Who Returns on Defense for the 2015-16 Dallas Stars?

This season has brought the Dallas Stars a tremendous amount of rookies with a lot of them being on the defensive side of the puck. Patrik Nemeth made the NHL roster right out of camp and suffered an unfortunate injury early in the season which saw him miss significant time. Jyrki Jokipakka was called up early in the season and has been in the lineup for a good chunk of the campaign. Many had hopes that Jamie Oleksiak would be a full-time NHLer by now but that hasn’t quite panned out. He still has appeared in 36 games this season, which is an achievement. We all know the type of season John Klingberg is having as he continues to lead all rookie defensemen in points. That’s four defensemen right there. And then there are the veterans like Alex Goligoski, who has switched over to a more defensive role and has excelled at it. There is Trevor Daley, who is having a career season offensively. Jason Demers joined the Stars blue-line this season via trade and has really steadied the back-end. Jordie Benn, despite loads of criticism, has actually played quite well of late and fills his role as a bottom-pairing defenseman quite well. Jim Nill will most likely look to add a top defenseman in the offseason so clearly something has to change as there just isn’t enough spots available. Who stays and who goes?

The “There is No Way the Dallas Stars Trade Him” Category

The only guy I feel is 100% safe going into the offseason is John Klingberg. He is having an absolutely remarkable rookie season and should be a Calder finalist. He is sixth in the league in total rookie scoring and first among rookie defensemen. He has scored more points than Aaron Ekblad, who many experts believe is the Calder favorite, and has played in 16 fewer games. He brings a right-handed element to the Dallas Stars blue-line, something they were completely lacking until he was called up and the Stars acquired Jason Demers. Klingberg revolutionized the Stars powerplay and almost single-handedly brought it back from the dead. He looks like one of the top-2 defensemen for the Stars not only for the future, but for now as well. I would be absolutely floored if Nill traded Klingberg.

The “Probably Not Going Anywhere” Category

Jason Demers was traded for early in the season for Brendan Dillon and it is not likely he will be going anywhere this offseason. Along with Klingberg, his right-handedness helped stabilize a left-shot-heavy defense and he has also shown a lot of poise when coming out of his own zone. The San Jose Sharks are also retaining some of his salary, so he isn’t taking up a lot of cap space. The Dallas Stars have benefited greatly with him in the lineup.

Alex Goligoski is another player who I don’t think the Stars will part with any time soon. After his first few years in Dallas have been surrounded with constant criticism, he has really quieted those critics this year. You don’t hear his name too often and for this case, that is a good thing. He leads all Dallas Stars in blocked shots and has chipped in with 31 points this season. He is easily the best defensive defenseman on the roster and has proven he can handle significant minutes every single night. I would expect Goligoski to be a Star next season.

The “You Might Want to Pack Your Bags Just In Case” Category

There are a lot of names in this category because you simply just don’t know what Jim Nill will do. He has shown to be willing to part with talent (Rielly Smith, Loui Eriksson, Brendan Dillon, Alex Chassion) no matter how promising they may be. It is doubtful that Jordie Benn gets traded, as he is a serviceable bottom-pairing defenseman and he really wouldn’t be all that valuable in the case of a trade. However he has been the center of a lot of criticism this year and Nill may want to split up the brothers. Jamie Oleksiak and Patrik Nemeth are two bigger defensemen who have a bit of value, especially considering how young they are. Oleksiak was a top-rated prospect and probably holds more value, even though Nemeth has outperformed Oleksiak on the ice. Jokipakka looks promising, but the Stars are more in need of size and Jokipakka is not a physical player. That leaves the defenseman who I believe will be traded. Trevor Daley is the longest-tenured Star and has had an incredibly productive season. His production is the reason I believe he will be traded. He has struggled in his own zone this year and Jim Nill may want to sell high. Thanks to his offensive outburst, Daley’s value will likely never be higher than it is right now. He, along with one of the young defensemen, may be traded in a package deal for a top-defenseman in the offseason.

Although Nill has shown he isn’t afraid to trade away talent, he has yet to do it without significant return. If one or more of the above players are traded in the offseason, you can be sure the Stars will be getting excellent talent in return. Thank you for reading.

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