With the month of June in full swing and the offseason a matter of days away from kicking off for the entire NHL, here is a survival guide for all Dallas Stars fans. It’s chock full of all you need to know about the coming offseason.
It’s almost that time of the year. One of the best times in the NHL calendar is just around the corner. Yes, I’m talking about the NHL offseason.
While it is disappointing to see the 2016-17 NHL season approach a close over the coming weeks, it’s quite the relief for Dallas Stars fans.
There hasn’t been any Dallas Stars hockey in almost two months, and quite frankly that’s for the best. From October 13 to April 8 of this past season, the Stars team that had built a reputation in 2015-16 as one of the most threatening teams in the league was nowhere to be found.
Sure there were glimpses here and there of the squad, but the consistency never appeared. Instead, Dallas turned in an egregious 34-37-11 record with 79 points. They finished 11th in the Western Conference and sat 15 points out of the final playoff spot. A 30-point drop-off in one year is quite a lot to take in for any team and their community. It was clear that the franchise needed some serious changes.
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And now with a maximum of five games left in the Stanley Cup Final, it’s almost time for the Stars to get moving on making those changes. They have already started things off by hiring Ken Hitchcock to be their next head coach and signing goaltender Ben Bishop to a six-year deal.
But there is much left to be desired. The Stars have voids on defense and the right wing that must be filled sometime during the offseason. In addition, they also have the buyout period, Expansion Draft, Entry Draft, and Free Agency period to watch out for.
With all of that happening within the next 30 days, the next month could get very hectic and difficult to follow.
But have no fear! That’s why we have come up with a Dallas Stars 2017 Offseason Survival Guide. In this guide you will find Stars coverage of:
- Important dates to know and mark
- Expansion Draft
- NHL Entry Draft
- Pending Free Agents
- Projected Trade/Free Agent Targets
I’ll try and keep this thing updated as much as possible throughout the next month, so feel free to check in on a regular basis and read up. Bookmark it if you so please. Hopefully it will be a guiding reference for you going forward as we try and decipher all that this next month has to offer. Enjoy.