Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen’s injury absence will extend into the postseason as on Monday team general manager Jim Nill confirmed that the veteran blue-liner will be unavailable for Game 1 of its opening-round series versus the Central Division rival Colorado Avalanche, per Owen Newkirk of DLLS Sports.

Nill left open the possibility that Heiskanen could return to action later on in the first round.

Sidelined since late January after undergoing knee surgery, Heiskanen has been limited 50 appearances with the Stars this season in which he has tallied five goals and 20 assists for 25 points while averaging a team-leading 25:10 of time on ice per game.

Originally chosen third overall in the 2017 NHL Draft, the 25-year-old Finnish-born rearguard has since seen 475 career contests with the Stars in which he has collected 58 goals and 225 assists for 283 points. Heiskanen has also added 61 points counting 16 goals and 45 assists through 85 appearances in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Beyond Heiskanen, the Stars also remain without fellow rearguard Nils Lundkvist, who is not expected to return until the coming campaign after undergoing shoulder surgery, while forward Tyler Seguin, who has missed the past 57 games following hip surgery, has since resumed skating with the club and is nearing a return.

Sitting second place in the Central Division with a 50-24-6 record and 106 points, the Stars will enter the postseason with home-ice advantage against the Avalanche. The two sides faced off three times in the regular season, with Colorado taking a 2-1-0 advantage.

In search of the club’s second-ever Stanley Cup championship, the Stars loaded up ahead of this year’s NHL trade deadline, adding veteran defenseman Cody Ceci and forward Mikael Granlund from the San Jose Sharks as well as former Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen following a brief stint with the Carolina Hurricanes.