# 2002–03 Dallas Stars season

The 2002–03 Dallas Stars season was the Stars' tenth season, 36th overall of the franchise.

## Off-season

Dave Tippett was named the team’s new head coach on May 16, 2002.

## Regular season

* January 20, 2003: In a game against the Dallas Stars, Patrick Roy becomes the first goaltender to appear in 1,000 regular season games. At the end of the game, Marty Turco raised his mask to praise Patrick.
The Stars led all NHL teams in most shutouts for, with 11.

### Final standings

Pacific Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | Dallas Stars | 82 | 46 | 17 | 15 | 4 | 245 | 169 | 111 |
| 2 | 7 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 82 | 40 | 27 | 9 | 6 | 203 | 193 | 95 |
| 3 | 10 | Los Angeles Kings | 82 | 33 | 37 | 6 | 6 | 203 | 221 | 78 |
| 4 | 11 | Phoenix Coyotes | 82 | 31 | 35 | 11 | 5 | 204 | 230 | 78 |
| 5 | 14 | San Jose Sharks | 82 | 28 | 37 | 9 | 8 | 214 | 239 | 73 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Western Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | Z- Dallas Stars | PA | 82 | 46 | 17 | 15 | 4 | 245 | 169 | 111 |
| 2 | Y- Detroit Red Wings | CE | 82 | 48 | 20 | 10 | 4 | 269 | 203 | 110 |
| 3 | Y- Colorado Avalanche | NW | 82 | 42 | 19 | 13 | 8 | 251 | 194 | 105 |
| 4 | X- Vancouver Canucks | NW | 82 | 45 | 23 | 13 | 1 | 264 | 208 | 104 |
| 5 | X- St. Louis Blues | CE | 82 | 41 | 24 | 11 | 6 | 253 | 222 | 99 |
| 6 | X- Minnesota Wild | NW | 82 | 42 | 29 | 10 | 1 | 198 | 178 | 95 |
| 7 | X- Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | PA | 82 | 40 | 27 | 9 | 6 | 203 | 193 | 95 |
| 8 | X- Edmonton Oilers | NW | 82 | 36 | 26 | 11 | 9 | 231 | 230 | 92 |
| 8.5 |||||||||||
| 9 | Chicago Blackhawks | CE | 82 | 30 | 33 | 13 | 6 | 207 | 226 | 79 |
| 10 | Los Angeles Kings | PA | 82 | 33 | 37 | 6 | 6 | 203 | 221 | 78 |
| 11 | Phoenix Coyotes | PA | 82 | 31 | 35 | 11 | 5 | 204 | 230 | 78 |
| 12 | Calgary Flames | NW | 82 | 29 | 36 | 13 | 4 | 186 | 228 | 75 |
| 13 | Nashville Predators | CE | 82 | 27 | 35 | 13 | 7 | 183 | 206 | 74 |
| 14 | San Jose Sharks | PA | 82 | 28 | 37 | 9 | 8 | 214 | 239 | 73 |
| 15 | Columbus Blue Jackets | CE | 82 | 29 | 42 | 8 | 3 | 213 | 263 | 69 |
Divisions: PA – Pacific, CE – Central, NW – Northwest
Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2002–03 regular season :
October: 6–2–2–1 (home: 3–0–0–1; road: 3–2–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1TOctober 9, 20021–1 OT@ Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)0–0–1–0Recap
2WOctober 11, 20024–2Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)1–0–1–0Recap
3WOctober 12, 20025–2@ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)2–0–1–0Recap
4WOctober 15, 20023–0Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)3–0–1–0Recap
5LOctober 17, 20021–3@ Minnesota Wild (2002–03)3–1–1–0Recap
6LOctober 19, 20023–5@ St. Louis Blues (2002–03)3–2–1–0Recap
7WOctober 20, 20025–2Washington Capitals (2002–03)4–2–1–0Recap
8TOctober 24, 20023–3 OT@ Calgary Flames (2002–03)4–2–2–0Recap
9WOctober 26, 20024–1@ Vancouver Canucks (2002–03)5–2–2–0Recap
10WOctober 28, 20024–3 OT@ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)6–2–2–0Recap
11OTLOctober 30, 20022–3 OTFlorida Panthers (2002–03)6–2–2–1Recap :
November: 9–4–3–0 (home: 6–0–1–0; road: 3–4–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
12LNovember 1, 20022–4@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)6–3–2–1Recap
13TNovember 3, 20023–3 OT@ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)6–3–3–1Recap
14WNovember 6, 20024–0Vancouver Canucks (2002–03)7–3–3–1Recap
15WNovember 8, 20022–1Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)8–3–3–1Recap
16LNovember 10, 20022–3@ New York Islanders (2002–03)8–4–3–1Recap
17WNovember 12, 20024–2@ Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)9–4–3–1Recap
18WNovember 13, 20026–1@ Washington Capitals (2002–03)10–4–3–1Recap
19WNovember 15, 20024–2Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)11–4–3–1Recap
20WNovember 17, 20023–2 OTColumbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)12–4–3–1Recap
21TNovember 20, 20022–2 OT@ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)12–4–4–1Recap
22WNovember 22, 20024–0@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)13–4–4–1Recap
23LNovember 23, 20020–2@ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)13–5–4–1Recap
24WNovember 25, 20025–1Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)14–5–4–1Recap
25WNovember 27, 20025–0Minnesota Wild (2002–03)15–5–4–1Recap
26TNovember 29, 20023–3 OTNew York Rangers (2002–03)15–5–5–1Recap
27LNovember 30, 20022–5@ Nashville Predators (2002–03)15–6–5–1Recap :
December: 5–4–4–0 (home: 3–1–2–0; road: 2–3–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
