With the free agency market on the verge of opening, this week is an important one for UFAs. That includes John Tavares, who is reported to be meeting with five teams this week. One of those teams is the Dallas Stars.
The free agency frenzy gets underway this week, and the Dallas Stars are already in the mix.
For the next few days leading up to July 1, unrestricted free agents across the league are given an opportunity. This opportunity gives them a chance to meet with teams that they may potentially sign with come Sunday. The teams have a chance to give the UFAs a rundown of what they could expect from moving to their city and what kind of deal they could be looking at.
It seems like an important time, but is really nothing more than offseason chatter. But once July 1 hits, that’s when the chatter may take on an entirely new meaning.
At the time, there isn’t a more high-profile pending UFA case on the market than forward John Tavares.
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The 27-year-old forward has spent the nine seasons of his NHL career in New York with the Islanders. But in those nine years, he’s only made the postseason three times and has yet to make it to round three. Considering his elite scoring skills and his ability to play in all situations, that’s not an ideal scenario for a guy about to enter his prime.
Tavares has averaged 79.75 games played over the past four seasons and has averaged 76.5 points per season. There’s no doubt that he’s a no. 1 center and is one of the best forwards in the game. His skills speak for themselves.
And that’s where free agency comes into play. This summer, Tavares is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent. With that comes various meetings, as a handful of teams will push to acquire his services.
One of those teams is expected to be the Dallas Stars, believe it or not.
As reported by multiple outlets (including the reliable Pierre LeBrun), Tavares has scheduled his meetings with six different teams for this coming week in Los Angeles. The teams in the running to sign the free agent include Dallas, Boston, San Jose, Toronto, and Tampa Bay. The Islanders also remain in the fold. On top of that, there are 2-3 teams that Tavares may meet with over the phone.
Confirmed teams that John Tavares will meet with this week at CAA offices in L.A.: Dallas, Boston, San Jose, Toronto, Tampa (plus of course NYI). The Tavares camp will also have conversations with 2-3 other teams over the phone and perhaps also meet with 1-2 of them.
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) June 25, 2018
This is a rather large development for the Dallas Stars. While there have been rumblings (primarily from fans) about going after Tavares, there was no significant evidence of that happening until now.
And it’s not unusual for GM Jim Nill to swing for the fences on a big-name target in the offseason. For reference, see Jason Spezza, Patrick Sharp, and Alexander Radulov. He’s always willing to take big swing if it means improving his team in dramatic fashion.
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The question as to whether it will work for Dallas or not has yet to be answered. Tavares is likely looking at a contract that will run for eight years and pay him an AAV of at least $10.5 million. There’s a good chance he could even get $12.5 million (Connor McDavid money) considering the recent cap rising.
But it’s been obvious since the middle of the 2017-18 season that the Dallas Stars need depth scorers, primarily for their second line. Tavares could definitely help fill that void. Then again, do you think he would want be okay with playing second line minutes when he’s just now entering his prime? And to add on to that, would the Stars want to pay their second line center $10 million or more per year?
There’s a lot of question marks (including the Tyler Seguin extension and the Stars’ cap space) that come into play with this theory. But don’t discredit Nill for getting a meeting and making a reach. Crazier things have happened and it could work (after jumping through a few hoops).
But in the end, there’s also a good chance that Tavares stays with the Islanders. At the draft this past weekend, I sat next to a few guys running a sports radio show up in Long Island. In our talks throughout the weekend, they said that they had heard from one or two of their sources on the floor that Tavares would likely end up staying with the Islanders. And after the team’s offseason of significant change, that’s a fair assumption.
Next: Five Big Questions Facing Dallas This Summer
For now, however, the Dallas Stars are in the John Tavares sweepstakes. Welcome to the 2018 offseason frenzy.