Redskin

From breathing to skating, Riley Tufte spent his offseason learning about his own body


On Thursday, Riley Tufte looked like he belonged — not just on the ice against the host Detroit Red Wings in the annual prospect tournament but also just walking around Centre Ice Arena. Neither of those things should come as a surprise, of course.

For many Stars prospects, this is their first time experiencing the prospect tournament in Traverse City after the event was cancelled last year due to COVID-19 ramifications. Tufte, though, has walked these halls before. Sure, the second rink being a vacant ghost town due to the participating teams shrinking from eight to five is different but the Stars still occupied the same locker room, tucked in the corner of the second rink, that they did when Tufte debuted in Traverse City in 2019.

“Coming into this tournament, it being my second time, you know what it’s going to be like,” Tufte told The Athletic. “You’re getting your first impression for the staff so you’ve got to set the tone a little bit…Coming in as the older guy, I’ve also got to step up a little bit.”

Tufte, the Stars’ 2016 first-round pick, is the fourth-oldest player on the Stars’ roster in an event where presence as a veteran isn’t a badge of honor. From the draft prior to Tufte’s, Dallas’ top two picks — Denis Gurianov and Roope Hintz — have graduated from being prospects to becoming NHL mainstays for two and three years, respectively.





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