28WDecember 4, 20025–1Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)16–6–5–1Recap
29TDecember 6, 20023–3 OTDetroit Red Wings (2002–03)16–6–6–1Recap
30LDecember 11, 20020–3Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)16–7–6–1Recap
31WDecember 13, 20023–1Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)17–7–6–1Recap
32WDecember 15, 20025–0@ Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)18–7–6–1Recap
33TDecember 17, 20022–2 OT@ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)18–7–7–1Recap
34TDecember 19, 20021–1 OT@ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)18–7–8–1Recap
35LDecember 21, 20023–5@ New Jersey Devils (2002–03)18–8–8–1Recap
36LDecember 22, 20020–1@ Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)18–9–8–1Recap
37LDecember 26, 20021–3@ Nashville Predators (2002–03)18–10–8–1Recap
38WDecember 27, 20024–0@ Florida Panthers (2002–03)19–10–8–1Recap
39TDecember 29, 20022–2 OTDetroit Red Wings (2002–03)19–10–9–1Recap
40WDecember 31, 20024–1Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)20–10–9–1Recap :
January: 10–1–2–0 (home: 6–1–0–0; road: 4–0–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
41WJanuary 2, 20033–1@ San Jose Sharks (2002–03)21–10–9–1Recap
42WJanuary 4, 20033–2@ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)22–10–9–1Recap
43TJanuary 5, 20031–1 OT@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)22–10–10–1Recap
44WJanuary 7, 20037–4Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)23–10–10–1Recap
45WJanuary 9, 20034–3 OTChicago Blackhawks (2002–03)24–10–10–1Recap
46WJanuary 11, 20036–3Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)25–10–10–1Recap
47WJanuary 18, 20033–1@ San Jose Sharks (2002–03)26–10–10–1Recap
48TJanuary 20, 20031–1 OT@ Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)26–10–11–1Recap
49WJanuary 22, 20034–2Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)27–10–11–1Recap
50LJanuary 24, 20031–4Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)27–11–11–1Recap
51WJanuary 25, 20034–2@ St. Louis Blues (2002–03)28–11–11–1Recap
52WJanuary 27, 20035–3Ottawa Senators (2002–03)29–11–11–1Recap
53WJanuary 29, 20034–1Calgary Flames (2002–03)30–11–11–1Recap :
February: 5–2–4–1 (home: 3–1–3–0; road: 2–1–1–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
54TFebruary 5, 20032–2 OTSt. Louis Blues (2002–03)30–11–12–1Recap
55WFebruary 8, 20033–1@ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)31–11–12–1Recap
56WFebruary 9, 20033–1Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)32–11–12–1Recap
57WFebruary 11, 20032–1 OTCarolina Hurricanes (2002–03)33–11–12–1Recap
58LFebruary 14, 20032–4Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)33–12–12–1Recap
59WFebruary 16, 20033–1San Jose Sharks (2002–03)34–12–12–1Recap
60TFebruary 19, 20031–1 OTCalgary Flames (2002–03)34–12–13–1Recap
61TFebruary 21, 20032–2 OTPhoenix Coyotes (2002–03)34–12–14–1Recap
62WFebruary 23, 20033–0@ Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)35–12–14–1Recap
63TFebruary 25, 20035–5 OT@ Boston Bruins (2002–03)35–12–15–1Recap
64OTLFebruary 27, 20032–3 OT@ Ottawa Senators (2002–03)35–12–15–2Recap
65LFebruary 28, 20033–5@ Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)35–13–15–2Recap :
March: 9–4–0–2 (home: 5–2–0–1; road: 4–2–0–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
66WMarch 2, 20033–1Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)36–13–15–2Recap
67WMarch 5, 20037–4Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)37–13–15–2Recap
68LMarch 7, 20031–2Nashville Predators (2002–03)37–14–15–2Recap
69WMarch 9, 20033–0San Jose Sharks (2002–03)38–14–15–2Recap
70WMarch 11, 20032–0@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)39–14–15–2Recap
71LMarch 12, 20032–4@ Minnesota Wild (2002–03)39–15–15–2Recap
72LMarch 15, 20033–4@ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)39–16–15–2Recap
73LMarch 17, 20032–4Vancouver Canucks (2002–03)39–17–15–2Recap
74WMarch 19, 20035–4 OT@ Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)40–17–15–2Recap
75OTLMarch 21, 20032–3 OTMinnesota Wild (2002–03)40–17–15–3Recap
76WMarch 23, 20033–1St. Louis Blues (2002–03)41–17–15–3Recap
77WMarch 25, 20034–3@ Vancouver Canucks (2002–03)42–17–15–3Recap
78OTLMarch 27, 20031–2 OT@ Calgary Flames (2002–03)42–17–15–4Recap
79WMarch 29, 20034–3@ San Jose Sharks (2002–03)43–17–15–4Recap
80WMarch 31, 20033–0Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)44–17–15–4Recap :
April: 2–0–0–0 (home: 2–0–0–0; road: 0–0–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
81WApril 2, 20032–1Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)45–17–15–4Recap
82WApril 6, 20032–0Nashville Predators (2002–03)46–17–15–4Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point)
  Overtime loss (1 point) :

