The Dallas Stars opened the 2024-25 preseason with a 2-1 win against the St. Louis Blues. Let’s get into a few thoughts.

One line stood out… Way out

The trio of Mason Marchment, Mavrik Bourque, and Logan Stankoven was the best line in the game by far.

Stankoven and Bourque renewed their American Hockey League chemistry from last season, with both racking up scoring chances all night. Stankoven led all skaters in the game with nine shots on goal. Bourque created a few chances with his speed, won 60 percent of his faceoffs–something that is very hard to do as a young guy in the NHL, and was able to quickly turn pucks over in the neutral zone and skate in transition.

The crazy thing about these two is that they never seem to stop moving… Or even slow down. Both are smaller guys but skate very well, and that was on display tonight all over the ice.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Stankoven said. “I think we have that instant connection out there. I think we work really well off each other and see the ice very similarly… We had our chances, it would’ve been nice to bury, but that’s okay.”

Marchment was up to his usual tricks–often ending up in a physical battle, prone on the ice, or on either end of a hit. He got his first minor of the season–a roughing penalty around the net just three minutes into the first period. But he fit well on that line, as Bourque and Stankoven used their speed and skill, while Marchment crashed the net and drew the attention of the St. Louis defense.

Marchment blocked a shot with his foot in the third period and left the game. Stars coach Pete DeBoer said the X-rays were all negative, so he believes Marchment will be fine.

Big Lian Bichsel

6-foot-6 Lian Bichsel is a physical force. We knew that from watching him play in Sweden and for the Texas Stars last season. But after an underwhelming Traverse City prospects showcase, we were not sure what we would get from him this preseason.

What we got was a ton of physicality blended with elite skill and puck movement.

Bichsel was the best Stars defenseman in the game, playing top-pair and penalty-kill minutes with Matt Dumba and never looking out of place. The big defenseman made a few real nice plays, including a toe drag to create a shooting lane at the blue line and breaking up a 2-on-1 before carrying the puck into the offensive end and finding Stankoven in the slot with a cross-ice pass. He used his reach, was nasty at times–even against some NHL veterans–and did not have any of that letdown we witnessed a week ago in Michigan.

“I thought both of those guys [Bichsel and Dumba] were really good,” DeBoer said. “That kind of game, right? Big, physical game… Bichsel had a really good camp, and he was really good tonight.”

Bichsel is almost guaranteed to begin the season down in Cedar Park, but if he continues to play like he did tonight, I am sure we will see him in the NHL this season.

Casey DeSmith did what he needed to do

Let’s be honest: there is a lot of pressure on Stars backup goalie Casey DeSmith. The 33-year-old joins a Dallas team with a realistic goal of winning the Stanley Cup, and does so just after one of the most fruitful goaltending relationships in team history.

Jake Oettinger and Scott Wedgewood were not only super close off the ice, but the duo backstopped a Stars team to back-to-back Western Conference Final berths and the best road record in the NHL last season–largely due to the success of both goaltenders.

But DeSmith said all the right things in his introductory press conference, and has since done everything he needs to do in the dressing room and on the ice.

In the preseason opener, DeSmith stopped all 14 shots he faced, including a few high-danger chances. He was clean with his rebounds–kicking nearly all of them into the corners–he was in control of his defense on the breakout, and looked every bit the part of a goalie that can come in and play well in 25-30 games this season.

“Nice to kind of get a little bit [of shots]. I felt like I got a little bit more early on, which is nice because it gets me into the game,” DeSmith said. “Then, second period, the guys really, I thought, put their foot on the gas and hemmed them in their end a bit, and it was more of just playing the puck and working on some breakouts. It was a little bit of everything.”

Also, it is always worth mentioning–especially since we talk about him every day at DLLS–Joe Pavelski was in the house tonight.