- Matt Duchene says his trust in Jim Nill hasn’t moved after a first-round exit
- Dallas dropped three straight to Minnesota after leading the series 2-1
- Read below for what Duchene said about the Stars core and their Cup window
Matt Duchene isn’t worried about the Dallas Stars, and he’ll tell you exactly why.
Speaking with Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com from his summer place near Haliburton, Ontario, the 35-year-old center made it clear that his faith in general manager Jim Nill hasn’t moved an inch since the first-round exit.
“He’s the heart and soul of our organization, and we, to a man on that hockey team and in that organization, we trust him,” Duchene said. “And so, as long as he’s running the show and doing his thing, I know we’re going to be a team that can contend.”
Nill has the hardware to go with that endorsement. He’s the only person to win the Jim Gregory GM of the Year Award three years running, taking it in 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
That was a factor when Duchene first signed in Dallas in 2023, and again when he committed to a four-year, $18 million deal in June 2025.
Year 17 turned into one of his better ones, and the Stars noticed:
The postseason is still the sore spot. Dallas reached three straight Western Conference Finals and lost all three, then fell to Minnesota in the first round last spring after taking a 2-1 series lead.
Asked about that gap, the veteran forward didn’t dance around it.
“We haven’t broken through quite to where we want to yet,” he said. “But just going to training camp every year, knowing that we are one of those teams that actually has a chance, because the whole league doesn’t feel like that, it’s something I do not take for granted.”
Dallas barely touched the roster this summer. Mavrik Bourque, Michael Bunting and Ilya Lyubushkin were the only meaningful departures.
The one move that mattered was re-signing Jason Robertson to a one-year, $12 million contract on July 21, ending months of trade chatter around a 96-point scorer.
Here’s Nill breaking down how that deal came together:
On the returning group, Duchene split the roster into layers instead of a top-heavy handful.
“It’s like we have three tiers. There’s veterans like myself and Jamie (Benn) and Tyler (Seguin) who are older but still in good places in our careers. Then there’s the guys who are in their prime, the Miro Heiskanens and Roope Hintzes and Esa Lindells. And then young guys like Jason and Wyatt Johnston and Thomas Harley.”
“Most teams might have a big four to lead them,” he added. “On the other hand, we have six, seven, eight, nine guys driving our team.”
Take a look at where Robertson’s own season sits after 45 goals and 51 assists:
Duchene sits at 936 career points in 1,195 games across five franchises. The one line missing from that resume is a Stanley Cup, and he’s betting Nill gets him there.
