Central Notes: Stars, McGroarty, Niederreiter, Wild

Looking to clinch home-ice advantage through the Western Conference Finals tomorrow night against the St. Louis Blues, the Dallas Stars will be without defenseman Jani Hakanpaa according to Lia Assimakopoulos of the Dallas Morning News. However, in the same report, after being a full participant in practice this morning, forward Evgenii Dadonov will be a game-time decision.

Having already missed the last 13 games for the Stars due to a lower-body injury, the organization does not seem keen to rush Hakanpaa back and potentially reaggravate his injury before the playoffs. Even though he is one of the team’s better physical defensemen, Dallas hasn’t missed a beat in Hakanpaa’s absence, as they’ve produced a 10-2-0 record while limiting opponents to just a 1.92 goals against per game on average.

Unlike Hakanpaa, Dadonov has been out of the lineup for the last two months with a lower-body injury, which will cap him at only 51 games played this year if he can play in tomorrow night’s contest. With the team on the precipice of the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, Dadonov may find himself in the press box for much of the postseason but could add some offensive punch to the team’s fourth line.

Other Central notes:

•  After his sophomore season came to an end on April 11th against the Boston College Eagles, Rutger McGroarty is opting to forego signing an entry-level contract with the Winnipeg Jets and will return to the University of Michigan next year according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Displaying a very mature sense of hockey IQ for his age, the 14th overall pick of the 2022 NHL Draft showed off with an elite playmaking season with the Wolverines. Helping his team make their third straight Frozen Four appearance, McGroarty scored 16 goals and 52 points over 36 games this year and should become a fixture of the Hobey Baker Award conversation next season.
• Missing the last five games due to an Achilles injury, Nino Niederreiter should return to the lineup tonight against the Seattle Kraken (X Link). During the organization’s game against the Los Angeles Kings on April 1st, Niederreiter sustained a cut to his tendon, which required eight stitches to close. With the team still having two games left to play, Winnipeg will need only one point to clinch the second spot in the Central Division.
• With their season set to come to an end on Wednesday evening, the Minnesota Wild will get forward Frederick Gaudreau back in the lineup as he has officially returned from personal leave according to Sarah McLellan of Star Tribune Sports. Unfortunately, it does not appear that Mats Zuccarello will return to the team before their final game, meaning he will finish the year with 11 goals and 62 points in 68 games.