In recent years, the Dallas Stars have been notorious for being a deep team, loaded with both veterans and young studs coming through the system. You don’t go to back-to-back Western Conference Finals by accident, and this is surely a big part of their success. With recent departures such as Joe Pavelski, Chris Tanev, Ryan Suter, Jani Hakanpaa, and others, and injuries to Tyler Seguin and Matt Dumba, the Stars’ depth is being tested in the 2024-25 season.
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Enter the Stars’ 18th overall pick in the 2022 Draft, Lian Bichsel. Weighing in at 6-foot-6, 234 pounds, the 20-year-old defenseman is finally getting his shot with the big club, and is making a lot of noise through his first three games in the NHL. So, the age-old question: Should Bichsel stay or should he go?
No Place to Learn Like the NHL
In a lot of ways, as far as development goes, this has been a dream scenario for the Stars and Bichsel. The team has been successful and well-rounded, and there’s been no need to rush him to the NHL. That’s not the case for a lot of first-round draft picks, in any sport. Until now, Bichsel has been quietly going about his business, and now is his time to shine. After his original stint last week, he was sent back down to the American Hockey League (AHL), but thanks to a sickness going through the Stars’ locker room, he has made his triumphant return. Thomas Harley missed Monday night’s game and is expected to return against the Maple Leafs on Wednesday, and Matt Dumba is still out due to injury.
From 2022-23 to the 2024-25 season, Bichsel has played professionally in Sweden and for the Texas Stars in the AHL. In 42 games in Texas, including playoffs, he has four goals and 17 points. The numbers may not jump off of the page, but it’s his physical, steady, stay-at-home style that will keep him in the NHL, not the stat line. Look no further than Saturday night against St. Louis when Bichsel leveled Brayden Schenn into the Stars’ bench. Not to mention that he already has two goals in his first three NHL games, one less than he has in Texas this season.
It hasn’t all been perfect for Bichsel, despite his production and loud hits. Dylan Strome’s goal against the Stars on Monday was in large part due to Bichsel being outplayed. That’s when this conversation gets a little bit louder. Is he ready for the NHL? On the one hand, it seems like he has done all he can in the AHL. He’s clearly an NHL player. Yet, there are multiple moments in all three NHL games where you can see is not up to speed. When Stars’ coach Peter DeBoer was asked about Bichsel, he hit the nail on the head.
“I think we’re living that every day where we’re giving these guys some runway to get used to playing in the NHL and not overreacting to mistakes and seeing if they can help us. The bottom line is can you help us in April win a Stanley Cup? Can you get your game to a point where you can help us win a Stanley Cup?”
– From ‘Dallas Stars notebook: Lian Bichsel, goalies, Make-A-Wish, and Esa Lindell’ – AllDlls, 12/17/2024
That is the key right there. The Stars are in “Cup or bust” mode, there’s no two ways about it. So for Bichsel, it’s not so much a question of whether he can stay in the NHL in December, but can he hang with the big boys come the playoffs? With how his game has progressed, it seems that it is better for him to get accustomed to the physicality and the speed of the NHL now, rather than wait until the spring. If there is room for him now, why wait? Bichsel is a big part of the plan in Dallas regardless of whether it’s this season or in the future. What better preparation is there for the playoffs than important games with a team as experienced as the Stars?
Bichsel Staying Makes GM Jim Nill’s Job Easier
As the season has progressed, it has been made apparent that the Stars need to add another forward, defenseman, or both. The Tyler Seguin-Matt Duchene-Mason Marchment line was one of the best lines in the NHL to start the season, and the lack of production from the rest of the forwards exposed some depth issues up front. When Tyler Seguin had surgery a couple weeks ago, the need for changes increased. Not only is Seguin a very productive player, he makes the players around him extremely effective. Without him, Logan Stankoven has found himself out of his usual role, and Duchene and Marchment’s production has decreased.
While Dumba is a fine player, the Stars lost multiple defensemen in the summer, which exposed some depth issues on the back end as well. Plain and simple, if Bichsel stays in the NHL and rotates with Dumba, once he gets healthy, Nill can put all of his focus on strengthening his forward group.
A huge plus for Nill is that Bichsel is cheap. According to PuckPedia, the 20-year-old has a cap hit of $918,333. While the Stars currently have $1,303,024 in cap space, placing Seguin on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) would give them over $10 million in space to make moves ahead of the March 7 trade deadline. Currently, he is only on injured reserve (IR), so there is no cap relief. Side note, there is no salary cap in the playoffs. So, regardless of how much money they add between now and then, if Seguin is placed on LTIR, he could theoretically come back in the playoffs if he is healthy.
Final Thought
Bichsel is a young player and there are certainly arguments to be made on both sides. It seems that the big reason for keeping him in the AHL is that he is not quite ready for the NHL. Fair enough. However, there is a place for him on this roster, and with the Stars most likely fighting for the Central Division right up to the playoffs, this feels like just the experience he needs to be ready when it matters most. The Stanley Cup Playoffs.
