Up until the NHL Draft on June 23rd, the team at Blackout Dallas will be rolling out previews of the potential Dallas Stars selections. Today, we evaluate the possible moves Dallas can make with their top-three pick.
Thanks to an extremely fortuitous Draft lottery in late-April, the Dallas Stars have the third overall selection in the 2017 National Hockey League Entry Draft.
When Jim Nill, Ken Hitchcock and other Dallas representatives travel to Chicago for the Draft, from June 23rd to 24th, they’ll have a lot to ponder. Since the Stars are in a win-now function and not too worried about future success, it’s been discussed that Dallas will trade the pick.
This scenario is both completely plausible and potentially beneficial. With the prime of forwards Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn, the foundation of the Dallas Stars, still unfolding, Nill and crew have little time to waste.
Using the third overall pick to acquire an elite defenseman or a top-six forward via trade would further solidify the Stars’ lineup, giving them depth and continuity for the upcoming season, one in which the expectations are as high as ever.
More from Blackout Dallas
- Dallas Stars Traverse City Tournament: Who had great performances?
- Grushnikov and Stankoven lead Dallas Stars to 6-3 win over Columbus
- Dallas Stars prospects look to wrap up tournament with a win
- Burn the tapes: Dallas Stars prospects lose 5-1 to Toronto Maple Leafs
- Dallas Stars look to continue success today against the Maple Leafs
Jim Nill, a week or so prior to this, noted the shopping of the third overall pick, giving conspiracy theorists even more material to work with. It would come to no surprise if the Dallas eventually dealt away the third pick for an established NHL player, but either way, they’ll be receiving a high-quality player.
That high-quality athlete could, and very well should, come strictly from the Draft. The Stars are looking to avoid another first-round bust, reminiscent of Scott Glennie or Jack Campbell, and in doing so they could turn the tide with a massively talented forward like Casey Mittelstadt or Gabriel Vilardi.
If they choose to bolster their already-impressive list of burgeoning defensive youth, Miro Heiskanen or Cale Makar are potential fits, as well. Nill must, even if the Dallas Stars look to succeed now rather than later, look at their future of the club as Benn, Seguin, and Radek Faksa get older. Drafting a youthful playmaker who can be inserted into the lineup at any time would assist those players in winning it all.
One thing the Dallas Stars’ front office will have to consider is their options later in the first round, also. In earning the Anaheim Ducks’ first-round pick via the Patrick Eaves deal at the trade deadline, the Stars still won’t be without a first-round selection if they happen to deal the third pick.
They can still net a stellar player, although not an eye-popping prospect, to build a future around, while simultaneously selling the third overall pick for a previously-developed athlete. For example, the Stars can deal the third overall pick to the Edmonton Oilers for Jordan Eberle and a prospect, or to the Colorado Avalanche for defenseman Tyson Barrie. Anything is possible.
Here’s the catch: the Stars have to endure a potentially franchise-altering expansion draft on June 21st. It’s truly difficult to assess your requirements prior to the Entry Draft when you could lose valuable prospects and NHL cornerstones.
Next: Every Dallas Stars First Pick Since 1993
The Vegas Golden Knights will lay claim to at least one Dallas Stars roster player at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada. This means the Stars have to look over their list of unprotected players and perhaps look for immediate replacements via Draft.
Over the next few weeks, Blackout Dallas will kick out Draft profiles of each of the players the Stars might select. Although it makes no difference what us, as fans believe, but it’ll be a fun way to gain insight and solace as to how the Stars handle this.