### Playoffs

2003 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (8) Edmonton Oilers: Stars win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1LApril 9, 20031–2Edmonton OilersOilers lead 1–0Recap
2WApril 11, 20036–1Edmonton OilersSeries tied 1–1Recap
3LApril 13, 20032–3@ Edmonton OilersOilers lead 2–1Recap
4WApril 15, 20033–1@ Edmonton OilersSeries tied 2–2Recap
5WApril 17, 20035–2Edmonton OilersStars lead 3–2Recap
6WApril 19, 20033–2@ Edmonton OilersStars win 4–2Recap :
Western Conference Semifinals vs. (7) Anaheim Mighty Ducks: Mighty Ducks win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1LApril 24, 20033–4 5OTAnaheim Mighty DucksMighty Ducks lead 1–0Recap
2LApril 26, 20032–3 OTAnaheim Mighty DucksMighty Ducks lead 2–0Recap
3WApril 28, 20032–1@ Anaheim Mighty DucksMighty Ducks lead 2–1Recap
4LApril 30, 20030–1@ Anaheim Mighty DucksMighty Ducks lead 3–1Recap
5WMay 3, 20034–1Anaheim Mighty DucksMighty Ducks lead 3–2Recap
6LMay 5, 20033–4@ Anaheim Mighty DucksMighty Ducks win 4–2Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Stars only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Stars only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 9 | Mike Modano | C | 79 | 28 | 57 | 85 | 34 | 30 | 12 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 2 | 4 |
| 56 | Sergei Zubov | D | 82 | 11 | 44 | 55 | 21 | 26 | 12 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 2 | 4 |
| 13 | Bill Guerin | RW | 64 | 25 | 25 | 50 | 5 | 113 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 4 |
| 26 | Jere Lehtinen | RW | 80 | 31 | 17 | 48 | 39 | 20 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 44 | Jason Arnott | C | 72 | 23 | 24 | 47 | 9 | 51 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 | −2 | 6 |
| 10 | Brenden Morrow | LW | 71 | 21 | 22 | 43 | 20 | 134 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 16 |
| 48 | Scott Young | RW | 79 | 23 | 19 | 42 | 24 | 30 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
| 77 | Pierre Turgeon | C | 65 | 12 | 30 | 42 | 4 | 18 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 11 | Ulf Dahlen | LW | 63 | 17 | 20 | 37 | 11 | 14 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −3 | 0 |
| 5 | Darryl Sydor | D | 81 | 5 | 31 | 36 | 22 | 40 | 12 | 0 | 6 | 6 | −3 | 6 |
| 39 | Niko Kapanen | C | 82 | 5 | 29 | 34 | 25 | 44 | 12 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 12 |
| 2 | Derian Hatcher | D | 82 | 8 | 22 | 30 | 37 | 106 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 33 |
| 43 | Philippe Boucher | D | 80 | 7 | 20 | 27 | 28 | 94 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 11 |
| 18 | Rob DiMaio | RW | 69 | 10 | 9 | 19 | 18 | 76 | 12 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 10 |
| 27 | Manny Malhotra | C | 59 | 3 | 7 | 10 | −2 | 42 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | Stephane Robidas | D | 76 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 15 | 35 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 20 |
| 29 | Steve Ott | C | 26 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 31 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 |
| 14 | Stu Barnes† | C | 13 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Claude Lemieux† | RW | 32 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −9 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 10 |
| 24 | Richard Matvichuk | D | 68 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 58 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
| 22 | Kirk Muller | LW | 55 | 1 | 5 | 6 | −6 | 18 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 |
| 33 | Scott Pellerin‡ | LW | 20 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −3 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 28 | David Oliver | RW | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 2 |
| 35 | Marty Turco | G | 55 | 0 | 3 | 3 | | 16 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 8 |
| 3 | John Erskine | D | 16 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 47 | Aaron Downey | RW | 43 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 69 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6 | Sami Helenius‡ | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Corey Hirsch | G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 32 | Jim Montgomery | C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4 | Lyle Odelein† | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 |
| 14 | Jon Sim‡ | LW | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 31 | Ron Tugnutt | G | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |

