DALLAS — Rémi Poirier stopped all 24 shots he faced Wednesday night after Jake Oettinger was scratched from a scheduled start because of lower-body tightness he felt after the morning skate.
The Dallas Stars beat the Minnesota Wild 2-0 at American Airlines Center to improve to 3-0-0 in the preseason. Matthew Seminoff scored in the second period and Esa Lindell scored in the third, with Kyle Capobianco assisting on both goals. Jesper Wallstedt made 22 saves on 24 shots for Minnesota.
Seminoff also had a fight. All three of Poirier, Capobianco, and Seminoff could open the season with the AHL’s Texas Stars, according to Mike Heika of DallasStars.com, who reported that a tight salary cap is expected to keep Dallas from carrying the league maximum of 14 forwards and seven defensemen. Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said after the game that “guys are clawing.”
Seminoff’s goal came when he read Capobianco driving to the net. The Stars took the 22-year-old 179th overall in 2022, and he has spent the past three seasons in the minors. With Texas last season, he had 24 goals and 26 assists for 50 points in 72 games.
“You look at his mentality and he probably had a fight tonight because he’s climbed that ladder and he’s pushing,” Gulutzan said. “That’s a good sign.”
Seminoff and former Stars forward Logan Stankoven came up through minor hockey together before both played junior hockey for the Kamloops Blazers. Dallas drafted Stankoven in the second round in 2021, a year before it took Seminoff.
“You try to get involved any way you can,” Seminoff said. “There’s a lot you can’t control, but you control what you can and try to show up with a positive attitude every day.”
Rémi Poirier Posts Shutout, Kyle Capobianco Assists On Both Goals
Poirier led all AHL goalies with 52 games played last season. In his fourth season with Texas, he went 27-19-6 with a 2.61 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. Dallas drafted him in the sixth round, 185th overall, in 2020.
The 24-year-old sits third on the organization’s goaltending depth chart behind Oettinger and Casey DeSmith, who went 15-8-6 with a .907 save percentage and a 2.43 goals-against average in 30 games last season. On Wednesday, Poirier played behind a defense of Miro Heiskanen, Lindell, Trey Taylor, Capobianco, Lian Bichsel, and Tyler Myers.
“I thought Rémi was really good,” Gulutzan explained. “He made some big saves and he made some stuff look easy, which is always a sign of good positioning. I thought he was pretty smooth tonight.”
Poirier said he worked on controlling his rebounds Wednesday and on building his patience. He was happy with how the rebound work turned out.
“I was excited to play a full game in preseason,” Poirier said. “Full games are always fun and I’ll take everything right now. It helped that there were basically six guys from the NHL on D, and those guys were really good for me.”
Poirier has not made his NHL debut. He dressed as Oettinger’s backup for a Jan. 4 home game against Montreal.
“I think the big difference from the year past is that I feel when I’m going on the ice, I know the players and I know I can communicate with those guys, and I know it’s going to be all right,” Poirier explained. “It’s just experience for me, and I feel comfortable when I’m out there. If it’s NHL, I don’t even realize that.”
Capobianco is 29 and has played 107 NHL games, including 33 with Dallas last season. In those 33 games, he had 2 goals and 3 assists while averaging 12:08 of ice time. The Stars signed him to a two-year, one-way extension on June 24 that carries an average annual value of $875,000. Ilya Lyubushkin and Alexander Petrovic both left Dallas in the offseason, departures Heika tied to the salary cap. Capobianco has not played a full NHL season since 2021-22, when he appeared in 45 games for the Arizona Coyotes.
“I still think Capo is a guy who can grow in this league,” Gulutzan said. “He hasn’t played full time for a bit, and I think he can. I thought he was good tonight.”
Arizona drafted Capobianco in the third round, 63rd overall, in 2015. In 2023-24, he had 12 goals and 42 assists for 54 points in 69 games with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. He signed with Dallas on July 1, 2024, and had 7 goals and 43 assists for 50 points in 64 games for Texas that season. The Stars are looking to tweak their style of play this season, according to Heika.
“I like it,” Capobianco said. “It’s a little bit of what I’ve played before, less passive and more aggressive. You’ve got to be on your toes, which is a style I like.”
Jake Oettinger And Matt Duchene Out Friday, Tyler Seguin Could Play
Oettinger did not practice Thursday, and he and Matt Duchene will not play in Friday’s preseason finale, according to the NHL.com status report. Wednesday was supposed to be Oettinger’s first preseason start.
“He was looked at, and we only think it’ll be a day or two, so that’s good news,” Gulutzan said.
Duchene is not injured. The Stars gave him maintenance days at the start of camp as a precaution, and injuries limited him to 57 games last season. He will take part in Friday’s morning skate without playing.
Tyler Seguin could make his preseason debut Friday. He had surgery Dec. 16 to repair a torn ACL in his right knee, and he had 7 goals and 10 assists for 17 points in 27 games before the injury. Seguin sat out Thursday’s practice as part of his recovery plan.
“He did some testing earlier to be clear at the end of the week,” Gulutzan said. “Planned day off. He’ll be on the ice tomorrow morning. He’s probably a game player [Friday].”
Colin Blackwell sustained a lower-body injury in practice Sept. 19 and is not expected to play Friday. Puck drop at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Minnesota, is set for 7 p.m. CT on TNT, truTV, and HBO Max. Dallas opens the regular season Oct. 2 against the St. Louis Blues at American Airlines Center.
