The Stars are staring down a 2-1 series gap against the Oilers, and if they wanna flip the script, they definitely need their sparkplug up front; yes, Roope Hintz. After that leg slash from Darnell Nurse sent him out of Game 2, he suited up for warmups on Sunday, got the crowd buzzing, but then left the ice early. Pete DeBoer clarified that he never looked like he could hit the ice for Game 3. “If he was close, he probably would have played,” he said. Uncertainty loomed ahead of the all-important Game 4 as well, as DeBoer crossed his fingers and ruled his top center a game-time decision. But those clouds cleared soon enough.

On Tuesday, Hintz was seen warming up between Jason Robertson and Mikko Rantanen, and the next thing you know, he is in the lineup, replacing Evgenii Dadonov. But while his return to the ice brought hope for the Stars faithful, a little something about his hydration routine raised some eyebrows, too.

Right before Game 4 got underway, Sportsnet decided to stir the pot on X with a spicy little locker room pic of Roope Hintz. But it wasn’t the classic pregame stare-down or a slick quote; nope, they zoomed right in on the real star of the moment. What was it, you ask? Sitting casually beside Roope were two juice bottles… and one of them boldly said, “Jet Fuel.” Yes. You read that right. Sportsnet threw in the caption “Roope Hintz is drinking WHAT”, and the internet just exploded into chaos and juice-themed jokes.

Fans were flying in from every digital corner, but one reply had the entire fandom wheezing: “Ah, so that’s how Roope goes brrrr.” A whole mood. Like, if jet fuel is the secret sauce, then someone bottle it up and send it to every forward in the league. Now let’s not forget, behind the memes and the memes within memes, Roope’s got stats to back that juice up. He’s already stacked 11 points (five goals, six assists) in just 15 playoff games, plus a cool plus-1 rating.

During the regular season? He scored 67 points and rocked a plus-18 in 76 games. Drafted in the second round back in 2015, this Finnish powerhouse has stayed loyal to the Stars all the way, racking up 377 points over 468 games. Jet Fuel or not, Hintz has been soaring since day one, and he’s still got plenty of sky to fly through. But this was just the beginning!

Roope Hintz’s mysterious juice sends fans into a frenzy!

One fan hit X with pure comedy gold, saying, “word is it’s a blended Blizzard from DQ…” and boom, suddenly we were back in the chaos of Blizzardgate. It was giving flashbacks to that wild Brad Marchand moment when folks thought he was sneaking a Dairy Queen Blizzard during Game 3 vs. the Canes. Spoiler alert? It wasn’t ice cream; it was honey. Yep, just a sweet lil’ spoonful of honey. Marchand cleared it all up, “I was having honey,” and said that he hasn’t gone so far as to having a Blizzard in the middle of a game, “Yet. Yet. Yet.” 

The man’s not above dessert drama, and fans? They ate it up; pun fully intended. Now, fast forward to Roope Hintz’s locker room chaos, and suddenly we’re in Juice-Gate. Another threw in, “He wants to keep us guessing like Marchand.” From mystery sips to viral spoons, NHL stars are now fully fueling playoff drama, one suspicious snack at a time.

One user threw down the sass card, saying, “Try some milk for those glass bones, Roope,” and honestly? That comment had the internet giggling and groaning at the same time. But real ones know this isn’t Roope’s first rodeo with the injury bug. Flashback to 2024, the exact same dance. Hintz missed Game 1 of the Western Conference Final against the Oilers at American Airlines Center with an upper-body injury, marking his third game out. The man was skating through, trying to stay in it. Still, fans were already biting their nails, wondering if the Stars could hold it down without their speedster in the mix.

One fan stepped in with some full-blown sarcasm. “No wonder his bones are so weak,” they blurted, half-concerned, half-poking fun, and the comments just kept on rolling. Between the juice bottle mystery and all these injury throwbacks, Roope’s playoff journey this year is feeling like a mix of reality TV and a tragic sports documentary; someone get this man some milk, a shield, and maybe a little luck too.