Derian Hatcher, left. (Rueters)

1998-99 record: 51-19-12, 114 points, 1st Central Division
Coach: Ken Hitchcock (163-90-36, four years with Stars)
New faces: D Mark Wotton, RW Warren Luhning, C Juha Lind, D Jamie Pushor
Losses: D Craig Ludwig, G Roman Turek, D Petr Buzek, C Per Svartvadet, D Doug Lidster, C Tony Hrkac, LW Jason Botterill, LW Dave Reid, RW Pat Verbeek
Strengths: The defending Stanley Cup champions remain loaded virtually everywhere. Mike Modano and Joe Nieuwendyk rival anyone in terms of a 1-2 punch up the middle. RW Jere Lehtinen is a back-to-back Selke Trophy winner as the NHL's top defensive forward. RW Brett Hull did exactly what the Stars acquired him to do – score big goals at key times. He got a pair of winners in the Stanley Cup Finals, including the triple-overtime Cup clincher. Dallas' defense remains among the league's most versatile with the likes of Derian Hatcher, Darryl Sydor, Sergei Zubov and Richard Matvichuk. G Ed Belfour finally shed the reputation of being unable to win a championship, which should only bolster his confidence.
Weaknesses: Hitchcock got Hull and everyone else on the team to buy into his defense-first system, and it paid off as the Stars finally captured the Cup. But it's difficult to get players to sacrifice individual accomplishments two years in a row. Belfour will be 35 by the time the playoffs roll around, and his new backup will be Manny Fernandez or Marty Turco, both of whom are unproven. Dallas is very thin on the left side, where Lehtinen is the only incumbent who played more than 11 games with the Stars last season.
Hitchcock says: "I think we've had a really good training camp. Our practices have been much better than our games. The spirits are high here. And the individual seriousness is much better. I think the challenge is getting our level of play to a higher level. We're going to be a lot younger team this year. For a team winning it, we've got a lot of new players."