There wasn’t a lot of social media content from Nathan MacKinnon’s wedding in August, but Erik Johnson did post a couple of short videos from the festivities in Italy.
It was a gathering of MacKinnon’s friends and teammates, past and present. The guy destined to hear the loudest boos at Ball Arena this season, Mikko Rantanen, was one of them.
“It was great,” Rantanen said Friday after the Dallas Stars practiced at Ball Arena ahead of their first showdown with the Colorado Avalanche this season. “Unreal setup and a lot of fun hanging out with the guys. It was a short flight for me, so it was easier for me than some of the others.
“Hockey is still my job, but off the ice, especially in early August, we’re not really thinking about the season stuff or whatever happens. It was not really awkward.”
The passion from fans is a huge part of what makes sports so special. The unpredictability, the spectacle, the emotions any one game can produce — all of it was on display last season during the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Dallas and Colorado waged an incredible seven-game war, with multiple overtimes, a remarkable comeback from Avalanche captain Gabe Landeskog and phenomenal performances by superstar players.
But when it’s over, the players are able to put those emotions aside. When they use a phrase like “it’s part of the business,” it’s because they’ve been through enough situations like it before, even when a beloved teammate like Rantanen is involved.
“I just think it highlighted and proved once again that some things are bigger than hockey,” Landeskog said of seeing Rantanen at MacKinnon’s wedding. “Friendships are one of those things. Whatever team he’s playing for, it’s not going to change my friendship or anything like that. I think we’ve talked enough about understanding both sides of it in the business, and it’s past us.
“I don’t know what else there is to say, other than I love the guy. I loved playing with him. I loved competing with him and having him on our team. Now, he’s not on our team. He’s moved on. We’ve moved on.”
Of course, it wasn’t just that the Stars defeated the Avalanche for the second straight season and a third time in six years. Or that it was a Game 7.
How it transpired will make it one of the most memorable Game 7s in NHL history. The Avs played a near-perfect road game for about 47 minutes and held a 2-0 lead at American Airlines Center. Then Rantanen, a once-beloved figure in Denver who was traded to Carolina in January and then again to Dallas just before the trade deadline, scored three goals and assisted on another in a stunning 4-2 victory for the Stars.
“It was a hard series against Colorado,” Rantanen said. “Probably the tightest series, with the back and forth, went to seven games. It was weird for me. I was happy to move on and help the team in Game 7. I think you look back and I was able to help my team in that moment, which was important.”
Now, Rantanen returns to Denver this weekend for the first time since Game 7. He still owns a house here, and an apartment downtown — with current Avs forward Joel Kiviranta as his tenant.
There was a bit of a mixed reaction at Ball Arena when Rantanen first returned with the Stars during the regular season, shortly after the second trade in March. It was mostly positive, particularly the ovation after a tribute video.
He was fully expecting that to not be the case Saturday night.
“Yeah, I am prepared for that,” Rantanen said Friday afternoon. “I understand totally their view. It’s kind of a rival team, divisional matchup, and two years in a row in the playoffs. Not a lot of Avs fans probably don’t like the Stars, so I understand if they don’t like me either. That’s how it goes. But I had a good 10 years here, so I’m happy for that.
“Ten years is a long time. We won in ‘22. It’s always going to be fun to come here, and always have a lot of respect for the fans and how supportive they were in 10 years here. They were really good to me for 10 years, so only good thoughts about the fans.”
It is only the third game of a long regular season for the Avalanche. The Avs don’t see Dallas again until March 6, the day of the trade deadline. The two sides will see each other three times in the final month of the season.
Both clubs know the chances of a third straight postseason battle are pretty high. One member of the Stars noted on Friday before the team’s practice, “We’ll probably be back here again” during the 2026 playoffs.
“They beat us in the playoffs. They crushed our dreams last year,” Landeskog said. “It is a little bit different than just a regular game No. 3 against any opponent. They’re going to want to prove themselves, and we’re going to want to do the same. I guess it’s a little bit more at stake, and I think that’s the way it should be.”
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