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Stargazing, A Dallas Stars Puckcast – Episode 281: First-Round Preview, Stars vs. Avalanche

The Stars’ Stanley Cup quest begins again. Wes and Mark welcome back Evan Liu to size up the series to come.

Posted on by Kathleen Tibbetts
Defending Big D's Stargazing podcast logo, featuring a Dallas Stars Victory Green cassette tape with tearaway jersey texture and nets over the sprocket holes, designed by Jason Lara
Logo design: Jason Lara | @NHLMaps

The Dallas Stars won their position in the 2025 Stanley Cup race relatively early. Then they skidded into the end of the regular season on a seven-game losing streak unprecedented during head coach Pete DeBoer’s tenure. So what happens now that this team is supposed to be all in?

To survey the first-round ice, Stargazing welcomed back longtime Colorado Avalanche writer Evan Liu, now of Hockey Mountain High. He sat down with Wes and Mark to talk about forward depth, netminder performance, the playoffs return of Tyler Seguin and Gabriel Landeskog, and why whatever happens…won’t be a surprise.

So who you got? Let’s talk about it. It’s Stargazing time!

What’s on your mind? Share it in the comments. (We’re there for you. Really!) And please don’t forget to rate, review and share. Thank you kindly.

Plan A and Plan B – Stargazing: A Dallas Stars Puckcast | Defending Big D

The Dallas Stars always knew they had a lot of work to get done in the 2026 NHL offseason. We fans always knew GM Jim Nill had a plan, and it surely involved re-signing both Jason Robertson and Mavrik Bourque. So do we panic now that Plan A is dusted? Or is a Jim Nill Plan B good enough to keep the Stars rolling? In this episode of Stargazing, Wes and Mark discuss the battle to keep Robo (and who has a legitimate chance of taking him away), Jamie Benn's new deal, a show-me season for Thomas Harley, what the team needs from Mikko Rantanen, separating fact from fiction in the Stars' salary cap situation…and ever so much more. So is Joel Kiviranta the good-luck charm we all need to ensure everything will be OK? We're Stargazing, and we're not dismissing the prospect out of hand. Bonus question: Who are you watching among the Stars' new NHL Draft picks? Let's talk about it at Defending Big D. And please give us a rate, review, or share wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to Stargazing. We love you. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
  1. Plan A and Plan B
  2. Golfing Season
  3. Round 1, Game 4 Reactions
  4. Round 1, Game 3 Reactions
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