### Goaltending

| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 35 | Marty Turco | 55 | 31 | 10 | 10 | 1359 | 92 | 1.72 | .932 | 7 | 3203 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 310 | 25 | 1.88 | .919 | 0 | 798 |
| 31 | Ron Tugnutt | 31 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 672 | 70 | 2.47 | .896 | 4 | 1701 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Corey Hirsch | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 4 | 2.47 | .897 | 0 | 97 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | Frank J. Selke Trophy | Jere Lehtinen |
| League (annual) | NHL Second All-Star Team | Derian Hatcher (Defense) |
| League (annual) | NHL Second All-Star Team | Marty Turco (Goaltender) |
| League (annual) | Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award | Marty Turco |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Bill Guerin |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Mike Modano |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Marty Turco |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Month | Marty Turco (January) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Bill Guerin (October 14) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Mike Modano (January 13) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Marty Turco (April 7) |
| League (in-season) | NHL YoungStars Game selection | Niko Kapanen |
| Team | Star of the Game Award | Mike Modano |
| Team | Star of the Game Award | Marty Turco |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| 500th game played | Ron Tugnutt | November 12, 2002 |
| 1,000th point | Mike Modano | November 15, 2002 |
| 1,000th game played | Scott Young | December 11, 2002 |
| First game | Steve Ott | December 13, 2002 |
| 600th assist | Mike Modano | February 5, 2003 |
| 1,000th game played | Mike Modano | February 11, 2003 |
| 600th assist | Kirk Muller | March 5, 2003 |
| 25th shutout | Ron Tugnutt | March 11, 2003 |

