Ken Hitchcock both created drama and relieved some Thursday.
The Stars coach said he has figured out his six defensemen already, but that he won't reveal them yet. But if you watched the practice ice, you have a pretty good guess.
Hitchcock ran this group in Frisco, and there's a very good chance the top six are in the lineup on opening night Oct. 6:
Esa Lindell-John Klingberg
Marc Methot-Jamie Oleksiak
Dan Hamhuis-Stephen Johns
Patrik Nemeth-Greg Pateryn
Julius Honka
Of course, you see there are nine defensemen there, so the battle is not yet over to establish the final roster.