Dallas Stars defenseman Nils Lundkvist considers himself "lucky" after a terrifying moment during the team's playoff series against the Minnesota Wild left him with a deep gash on his face from a skate blade. Walking into the Stars' season-ending media availability Monday, Lundkvist didn't even have a bandage covering the wound near his left temple. "It looked way worse than it is. I got not too many stitches, just a deep cut," he said, speaking publicly for the first time since the incident in Game 4. "I was pretty lucky in an unlucky moment."
The scare occurred on April 25 when Lundkvist was called for tripping. As Wild forward Michael McCarron tumbled over, his skate inadvertently caught Lundkvist in the face, causing heavy bleeding as the defenseman left the ice. Despite the injury, Lundkvist's future with the team looks bright—the Stars announced a two-year, $3.5 million contract extension for him just before the playoffs began, keeping him in Dallas through the 2027-28 season.
The season-ending availability also brought news about top-line center Roope Hintz, who revealed he tore his left hamstring in two places. Hintz hadn't played since March 6—his only game for the Stars after the Olympics—when he got tangled up with Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon along the boards. The injury was compounded by an illness that sidelined him for the first four games following the Olympic break. While Hintz was nearing a return, the damage was already done for a Stars team that saw its season end earlier than expected.
For the first time in four seasons, Dallas failed to advance to the Western Conference final, eliminated in the first round after a Game 6 loss in Minnesota last Thursday. Mikko Rantanen, who played alongside Hintz for Finland's bronze medal-winning Olympic team, declined to discuss the lower-body injury he sustained during the Games. However, he managed to return for 10 regular-season games and the playoffs, contributing one goal and six assists against the Wild.
As the Stars head into an offseason of recovery and reflection, Lundkvist's visible scar serves as a reminder of the fine line between luck and danger in hockey—a sport where even the most routine play can turn into a career-defining moment.