Joe Pavelski and the Dallas Stars made it back to the Western Conference Finals for the second straight year. And just like last season, the team fell just short. They were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Sunday after losing Game 6 to the Edmonton Oilers. Now, questions about Pavelski's future in the NHL are starting to be asked.
Pavelski is 39 years old and will be a free agent this summer. The veteran forward has played at a rather high level over the last few seasons. But after a lackluster performance offensively in the playoffs, the Wisconsin native could certainly hang up the skates this summer.
Stars head coach Pete DeBoer has no idea whether the 39-year-old will continue playing. But Pavelski's potential retirement drew an eye-opening take from DeBoer on Sunday. “I don’t know if it’ll be Joe’s last game or not, but absolute privilege of my coaching career to coach a guy like that. Our young players are all better for having been around a guy like that,” DeBoer said, via The Athletic's Mark Lazerus.
Joe Pavelski's impact on the Stars
Pavelski joined the Stars in the summer of 2019. The Wisconsin native spent 13 seasons with the San Jose Sharks before joining Dallas. However, the Sharks were headed for a rebuild. As a result, the veteran Pavelski continued his career elsewhere.
Pavelski made an impact in Dallas from the very beginning. The former seventh-round pick scored 14 goals and 31 points in the shortened 2019-20 season. In 2020-21, he scored 25 goals and 51 points in another COVID-shortened campaign.
In 2021-22, though, Pavelski turned things up a notch. He scored 27 goals and 81 points to help the Stars make the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Dallas went out in round one, but he put up six points in seven games. A year later, the veteran forward scored 77 points in the regular season while adding 14 points in 14 playoff games.
Pavelski took a bit of a step back this year. His regular season was still fantastic, as the 39-year-old scored 67 points. But the Stanley Cup Playoffs were a different story. Pavelski managed just one goal and four points in 19 games. Still, the impact the veteran forward has made is undeniable. “I can’t thank him and his family enough for what they’ve done for me,” Stars forward Wyatt Johnston said, via The Athletic.
“Since Day 1, since he’s been in here, he’s meant everything to our group — on the ice, off the ice, all our golf games,” Stars forward Tyler Seguin added. “He’s improved all of those. Just an amazing person to have in here.”
A never-ending chase
Joe Pavelski has done a lot in the NHL. He's played in over 1500 games combined between the season and playoffs. In the regular season, he has scored over 1000 points. Pavelski was named to the NHL All-Star Game in the 2013-14 season, as well. The one thing he has been unable to do, though, is win the Stanley Cup.
He has come close to winning it in the past. Pavelski and the Sharks made the 2016 Stanley Cup Final against the Pittsburgh Penguins. However, the Sharks could not defeat the Penguins. Pittsburgh won the first of back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016.
In 2020, he helped lead the charge for the Stars in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He scored 13 goals and 19 points in 27 games in the bubble to get Dallas into the Final. Unfortunately, they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning, who went on to win back-to-back Stanley Cups as well.
Whether Pavelski gives it one more go remains to be seen. It's certainly understandable if he decides to step away. But there is also reason for him to return. And it'll be interesting to see if the veteran forward has enough left in the tank to make one more run at the Stanley Cup next year.
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