Stars’ Roope Hintz out for first two games of Round 1
This isn’t concerning at all if you’re a fan of Texas Hockey.
When speaking to the media on Tuesday, Dallas Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan revealed that forward Roope Hintz will miss the first two games of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Stars coach Glen Gulutzan ruled Roope Hintz out for the first two games of the playoffs today. “Certainly, Roope won’t be in in Game 1 or 2. We don’t know when he could come back, or if he could come back. We’ll see.”
It comes just a few days after the team ruled Hintz out for the remainder of the regular season due to a lower-body injury. Hintz has been out of action since suffering the injury on March 6, when he was hurt after getting tangled up with Colorado Avalanche star forward Nathan MacKinnon.
In Hintz’s absence, Dallas has stayed afloat and secured home-ice advantage for the first round. In the 19 games he has missed thus far, the Stars have posted a record of 11-6-2, having won four straight games leading up to the team’s season finale against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday night.
Dallas has already locked in its opening-round matchup, getting set to take on the third-seeded Minnesota Wild, who sit just eight points back of the Stars heading into Tuesday night. With the Finnish center out of the lineup, the Stars will be missing a key offensive weapon against a team that has plenty of firepower in its own right. Not to mention the fact that defenseman Miro Heiskanen is questionable to start the postseason, Dallas could be without two of its top…stars…in a marquee series against the Wild.
In 53 games, Hintz has scored 15 goals and 29 assists for 44 points, still good for sixth on the team in scoring.