On Lian Bichsel, violence, and his future under Glen Gulutzan

I chatted with Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan about this earlier this week.

I find Lian Bichsel fascinating.

Off the ice, Bichsel has taken a very public, me-first mentality. He hasn’t been shy about sharing his views for his development, taking his own path during the 2023-24 season and choosing to spend time in Sweden rather than the AHL.

He’s put personal development and growth over accepting invites to the Swiss under-20 national team, a decision that may or may not have cost him an Olympic spot in 2026 (these are things I need to get answers on).

Bichsel also takes close to three-hour naps, regularly, which is fascinating to me as someone who regularly takes 20-minute coffee naps¹.

On Lian Bichsel taking and giving hits and properly recovering from all of the collisions

On the ice Bichsel plays with old-school violence. He seeks it and throws a ton of hits, and at 6-foot-7, 231 pounds he’s the fourth largest player in the league when it comes to pure mass.

Hits aren’t the greatest stat, as many will tell you, but it’s pretty jarring look at the Dallas Stars hits leaders and then looking at the games play column from last season.

Bichsel is a unicorn on the Stars roster. A mean, nasty one that isn’t afraid to throw around its horse-like body unlike anyone else.

That’s why Bichsel was on my mind this week when I connected with new Stars coach Glen Gulutzan, who I interviewed for this piece in D Magazine about the Stars overall physicality.

Gulutzan was part of the Edmonton Oilers coaching staff the past two seasons when they ousted the Stars in the Western Conference Final. Two years ago Bichsel was a black ace for that series, this past spring, Gulutzan says, Bichsel was one of the most noticeable Stars defenders.