Dallas Stars: Will Jamie Benn Ever Peak?

The Dallas Stars sure are lucky to have one of the best overall captains in the league and have him locked away for nine more seasons. The question is, will he ever hit his career wall?

I was reading somewhere the other day about a study done on NHL players to test out when they typically hit the peak of their performance in their career.

If memory serves correctly, the study suggested that the typical NHL forward hits his peak around the age of 28, while defenders hit it around 29. The study also said that goaltenders usually see very little change in their performance as they age.

That’s an interesting statistic, considering that Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn just turned 27 and it seems like him reaching his peak is still many, many years away.

Anytime you look at averages, you must first notice that they are called “averages” for a reason. That means that the statistics fall on both sides of the average, and the overall number meets in the middle. So in this case, there are some NHL forwards hit their peak before age 28 and some that hit it after.

Now of course there cannot be that much wiggle room. While it may be logical to say that an NHL forward can evade his peak until age 31 or even 32, it’s not likely that there are many, if any at all, forwards that hit the downhill slope in their career at age 24 or 25.

But it is an interesting question nonetheless. Benn has proven so far in his career that nothing is stopping him from becoming one of the five best players in hockey. He can score on offense, play physical defense, run a power play and penalty kill, and drop the gloves whenever it is necessary. Basically, the only thing he doesn’t do in a game is make saves.

And over the past few seasons, Benn has shown no signs of slowing down in any way. He played his first NHL game on opening night in 2009. Ever since then, he has worked his way up in the Dallas ranks to become the most dynamic forward in the lineup.

Not counting the lockout season in 2012-13, Benn’s point totals have steadily increased (41, 56, 63, 79, 87, 89). His goals (22, 22, 26, 34, 35, 41) and assists (19, 34, 37, 45, 52, 48) have steadily risen as well. Overall, he’s remained pretty stable. He’s only missed one game in the past three seasons due to a healthy scratch in the final regular season game of 2013-14. Not to mention he played on two busted hips in 2014-15.

His penalty minutes, even strength goals, and power play assists have remained stable. His power play goals have risen significantly, as has his shooting percentage. His possession numbers have leveled out at a high rate as well.

We all know Jamie Benn is “the ultimate hockey player” just by the way he plays. But will he ever reach a peak?

Unless he is not human, Benn will eventually get to the point where the bones and muscles don’t work as well as they used to. The Dallas Stars have him locked up for the next nine seasons, so it is probable that we will eventually see a peak hit. But that doesn’t mean it’s coming after next season when he turns 28.

Benn could easily continue to man the ship for the Stars for the next three or four years before he begins to recede. The possibilities are unfathomable when you have a leader and player like Jamie Benn.

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One thing is for sure: Joe Nieuwendyk knew what he was doing when he decided to draft Benn in the fifth round of the 2009 NHL entry draft. The Dallas Stars are lucky to have a captain of his caliber, and he is proving that his performance could simply be a prelude of what is to come.