Dallas Stars Have Managed Future Well With Contract Negotiations

The regular season isn’t that far off, but it’s nice to know that the Dallas Stars have dealt with all of their offseason priorities. And on top of that, they’ve worked wonders with their cap when managing franchise players.

As they entered the 2018 offseason back in April, the Dallas Stars had a lot to sort out.

After missing the playoffs for a second straight season in 2017-18 despite positive steps forward, the Stars once again reverted back to the drawing board in search of answers.

Their goaltending faltered down the stretch, depth scoring was practically non-existent when they needed it, injuries took their toll, and a tumultuous losing streak in the middle of March helped contribute to the Stars’ untimely downfall. To top it all off, head coach Ken Hitchcock retired, leaving Dallas searching for their third head coach in two seasons.

All of these problems needed relatively quick solutions, and it was up to GM Jim Nill to make it happen as the pressure settled in.

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And following the first few months of the summer, no one really knew what to think.

The Stars parted ways with all of their unrestricted free agents (including four NHL players) and signed a handful of depth assets in free agency like goaltender Anton Khudobin, forwards Blake Comeau and Valeri Nichushkin, and defenseman Roman Polak. They also hired Jim Montgomery as their next head coach. He has a history of winning and seems to preach a system that should work well for the team, but his lack of NHL coaching experience brought a question mark to a team that is desperate to “win now.”

To top it all off, Dallas consistently avoided tending to what many assumed to be their top offseason priority: re-signing elite center Tyler Seguin.

On July 1, 2018, Seguin hit the one year remaining mark on his current contract. With that being said, negotiations officially opened between Seguin’s camp and the Stars. Considering he has the second-most goals of any player since the 2013-14 season (his first year in Dallas) and has only become better and more dangerous in his overall play with each passing season, it was only too obvious for the Stars to make a move and quick. The last thing the franchise needed was for Seguin to ride a similar story to John Tavares and end up departing in free agency in the 2019 summer.

But one month passed and nothing happened. There were reports that talks were “ongoing,” but the lack of a deal made fans a little uneasy. But when the month of August came and went and Seguin told the media about his disappointment with the lack of contract talks, things quickly spiraled into full-scale uncertainty and man began to doubt Nill’s confidence and plans.

As training camp neared with no announced deal, the thought of Seguin entering the 2018-19 season without an extension became somewhat of a reality. But on Sep. 13, that reality was expunged.

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After months of communicating and negotiating, the Dallas Stars agreed to an eight-year extension with Seguin. It’s a max deal worth $9.85 million and locks the center in as a Star until the end of the 2026-27 season.

Jim Nill found a way to get a cornerstone of the franchise inked long-term before training camp began. He checked off the biggest offseason priority in the eleventh hour and now has the Stars set up for stability over the next decade.

But something that cannot be overlooked is how Nill got the deal done. The contract, which will go into effect in 2019-20, is for eight years and carries a total value of $78.8 million. That’s an AAV and cap hit of $9.85 million.

As the offseason began for Dallas in April, speculations began to arise in regards to what Seguin’s extension would look like in terms of price. John Tavares made $11 million in his new contract with Toronto over the summer, Jonathan Toews is in the middle of his eight-year deal worth $10.5 million, and Connor McDavid is the highest-paid player in the NHL with a $12.5 million cap hit.

Those are the three highest-paid centers in the league at the moment. Does that mean they are the three best centers in the NHL? Not necessarily, and there’s a serious argument to be made that Seguin is better than one or maybe even two of them. With that being said, an AAV around $11 million seemed like the logical answer.

The fact of the matter is that Tyler Seguin was ranked as the ninth best center in the NHL this summer. And when considering his versatility and success in various situations, there’s a reason to believe that he’s a top-five center.

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The Dallas Stars use him as such. He’s a 40-goal scorer that can win face-offs, provide power play scoring and efficient penalty killing, and skate heavy minutes while keeping the offense churning in a game. His leadership and skill set are invaluable for a 26-year-old.

And now the Stars have him locked in for less than $10 million for the next nine years. That’s an impressive negotiation by Nill. But it gets better as you look through the Stars’ cap situation.

Two summers ago, the Dallas Stars signed captain Jamie Benn to an eight-year extension worth $9.5 million per year. Benn has arguably been the lifeblood of the team for the past five seasons and is the definition of a complete hockey player that can thrive in any position and situation. The fact that Dallas has him long-term for under $10 million is impressive as well.

It doesn’t stop there, though. Alexander Radulov put up 27 goals and 72 points last season and is expected to have similar success this year. He’s a possession monster that can play throughout the lineup and on special teams and knows how to score clutch goals. The Stars have him locked in for four more seasons at $6.25 million.

John Klingberg might be on the biggest bargain contract in the NHL at the moment. The Norris candidate from last season has four more years on his contract with an AAV of $4.25 million. Considering he’s only 26 and had another breakout year last season, the ceiling is high.

Ben Bishop is currently riding out his prime years as the starting goaltender for Dallas. The Stars have him signed through 2022-23 at a cap hit of $4,916,666, making him the 18th highest-paid goaltender in the league.

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All of those cap hits add up to a total of $34,766,666. Considering that those five players make up the Dallas Stars’ core for the foreseeable future, that’s impressive. And with the NHL salary cap sitting at $79.5 million and rising with each passing season, the Stars seem to be in good shape for their future.

Dallas will enter this season with an estimated $4.45 million in cap space, giving them breathing room to make moves as they become necessary. Next offseason, they will counter Seguin’s $4.1 million raise by taking $12.4 million off the books with Jason Spezza and Marc Methot‘s contracts expiring.

As much as you may doubt Jim Nill’s managerial moves and decisions, he knows how to work his cap space out to the best possible look.

The Dallas Stars are in good shape regarding their cap space and have plenty to look forward to in terms of potential additions and adjustments.

And when you can get Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin, Alexander Radulov, John Klingberg, and Ben Bishop signed long-term and still have space to make other moves, you’re definitely doing something right.