The Dallas Stars will be without defenseman Miro Heiskanen for Game 3 against the Colorado Avalanche, but it appears he's not far off a return.

Head coach Pete DeBoer gave an update on Heiskanen ahead of Wednesday's game.

Via Pierre LeBrun:

“DeBoer says same lineup for Stars tonight. Heiskanen remains out but Stars coach says ‘he’s getting closer.'”

Heiskanen hasn't played since January 28 due to a knee injury. During the regular season, he had five goals and 20 assists in 50 games. By the sounds of it, he could suit up in Game 4. The Finland native is a key player for Dallas and would provide it with a huge boost on the back line. His presence is irreplaceable.

The Stars have struggled at times without Heiskanen in the lineup. They lost seven straight games to close out the regular season, which ended their chances of locking down the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.

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It took everything Dallas had to beat the Avs in Game 2, and DeBoer knew a 0-2 deficit would essentially end their season despite overcoming that same hole last year:

“I mean our season [was] on the line, let’s be honest,‘’ DeBoer said. “We got away with it [an 0-2 deficit] last year in the first series against Vegas. But you’re probably not going to go to that well again this year and come up winning. So we knew our season was on the line.‘’

Heiskanen has been skating on a daily basis for the Stars, and it's only a matter of time until he gets the green light. He played the most minutes of any player in the postseason in 2024 by a long shot, averaging over 28 minutes per game.

Dallas needs him back not just for this series, but also if they're going to finally get over the hump and win a Stanley Cup.

Hopefully for the Stars, he's in the lineup for Game 4.