3 Stars most to blame for 1st-round loss to Wild

The Dallas Stars lost to the Minnesota Wild in six games in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They went home for Game 5 with the series tied at two, but lost the final two games of their season. After three consecutive losses in the Western Conference Final, Dallas is headed home early this spring. Who is most to blame for the Stars’ early exit?

The person most to blame for the Stars’ playoff loss is Gary Bettman. The insistence that the current playoff format is good has ruined chances at deep runs for great teams for a generation. Dallas finished with the second-best record in the Western Conference, while the Wild had the third-best record. Meanwhile, the Anaheim Ducks, who had the seventh-best record, advanced after beating the Edmonton Oilers, who finished fifth.

But the Stars knew what they were signing up for and could not get over the hump in the first round. Who is most to blame on the ice for the loss?

Jake Oettinger did not quiet the haters

Last year, Stars goalie Jake Oettinger was pulled from Game 5 of the Western Conference Final by then-coach Pete DeBoer. After the game, DeBoer threw his goalie under the bus. “I didn’t blame it all on Jake, but the reality is, if you go back to last year’s playoffs, he’s lost six of seven games to Edmonton, and we gave up two [goals] on two [shots] in an elimination game,” DeBoer said. The coach was fired shortly after that press conference.

Oettinger had an opportunity this season to prove that the Stars were right in picking him over DeBoer. New coach Glen Gulutzen had to pull him in Game 1 of this series amid a 6-1 loss to the Wild. He kept it above board in the media, so it did not become much of a story. But in the six games, he posted just an .893 save percentage, the worst playoff mark of his career.

Oettinger just finished the first year of an eight-year extension, so he is sticking around in Dallas for a while. Solving the playoff issue will be key for Oettinger and the coaching staff moving forward.

Mikko Rantanen let the Stars’ offense down

Last year, the Stars made one of the most significant trades in recent deadline history. They dealt two first-round picks and young forward Logan Stankoven to the Carolina Hurricanes for Mikko Rantanen, immediately giving him an extension. He paid it off last year, scoring a Game 7 hat trick against the Colorado Avalanche in the first round last year. This year, he scored just one goal in six games before the season ended.

Stankoven, on the other hand, drove the offense for the Hurricanes in their first-round triumph. Martin Necas, who was part of the trade that landed Rantanen in Raleigh, had his first 100-point season in Colorado. The pressure on Rantanen to perform for the Stars is incredibly high because of the drama that followed both trades last season. In the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, he lived up to that. But an early 2026 exit should leave fans scratching their heads.

Rantanen is far from the only forward that should be catching blame for the Stars. Captain Jamie Benn was dreadful, putting up no points in the series. Roope Hintz and Tyler Seguin were hurt, Sam Steel was held without a point, and none of their young players took a huge step forward. But Rantanen’s trades and contract make him a higher-profile player and a magnet for the blame.

Thomas Harley takes a bizarre step back

In 2025, Thomas Harley was an unsung hero for Team Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off. He was added to the team mid-tournament and helped the Canadians beat the Americans in the championship game. That, along with a great season for the Stars, earned him an eight-year extension that has not started yet. But once that contract was signed, his stats went away. Harley was held pointless in the playoffs, and it should be a concern for the Stars moving forward.

Harley had 50 points in the 2024-25 regular season and picked up 14 points in 18 playoff games. In 2025-26, he scored only 36 points in the regular season and did not get on the scoresheet against the Wild. Offense from the defenseman is key for Dallas’ even-strength success, which they had very little of against the Wild.

The Stars head into a vital offseason, as Jason Robertson needs a new contract, and they are stuck in an elite division. Can they finally get back to the Stanley Cup Final next season?

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