Dallas Stars: Breaking Down The Tyler Seguin Extension Situation

Only 31 days separate the Dallas Stars from beginning their 2018-19 regular season campaign. And even with opening night so close, Tyler Seguin still remains without a new extension. What’s the hold up and will things be sorted out soon?

There’s two sides to every story. That cannot be forgotten when mulling over the current situation between the Dallas Stars and Tyler Seguin.

But even so, it can be difficult to remember when considering the state of things.

It’s been a little over two months since the 2018 free agency period opened up in the NHL. And when July 1 rolled around, each NHL team grabbed their to-do lists and got to work on improving their rosters.

The Stars had their own share of problems and inefficiencies that needed fixing, and GM Jim Nill wasted no time in finding solutions. But, there was one in-house situation at the top of their list that needed tending to that Dallas has yet to fix. That situation involves signing Tyler Seguin to a long-term extension.

So, where are they now? Well, it’s been quite a twisty, intriguing storyline to follow over the past two months.

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As of right now, here’s what has been revealed and what we know.

First off, there was reported talks between the two sides at the NHL Draft in Dallas. No contract could be signed until July 1, but negotiations between the two sides were a promising sign of potential things to come.

As the first day of July came and went, no contract was announced. But it wasn’t considered the end of the world. On exit interview day, Nill asked for patience in the process and didn’t want anyone to “panic” if a contract wasn’t signed on day one.

“We can talk to him, so I’ll be talking to Tyler and his representatives,” Nill said. “I hope by July 1 we are going to know where it’s at. If something doesn’t happen July 1, I don’t want any panic out there. I’m banking on getting something done. I’m pretty confident that we will get something done.”

But, that was over two months ago. And since that day, the story has taken quite a few new turns.

There were reports from Nill at the end of July that the two sides were involved in continued talks and things were still progressing along in negotiations.

“We’ve had continued dialogue,” Nill told Mark Stepneski of DallasStars.com on July 30. “They’ve got where they think they should be and we’ve presented where we think we should be, and we just continue to discuss.”

Nothing was assured, but it definitely looked as though things were still trending in the right direction. Nill also said that he was “hopeful” a new deal would be squared away before the regular season began.

But last week, another interesting chapter was added to the story. While attending the Biosteel Camp that he trains at every offseason, Seguin spoke with the media. In the session, he was repeatedly asked about the ongoing negotiations between his representatives and the Stars. This is what he had to say:

“We haven’t been talking much this summer. It’s been a little disappointing. I thought I’d have some exciting news to talk about at Biosteel Camp, especially this late in the summer. It’s been disappointing, but at the end of the day I’ve always had one year left here. So I’m focused on that and focused on Biosteel Camp and I’m excited to get back to Dallas and look forward to a good year.” -Tyler Seguin

Seguin has a right to be frustrated. Considering his situation and the role he plays for the Dallas Stars, it’s only fair to expect a long-term contract. Any player in his shoes would.

In the Stars’ eyes, there’s continued dialogue and things are progressing along. But on Seguin’s side, the lack of talk is disappointing. Conflicting, isn’t it?

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All in all, there’s a lot of moving parts in this process. Tyler Seguin knows what he wants and the Dallas Stars know what they want.

The Stars want Seguin as a cornerstone piece of their franchise for many years to come. He’s an elite center, has some of the best numbers of any player in the league since joining Dallas in 2013, and continues to improve with every year. Oh, and he’s only 26. Any NHL team would be lucky to have him in their lineup.

On the other side, Seguin has talked about his love for Dallas on many occasions and sees the potential building within the franchise. And though that potential hasn’t necessarily been acted upon in the correct ways, the promise is still there. No. 91 is a big reason as to why.

But Seguin also knows his value and worth. With the way the market is trending and the recent signing of superstar center John Tavares, Seguin knows what he could make with a new deal. When you mix his talent and skill with the fact that he hasn’t even reached his peak yet, his value spikes significantly.

We’ve already talked about timeliness playing an important role in his extension as well as what a fair market value for Seguin would be. But, as we see, the two sides have yet to find a happy medium with each other.

There’s talk that Seguin won’t be re-signed before the season begins, thus leaving a giant cloud of uncertainty lingering over the year as a whole. Then again, there is still plenty of hope that the sides will get something done before Oct. 4.