Dallas Stars Defensive Options Growing Slimmer
By Josh Clark
Over the past couple of days, a lot has happened throughout the NHL in terms of trading, signing, and rumors. How are all of these affecting the Dallas Stars’ big questions on defense?
It’s only Tuesday and the NHL has already seen a week’s worth of entertainment in terms of the typical mid-June load.
Yesterday morning, the NHL released the specifics for the home opening game of each team for the 2016-2017 season. They will follow it up by releasing the rest of the regular season schedule later this morning.
Once the preliminary league-wide stuff was over with, the real fun started. The Toronto Maple Leafs made a big splash when they traded two draft picks for Anaheim Ducks goaltender Frederik Andersen.
Just a few minutes following that, the Florida Panthers traded one pick and a conditional pick to the New York Rangers in exchange for the negotiating rights to defenseman Keith Yandle. These were just a few of the trades made during the day, and the rumors were in full showing as well.
Throughout all of this, the Dallas Stars stayed quiet. Not even so much as a mention or report that they were “competing” for one of the big name players.
The Stars community had been warming up the “Yandle to Dallas” argument over the past few weeks as one of the potential solutions to the Dallas Stars’ defensive problem.
Dallas entered the offseason with a difficult problem that forced some tough decisions. Amidst an overwhelming number of free agents, the Stars had four veteran defensemen in the primes of their respective careers heading towards unrestricted free agency that would be charging big money. These four were Alex Goligoski, Kris Russell, Jason Demers, and Jordie Benn.
Being tight on cap space, the Dallas Stars would eventually have to leave some, or even potentially all of these defensemen behind. They followed suit by trading the negotiating rights to their most valuable defender Alex Goligoski to the Arizona Coyotes last Thursday.
But it apparently will not stop there. In a recent report, it seems as though Jason Demers is demanding a high price of around $5.5 million for his next deal. Considering the Stars have examined his play closely over the past year and a half, it’s clear that they will not be offering that kind of money to him. So scratch Demers.
Meanwhile, Russell is another target with plenty of suitors. He is more than likely to receive a high bid out of the Stars’ price range. You might as well scratch him too. Jordie Benn is interesting, and could eventually make his way back on the Dallas roster. But for now, everything is in a whirlwind.
If these defenders do end up moving on from Dallas, the Stars will most assuredly need to add another veteran. Otherwise, Johnny Oduya would be the only starter on the Dallas blue line next year over the age of 30. If the Stars learned anything from the 2014-2015 season, it is that an excess of youth is a recipe for disaster.
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So where do they look? Yandle was one of the more popular choices, and now he is more than likely gone. There is still Dan Hamhuis, but as other veteran defensemen slowly make their way off the market, his price will consistently rise due to lack of other options.
And what about Kevin Shattenkirk? His name is the newest one churning in the rumor mill after reports surfaced that the St. Louis Blues would not be signing him long term. Only problem is, Shattenkirk would require trade. He is under contract until the end of this coming season with a cap hit of $4.25 million. Is he an option? Possibly.
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Whatever the scenario ends up playing out to be, the Dallas Stars need to get their wheels turning quick. If Russell and Demers walk, there needs to be another solid veteran with experience in the mix. Keep a close eye on this coming week. The NHL entry draft is usually a time slotted for not only drafting prospects, but also making big trades in the final days before free agency opens.