The Dallas Stars Have to Get Creative This Offseason
Dave Pagnotta of the Fourth Period joined TSN Radio in Montreal on Monday and was asked about the Dallas Stars and their offseason plans. He mentions that they have work to do with the Mikko Rantanen contract kicking in this offseason to clear cap space and bring back players.
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
Host: “Before we let you go with the (Mikko) Rantanen contract kicking in in Dallas and their cap situation, does anybody become available out of Dallas?”
Dave Pagnotta: “I think they hear Mason Marchment‘s name over the next few weeks here, going into the draft, and potentially July. I think he’s got one more year left on his deal. Might be two, but I think it’s one. He’s just under $5 million in cap space. They have just under $5 million in cap space overall. So if they want to create a little bit more. It sounds like he’s a name that’s going to be out there.”
Looks like Jamie Benn is going to stick around and probably be on a small, smaller, much smaller contract. Significantly smaller this previous one, but it looks like he’s going to stick around. So we’ll see you know what that number ends up being.
But at the same time, they also have Matt Duchene, who wants, what he said to be stability on his next contract. So multi-year type of deal, and he’s definitely due for a raise over the $3 million here in this season. So we’ll see if that’s a possibility. If it’s not, and right now, all signs point to him hitting July 1, and keep an eye on Carolina with him.
By the way, I think he’s going to be a target for them. They’re going to have to replace that. So with the amount of money that’s available to them, they’re definitely going to be looking to be creative here.”
NHLRumors.com Note: The Dallas Stars just got back to the Western Conference Final for the third year in a row. They fired their head coach because of issues with the players, and a new voice was needed. But Stars GM Jim Nill, who has won back-to-back Jim Gregory Awards as GM of the Year and is up for it again this season, has a lot of work to do.
The Stars acquired Mikael Granlund along with Cody Ceci before the NHL Trade Deadline. Both fit into the lineup nicely. Granlund is a pending unrestricted free agent this offseason. The Stars would like to bring him back, but they have to move out money.
For some reason, Jason Robertson‘s name is out there. He is entering the final year of his contract, which pays him $7.5 million per season, and is due for a raise. However, Robertson is 25 years old and a key part of their top line, having returned from injury to perform at a high level in the Western Conference Final. It is challenging to replace that kind of home-grown talent without receiving something significant in return.
Although Matt Duchene played well for the Dallas Stars this season, he is seeking a three- or four-year deal with a higher dollar value attached to it. Duchene was not the same player for the Stars in the playoffs as he was in the regular season, so there has been hesitation due to the salary cap structure not to offer a 34-year-old player a multi-year contract beyond 35.
As far as Jamie Benn goes, the Stars wanted to get Benn signed back in January, according to a report from RG Media. Both sides were waiting for the season to end to discuss a new deal in terms of dollars and its structure.
The Stars will have to try to move out money in terms of defenseman Matt Dumba, who makes $3.75 million, and Ilya Lyubushkin, who makes $3.25 million for this season and the following season, according to PuckPedia.com. Those players should be the players on the move, not Jason Robertson.
It will be an interesting offseason in Dallas for the Stars.
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