Amid offseason uncertainty, Mikko Rantanen’s long-term stability brings Dallas Stars hope

The upcoming Dallas Stars offseason comes with all sorts of uncertainty.

The Stars could part ways with their long-time captain and their leading goal-scorer — and the tension between their head coach and starting goaltender still seems unresolved. The Stars need to bolster their depth to get past the Western Conference finals hump, but they only have $5 million, as it currently stands, to do so.

But amid a tumultuous offseason following a disappointing end to the year, there’s one silver lining for Dallas. The return of new superstar forward Mikko Rantanen is guaranteed.

The Stars signed Rantanen to an eight-year deal worth $96 million just hours before the NHL’s 2025 trade deadline in March, but that deal doesn’t kick in until the start of next season. The Finnish forward’s two playoff hat tricks and 22 postseason points were just a taste of what Stars fans are poised to watch for close to the next decade.

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“I loved what I saw,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said of Rantanen during his exit interview Saturday. “He’s built for this time of year. You can see why he’s had success this time of year.”

After a brief transition period, Rantanen made his seamless move to Dallas’ roster. He averaged just shy of a point per game in his 20 regular season games in Dallas before recording 22 points (nine goals and 13 assists) in 18 playoff games. That’s still good for third in the NHL, trailing only Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

Rantanen’s revenge over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 7 of the first round and his start of the Winnipeg series will go down as one of the most memorable stretches for a Stars player in the postseason. He solidified his place as not only the upcoming face of the Stars roster, but one of the faces of Dallas sports.

“I’ve played with some great players, some star players, but I don’t know if I’ve played with someone at this level, being able to turn it on like he did in the playoffs,” Stars forward Tyler Seguin said. “But even at the end when he wasn’t scoring, it was how detailed he was, how he was in puck battles.”

What may be most impressive about what Rantanen accomplished is how he managed to do so during what was undoubtedly the most challenging season of his career.

After his first nine seasons in Colorado, his 10th came with two in-season trades, landing him in Carolina for 13 games before he was flipped over to Dallas in exchange for four draft picks and Logan Stankoven. Fresh off back-to-back 100-point seasons, Rantanen felt blindsided, and the trades took an emotional and physical toll.

For Dallas, that should be comforting, knowing the Stars probably still haven’t seen his full potential. The team’s strong cohort of Finnish players made the transition easier than it could’ve been, but now with a full offseason to process and prepare, Rantanen should be poised to hit the ground running when his big-time contract takes effect next season.

Rantanen’s role will be one of more than just goal-scoring. Some in Colorado criticized Rantanen’s streakiness, saying he disappears at times. But even when he wasn’t scoring, he showed the makings of a superstar. His talent is undeniable. His work ethic was regularly praised by his coaches and teammates. His humility — even when others pushed a narrative that he was selfish — was apparent. And his leadership, both on the ice and vocally, were valued.

Wearing an ‘A’ for the Avalanche, he’s been in that role before. He was similarly an alternate captain for Team Finland in the 4 Nations Face-Off this winter.

With players like Jamie Benn, Matt Duchene and Seguin possibly poised to move on in the next few years, the Stars need Rantanen to be at the helm of their next leadership group — and even just a small sample size has shown he’s fit to handle it.

“He’s a little different than the other Finns, in a good way,” Benn said. “It’s never easy coming into a new team. You don’t want to step on toes or maybe feel like you should be a little bit more quiet or whatnot. But he’s different.

“He had a voice right from Day 1, and I think he should. He’s a guy that’s been there, done that. Somebody who we all respect, and he’s going to be a big leader for this group moving forward.”

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