Tyler Seguin has signed a contract extension with the Dallas Stars, ending a long and stressful off-season for fans.
The Dallas Stars gave Seguin an eight-year contract worth $9.85M AAV.
The contract includes a full no-trade clause and is lockout protected, which is good news for Seguin, but the reminder is still bad news for fans who’d rather not have yet another lockout.
The Stars also went the extra mile in today’s announcement, posting it in the form of a Super Mario-themed video.
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) September 13, 2018
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Seguin’s contract extension comes in the wake of John Tavares leaving the Islanders for the Maple Leafs, causing fans around the league to wonder if Seguin would do the same. There was similar coverage for Steven Stamkos two years ago, but he elected to stay in Tampa.
A big difference between Seguin and Tavares is that Tavares was drafted by the Islanders, but Seguin was traded here. Seguin found success with the Bruins, including a Cup in his rookie season and a trip back to the Stanley Cup Final two years later, but Tavares never experienced that level of success with the Islanders.
For Seguin to sign an extension and choose to stay in Dallas means he’s probably got a good amount of faith in the organization, since other teams would’ve certainly offered him more next summer.
Seguin earned every penny of his extension with his play since coming to Dallas five years ago. He was a crucial part of the Stars making the playoffs in the 2013-14 and 2015-16 seasons. He’s tied for second in the league in goals over that time, with linemate Jamie Benn just one goal behind him in fourth place. He’s been a contender for the Rocket Richard Trophy. He’s even tied Mike Modano’s 7 hat tricks in Dallas.
He’s grown his game and improved in every area of his play. Last season, he even started to play on the penalty kill and step up his two-way game.
In addition to his stats, he’s become a leader on the team, including being named an alternate captain last season. He’s also matured off-ice from his time in Boston, going from his reputation there as a partier to a reputation in Dallas as the player with too many dogs (if there is such a thing as too many dogs).
Fans can breathe a sigh of relief now that the deal is done, but there’s still the question of how the cap is going to be affected by it and the impact it might have on trades.
Seguin’s deal doesn’t kick in until next season, so it doesn’t change anything for this year. Luckily, when his deal does start, a lot of other deals come off the books, allowing management to reassess next summer. However, it does change things in the immediate future, as the Dallas Stars are heavily rumored to be one of the top teams in on Erik Karlsson, and the cap space for his extension will be affected by Seguin’s deal.
No matter the impact on other potential deals, fans can go into the season knowing they don’t have to worry about Seguin. After watching what the Islanders fans went through last year, it’s a good feeling to know he’s locked up.