddie Shore Award winner as the most outstanding defender in the AHL last season. He’s a 27 year old left shot defender who quarterbacks the Texas top power play unit. He is a puck mover, with some offensive upside – which at the AHL level can be dominant – but in his one full season in the NHL (2021/22 with the Arizona Coyotes), he was mediocre in third pair minutes.
On the Stars trip to Finland, Capobianco was the extra skater selected for the roster – which likely reflects his overall game and an ability to fill multiple roles as needed. The AHL pedigree is good, but being new to the organization, its tough to think that he would get a call unless Dallas was trying to back-fill for either Miro Heiskanen or Thomas Harley.
Capobianco has played in 73 NHL regular season games, with a stat line of 5/7/12 over his career. In Texas this year, he’s slashing 2/6/8 over 11 games.
Prospects
Lian Bichsel
Bichsel has played 58 regular season games over the last two seasons, half in the Swedish Elite league and half with the Texas Stars. The Stars former first round pick is paying his dues in the AHL, with all signs pointing to a spot on the Dallas NHL roster, maybe by the trade deadline and maybe before.
Bichsel is 6’6″, around 230 pounds and has shown the ability and willingness to use his size to his advantage. His skating is solid for a defender – which means exceptional for someone his size. He has a heavy (and surprisingly accurate) shot and can play on both the penalty kill and the power play, where he recently quarterbacked the Texas second unit when Christian Kyrou missed a few games.
Last season, Bichsel led with his physical game – which could get him into trouble if opponents baited him out of his team game. This season, he has eliminated most of these selfish penalties – and at times can be seen baiting other teams. The raw skills are all there, and the mental game is coming along (and he’s always had good reads/instincts). The question is when, not if – and right now, that may not be soon enough for Dallas Stars fans.
Don’t be surprised to see consideration of Bichsel getting the Harley treatment at the trade deadline. It’s hard to think that he won’t stick once he hits the NHL level, but for now, the Stars organization is letting him percolate in the AHL. I wouldn’t expect that to change over the next few months unless the Dallas defense loses several players to injury.
In Texas this year, he’s slashing 2/5/7 over 13 games.
Christian Kyrou
In his second year, Kyrou is starting to come around. At 5’11”, 166 pounds, the right shot defender is increasingly an offensive threat, running the Texas second power play unit. Kyrou has eliminated many of the careless turnovers that plagued him last season. Last spring, something seemed to click for Kyrou during the Texas run to/through the playoffs, and that new found confidence has continued through this season.
Is Kyrou ready for the NHL. No.
Is Kyrou ever going to get there. Probably not.
He’s a smallish puck mover – and that usually means that he needs to have something exceptional in his skill set to make it. But, he is improving.
In Texas this year, he’s slashing 3/6/9 over 10 games.
Luke Krys
Krys is an organizational type. An overage, undrafted player coming out of the college ranks and giving it a go as a professional. He’s 24, but a right shot – and in his first full professional season, he has gained the trust of Neil Graham and the Texas coaching staff. He is defensively dependable and has shown the ability to move the puck – so there is some potential there.
At this point, top end is probably Gavin Bayreuther/Ryan Shea – third pair, seventh defender, but you never know. In Texas this year, he’s slashing 2/2/4 over 10 games.
Summary
All told, the Dallas Stars have multiple NHL options in case the team needs to back-fill due to injury. For now, the first call-up would likely depend on the player injured – probably Alex Petrovic, but situationally, Kyle Capobianco.
Dream your dreams about Lian Bichsel – it could happen, perhaps should happen, but with the example of the development path that took Thomas Harley from prospect to NHL regular, its hard to think that Dallas will do something different in Bichsel’s case.