Stars Central Division Showdown: How Dallas Will Fare Against The Utah Hockey Club This Year

THN's Stars site's look at Dallas' Central Division rivals continues with a focus on the Utah Hockey Club. The UHC is improved, but do they have what it takes to run with the Stars?

The Dallas Stars were the best Central Division team in 2023-24, and they’re likely to be just as good this coming season. But they’re going to be facing notably different Central teams – and that’s what this THN.com series is focused on, as we compare and contrast the Stars to their Central rivals..

On Tuesday, we kicked off the series by looking at the Winnipeg Jets; Wednesday, we analyzed the Colorado Avalanche; Thursday, we focused on the Nashville Predators; Friday, we broke down the St. Louis Blues; and Saturday, we put the spotlight on the Minnesota Wild. In today’s file, we’re turning our attention to the former Arizona Coyotes, now known as the Utah Hockey Club.

DALLAS’ 2023-24 RECORD: 52-21-9

UTAH/ARIZONA’S 2023-24 RECORD: 36-41-5

DALLAS’ REGULAR-SEASON RECORD AGAINST UTAH/ARIZONA IN 2023-24: 3-0-0

HOW THE STARS STACK UP AGAINST THE UHC IN 2024-25: The Arizona organization has slowly built a lineup that has the potential to be a playoff team this year, and in their first year in Utah, they almost assuredly are going to be a better team than they were last season. But – and this is true of most, if not all of Dallas’ opponents – the Stars still should feel like the favorites against the UHC this year. They handled Utah/Arizona last season with relative ease, and Utah finished with a record that shows how far they have to go before they’re Stanley Cup front-runners.

Dallas will take on Utah four times in 2024-25 – first, in late-December, then again two days before Christmas Day, then four days into January, and finally, in their third-from-last game of the year on April 12. At that point, there might be a situation where Utah is battling for a wild card berth, and Dallas could have the chance to play spoiler for them and really ratchet up the dislike the two teams have for one another.

We’ve said it before on THN.com, but we like the UHC as a playoff team this season. The improvement they’ve made on defense, along with the evolution of their core of young forwards, makes Utah a significantly better team this year. But they’ve still got a ways to go before they can legitimately go blow-for-blow with a team like the Stars. Beating the UHC won’t be easy for Dallas, but the Stars are many people’s favorites to win the Central because they’re capable of regularly beating everybody else. Better days are coming for Utah, but the same is true for Dallas, and that’s why the Stars should beat the UHC multiple times this season.

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