## Transactions

The Stars were involved in the following transactions from June 14, 2002, the day after the deciding game of the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 9, 2003, the day of the deciding game of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 18, 2002 (2002-06-18) | To Dallas Stars Ron Tugnutt2nd-round pick in 2002 | To Columbus Blue Jackets 1st-round pick in 2002 |
| June 22, 2002 (2002-06-22) | To Dallas Stars 2nd-round pick in 2002 | To Tampa Bay Lightning Brad Lukowich7th-round pick in 2003 |
| June 29, 2002 (2002-06-29) | To Dallas Stars David Gosselin5th-round pick in 2003 | To Nashville Predators Rights to Ed BelfourRights to Cameron Mann |
| October 4, 2002 (2002-10-04) | To Dallas Stars Stephane Robidas | To Atlanta Thrashers Future considerations |
| January 16, 2003 (2003-01-16) | To Dallas Stars Claude Lemieux | To Phoenix Coyotes Scott PellerinConditional draft pick in 2004 |
| February 17, 2003 (2003-02-17) | To Dallas Stars Andrew BerenzweigConditional draft pick in 2004 | To Nashville Predators Jon Sim |
| March 10, 2003 (2003-03-10) | To Dallas Stars Stu Barnes | To Buffalo Sabres Rights to Michael Ryan2nd-round pick in 2003 |
| March 10, 2003 (2003-03-10) | To Dallas Stars Lyle Odelein | To Chicago Blackhawks Sami HeleniusConditional draft pick |
| March 11, 2003 (2003-03-11) | To Dallas Stars Dallas’ 6th-round pick in 2003Future considerations | To Atlanta Thrashers Rights to Anthony Aquino |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Term | Via |
| July 2, 2002 (2002-07-02) | Philippe Boucher | Los Angeles Kings | 4-year | Free agency |
| July 3, 2002 (2002-07-03) | Aaron Downey | Chicago Blackhawks | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 3, 2002 (2002-07-03) | Bill Guerin | Boston Bruins | 5-year | Free agency |
| July 5, 2002 (2002-07-05) | Scott Young | St. Louis Blues | 2-year | Free agency |
| July 30, 2002 (2002-07-30) | David Oliver | Munich Barons (DEL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 13, 2002 (2002-08-13) | Ulf Dahlen | Washington Capitals | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 14, 2002 (2002-08-14) | Corey Hirsch | Washington Capitals | 1-year | Free agency |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Via |
| July 4, 2002 (2002-07-04) | Randy McKay | Montreal Canadiens | Free agency (III) |
| July 11, 2002 (2002-07-11) | Brent Gilchrist | Nashville Predators | Free agency (III) |
| August 26, 2002 (2002-08-26) | Rick Tabaracci | | Retirement (III) |
| September 20, 2002 (2002-09-20) | Chad Alban | Kalamazoo Wings (UHL) | Free agency (II) |
| September 25, 2002 (2002-09-25) | Gregor Baumgartner | Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| September 30, 2002 (2002-09-30) | Dave Manson | | Retirement (III) |
| October 2002 (2002-10) | Andre Lakos | Augusta Lynx (ECHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| April 23, 2003 (2003-04-23) | Pat Verbeek | | Retirement (III) |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term | Contract type |
| June 27, 2002 (2002-06-27) | Manny Malhotra | 2-year | Re-signing |
| July 3, 2002 (2002-07-03) | Sami Helenius | 1-year | Re-signing |
| July 3, 2002 (2002-07-03) | Alexei Komarov | 1-year | Entry-level |
| July 24, 2002 (2002-07-24) | Jeff MacMillan | 1-year | Re-signing |
| July 24, 2002 (2002-07-24) | Jim Montgomery | 1-year | Re-signing |
| July 30, 2002 (2002-07-30) | Jon Sim | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 4, 2002 (2002-08-04) | Jason Arnott | 2-year | Arbitration award |
| August 29, 2002 (2002-08-29) | Steve Gainey | 1-year | Re-signing |
| September 3, 2002 (2002-09-03) | Gavin Morgan | 1-year | Re-signing |
| September 26, 2002 (2002-09-26) | Brenden Morrow | 3-year | Re-signing |
| October 8, 2002 (2002-10-08) | Mike Smith | 3-year | Entry-level |
| October 16, 2002 (2002-10-16) | Trevor Daley | 3-year | Entry-level |
| May 28, 2003 (2003-05-28) | David Bararuk | 3-year | Entry-level |

## Draft picks

Dallas's draft picks at the 2002 NHL entry draft held at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 26 | Martin Vagner | Czech Republic | Hull Olympiques (QMJHL) |
| 2 | 32 | Janos Vas | Hungary | Malmo IF (Sweden) |
| 2 | 34 | Tobias Stephan | Switzerland | EHC Chur (Switzerland) |
| 2 | 42 | Marius Holtet | Norway | Farjestad BK (Sweden) |
| 2 | 43 | Trevor Daley | Canada | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL) |
| 3 | 78 | Geoff Waugh | Canada | Kindersley Klippers (SJHL) |
| 4 | 110 | Jarkko Immonen | Finland | Blues Jr. (Finland) |
| 5 | 147 | David Bararuk | Canada | Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) |
| 6 | 180 | Kirill Sidorenko | Russia | Zauralie Kurgan (Russia) |
| 7 | 210 | Bryan Hamm | Canada | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
| 8 | 243 | Tuomas Mikkonen | Finland | JYP (Finland) |
| 9 | 273 | Ned Havern | United States | Boston College (Hockey East) |