Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars: 1999 Stanley Cup champions, five-time Finalists.
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They play in the National Hockey League’s Western Conference as a member of the Central Division. From 1993 to 2001, the team played at Reunion Arena in downtown Dallas before moving to the American Airlines Center in the city’s Victory Park neighborhood, which they share with the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks.
The franchise began as the Minnesota North Stars, one of six teams added in the NHL’s 1967 expansion, and was based in Bloomington, Minnesota. Before the 1978–79 season, the league allowed the financially struggling North Stars to merge with the Cleveland Barons. The team relocated to Dallas for the 1993–94 season and was renamed the Dallas Stars.
Since moving to Dallas, the Stars have won nine division titles, two Presidents’ Trophies for the best regular-season record, three Western Conference championships, and the Stanley Cup in 1999. Center Joe Nieuwendyk won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP that year. Across the franchise’s history in Minnesota and Dallas, the team has reached the Stanley Cup Final five times: in 1981, 1991, 1999, 2000, and 2020.
Neal Broten was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2000. Brett Hull became the first Dallas Stars player inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009, followed by Ed Belfour and Joe Nieuwendyk in 2011, and Mike Modano in 2014. Modano is the franchise’s all-time leading scorer. Five additional players and one coach have since been inducted into the Hall of Fame.
- Founded
- 1967 (as Minnesota North Stars)
- Relocated to dallas
- 1993–94 season
- Division
- Central Division, Western Conference
- Stanley cup championships
- 1 (1999)
- Stanley cup final appearances
- 5 (1981, 1991, 1999, 2000, 2020)
- Home arenas
- Reunion Arena (1993–2001), American Airlines Center (2001–present)
- Hall of fame inductees (dallas stars)
- Brett Hull (2009), Ed Belfour (2011), Joe Nieuwendyk (2011), Mike Modano (2014), plus five more players and one coach
Lore & Background
The franchise began as the Minnesota North Stars in 1967, one of six teams added in the NHL's first expansion. After financial struggles, the North Stars merged with the Cleveland Barons before the 1978–79 season, a move that revived the team and led to a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 1981. By the early 1990s, declining attendance and arena issues prompted ownership to seek relocation; after a rejected bid to move to the San Francisco Bay Area, the team was sold to Norman Green, who moved it to Dallas for the 1993–94 season. The Stars played their first Dallas game on October 5, 1993, a 6–4 win over the Detroit Red Wings, with Minnesota native Neal Broten scoring the first goal. The team quickly gained popularity, setting franchise bests in wins and points that season and reaching the second round of the playoffs.
Reader's Guide
The Dallas Stars represent a significant chapter in the NHL's expansion into non-traditional hockey markets. Their relocation from Minnesota in 1993 was part of a broader league strategy to grow the sport in the southern United States, alongside the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers. The Stars' immediate on-ice success—including a division title and playoff run in their first Dallas season—helped establish hockey in North Texas, building on a legacy of minor-league hockey in the area. The franchise's crowning achievement came in 1999, when they won the Stanley Cup, with center Joe Nieuwendyk earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. The Stars have since remained competitive, winning nine division titles in Dallas, two Presidents' Trophies, and three Western Conference championships. Their history also includes a merger with the Cleveland Barons and a complex relocation saga that ultimately led to the creation of the Minnesota Wild as an expansion franchise in 2000.
Did You Know?
- The Stars played at Reunion Arena from 1993 to 2001 before moving to the American Airlines Center, which they share with the NBA's Dallas Mavericks.
- The franchise merged with the Cleveland Barons before the 1978–79 season due to financial struggles.
- Mike Modano is the highest-scoring player in franchise history and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2014.
- The Stars' first NHL game in Dallas was a 6–4 win against the Detroit Red Wings on October 5, 1993.
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