Matt Duchene’s two-month injury was a confusing and frustrating time for Stars fans.
After sustaining a hit in Dallas’ third game of the season against the Wild on Oct. 14, Duchene missed just one game before returning to the lineup the next. But after that Oct. 18 game against St. Louis, the veteran forward missed Dallas’ next 24 games with little explanation.
He was ruled day-to-day for most of that stretch and has been considered close to returning for weeks. But it wasn’t until Sunday’s 3-2 shootout win over the Pittsburgh Penguins that he finally entered the lineup once again.
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The two-month absence left plenty of questions as vague hockey injury policies led to speculation for some and others to draw incorrect conclusions on an injury that we’ll likely never learn the full extent of. But behind the scenes, it wasn’t any easier, nor clearer, for Duchene, who faced a physical and emotional battle to return to the ice from what he confirmed Sunday was a concussion.
“That’s the hardest injury I’ve had to come back from,” Duchene said after Sunday’s game. “It was pretty easy not to rush back because I was feeling that brutal and that not right.”
The only concrete update fans heard on Duchene outside of being deemed “day-to-day” by his head coach was an emotional Instagram post he made on Thanksgiving.
He shared a photo of his wife and three kids and wrote a caption saying, “Been a tough fall for me battling this injury. It’s been long. It’s been frustrating and the rehab has been endless. God is testing me and making me better in a way I can’t see yet, and for that, I am grateful and thankful.”
Stars coach Glen Gulutzan shed some further light Sunday on how he and Duchene navigated the recovery process together.
“It’s been hard for him because if you remember, he did come back right away, but then had to take a step back,” Gulutzan said. “He was feeling that he wanted to play, but sometimes you’ve got to protect those competitive guys from themselves.
“To [Duchene]’s credit, he’s done a lot of searching, making sure he’s touching all the bases, and he’s 100% before he comes back. We had a conversation in Edmonton that we didn’t want him back until he was 100%.”
Duchene said he didn’t want to go into too many details, but throughout his recovery, new setbacks would arise.
“I kept thinking I was right there and then something else would pop up. Concussions are really weird things. Everyone knows how complex the brain is,” he said. “It’s super complicated. I don’t even 100% understand it either.
“That felt like about six months that I was out.”
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Duchene finally was ready to return Sunday, skating 15:55 in the Stars’ win over Pittsburgh. Gulutzan started him on the left wing of the fourth line with Radek Faksa and Colin Blackwell to limit his minutes, but after one period, he was quickly promoted to join Wyatt Johnston and Mikko Rantanen.
Duchene was on the ice for Pittsburgh’s second goal and took responsibility for making a bad play in the neutral zone that allowed for the goal. But he was also one of three players Gulutzan selected to shoot in the shootout.
“Gully put me in some high-pressure situations out there tonight, and that was great,” he said. “I need to get that anxiety out of the way.”
Overall, Duchene looked ready to play.
“I’ve been skating the whole time, which is nice,” Duchene said. “A lot of injuries, you can’t skate the whole time. With this one, I’ve been able to stay in shape and felt pretty good out there.”
Duchene’s return to the lineup couldn’t have come at a better time. The Stars have been depleted at the center position, losing three of their top four centermen at different points in the first 29 games of the season. They also learned earlier this week that Tyler Seguin, Duchene’s former linemate, would likely miss the rest of the season with an ACL injury.
Dallas needed someone who could bring both the veteran presence — and the on-ice production — that Seguin can.
In his two seasons in Dallas, Duchene has proven to be that player. After being bought out by Nashville, he joined Dallas in the 2023 offseason and went on to record 65 points in 80 games in his first season. Last season, he upped that production to 82 points in 82 games, including 30 goals, becoming Dallas’ best skater at times.
In the offseason, he signed a four-year, $18 million contract that would keep the 34-year-old in Dallas long term. And he was off to a strong start with a goal and an assist in his first four games before the injury.
Roope Hintz, Jason Robertson, Johnston and Rantanen have been among the players to carry the Stars through all their injuries this season. There’s no reason Duchene can’t be just as productive as some of them and make up for lost time.
It wasn’t lost on the sellout crowd at American Airlines Center how important his return is — or the return of defenseman Nils Lundkvist, who was back in the lineup Sunday after missing about the same amount of time as Duchene.
The Stars fans cheered loudly for Duchene when he took the ice for the first time, touched the puck and was shown on the video board during a TV timeout in the first period.
They’ve been waiting, day-to-day, for quite some time to ultimately see him in his long-awaited return.
“I’ve got to be patient, and I’m not a very patient person,” Duchene said. “It’s been a lot. It’s a really tough recovery. It might take a little bit more time, and that’s kind of the process of getting back to normal and getting into some games. For the most part, I felt OK.”
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