Stars’ Mikko Rantanen out week-to-week, expected to return during regular season
Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen is expected to miss at least the next two weeks of game action while recovering from a lower-body injury.
Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan shared an update on Rantanen’s status at his media availability on Tuesday, a day after the club placed Rantanen on the injured reserve list (retroactive to Feb. 20).
Rantanen, 29, collected two goals and six points in five games with Team Finland at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, returning to Dallas with a bronze medal — and an injury.
According to Gulutzan, the Stars expect Rantanen to return to their lineup before the end of the 2025-26 regular season, but he is currently considered week-to-week.
❌Mikko Rantanen (lower-body) is considered week-to-week. #TexasHockey
Mikko Rantanen is expected to miss at least two weeks. Maybe more. But they expect him to be back before the end of the regular season.
Rantanen is currently in his first full season as a member of the Stars, who acquired him from the Carolina Hurricanes ahead of the 2025 trade deadline. The 6’4″ winger has 20 goals and 69 points in 54 games with the Stars this season.
The Colorado Avalanche originally selected Rantanen in the first round (No. 10 overall) of the 2015 NHL Draft. The Nousiainen, Finland product made his NHL debut with the Avalanche in the 2015-16 season and surpassed the point-per-game mark for the first time in 2017-18.
Rantanen played an instrumental role in the Avalanche winning the Stanley Cup in 2022, recording 25 points in 20 playoff games that spring. The following year, he set career highs with 55 goals and 105 points in 82 games with the Avalanche.
As a pending unrestricted free agent in the 2024-25 season, Rantanen found himself on the move twice. After being traded to Carolina in January of 2025, Rantanen appeared in just 13 games with the Hurricanes before being flipped to the Stars in March. He subsequently signed an eight-year contract extension with Dallas worth $12 million per season.
Through 706 career NHL games over parts of 11 seasons split between the Avalanche, Hurricanes, and Stars, Rantanen has collected 314 goals and 774 points. He’s added 43 goals and 123 points in 99 playoff contests.