Dallas Stars Free Agent Spotlight And Poll: Rich Peverley

The Dallas Stars have a total of 18 players on their NHL and AHL rosters that will become some sort of free agent this coming offseason.

With the overstocking of forwards and need for veteran defensemen, it will be interesting to see who Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill re-signs and who he lets go into free agency.

A few days ago, we took a look at the eight players that spent a good majority of their season with the Dallas Stars in the NHL.

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We examined the current situation of each player and the pros and cons of their argument to be re-signed or let go.

So far, we’ve looked at and voted on Jamie Oleksiak, Patrik Nemeth, Jyrki Jokipakka, and Curtis McKenzie. Here are the results from their polls:

Of the 58 total voters, 55% sided with re-signing and bringing Jamie Oleksiak back. 31% voted that the Stars should re-sign him and use him for trade. The last 14% voted that Oleksiak and the Stars should separate once and for all.

Of the 86 total voters, 94% believe that the Dallas Stars should be re-signing Patrik Nemeth and brining him back long term. 4% believe that he should be re-signed and used on the trading block. Lastly, just 2% believed that Nemeth should not be offered a new deal in Dallas.

Of the 45 voters at the time this article was written, 89% believe that the Stars need to re-sign Jykri Jokipakka and keep him around. 11% believe he should be re-signed and used for trade. No one voted to part ways with him.

Of the 35 total votes at the time this article was written, 86% believed that the Stars should re-sign and negotiate a new deal with Curtis McKenzie. 9% voted to re-sign him and use on the trading block. The last 5% voted to part ways and let McKenzie go to free agency.

Today, we’ll switch gears to looking at the UFA’s. First up is forward Rich Peverley:

Rich Peverley has not competed in an NHL game since March 10, 2014 when he collapsed on the Stars bench due to a heart malfunction. Before the episode, Peverley had tallied 30 points in 62 games and had helped carry the Stars bottom lines.

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Peverley, 32, is still unsure of whether or not he will return to the NHL, though he made it known a few weeks back that he is aiming for a comeback. His cap hit of $3,250,000 is a bit pricy for a Stars team stacked with hungry offensive talent, but the Stars may be inclined to bring him back for a lower price. Assuming he comes back, the Stars re-signing him would bring nothing but success with it.

Rich Peverley will be one of the Dallas Stars’ four unrestricted free agents this coming offseason. But before any contract negotiations go down, Peverley needs to declare whether or not he will be playing in the NHL ever again. Basically, if Peverley decides to return, there are three ways his negotiations could go:

1. The Stars offer Peverley a new contract and he agrees or disagrees

The Stars could extend Peverley a decent-sized contract and he could return to Dallas for a few more seasons. Sure it wouldn’t be as big as his previous contract, but if Peverley is happy in Dallas, he’ll more than likely accept based on his current situation. If he’s not, he’ll decline the offer and move onto the free agency pool on July 1st.

2. The Stars re-sign him and use him for trade

This isn’t a likely scenario when it comes to unrestricted free agents, but could still happen. Although there is a chance, trading Peverley away seems almost completely insane and illogical. But anything can happen.

3. The Stars leave Peverley to become a UFA on July 1st

The Dallas Stars could leave Peverley out of their offseason and let him find a new team. It would open up space for the Stars to bring in another young forward from the AHL or go out and sign another top-grade center.

Now that we’ve examined each one’s argument and current situation, it’s time to let you, the Stars fan, vote on what you think should be done with Rich Peverley. Feel free to vote below. Apologies to all using the mobile app that doesn’t support our poll yet. We encourage you to get online or find us on social media and vote!

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