The Dallas Stars took an important step forward regarding the future of their goaltending crease on Monday morning. They signed 2017 first-round pick Jake Oettinger to an entry-level deal and sent him to the Texas Stars (AHL) to continue his development.
Sunday was a travel day for the Dallas Stars as they headed north of the border to kick off a four-game road trip.
The trip begins in Winnipeg on Monday night as the Stars take on a Jets team that currently sits in first place in the Central division. Following that, they will head to Calgary to take on the Flames, who sit first in the Western Conference. The trip will wrap up with visits to the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks.
It’s another challenging lineup of opponents as the playoff race closes in on the final two weeks. But it’s a lineup that the Stars will have to not only manage, but also find ways to succeed against. It all begins on Monday night against the Jets.
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With the playoff race taking center focus in the eyes of fans and followers, though, other franchise news can sometimes be overlooked even when it’s important and relevant.
Monday morning brought a hefty dose of that important news to the Dallas Stars organization, and it had to do with their crease.
The Stars signed goaltender Jake Oettinger to a three-year, entry-level deal with a $925,000 cap hit on Monday morning. Oettinger wrapped up his junior season at Boston University on March 22 and will now join the Texas Stars (AHL) on an amateur tryout contract for the remainder of the year.
This is a big move for the Stars’ future in the crease. Oettinger was selected 26th overall by the Dallas Stars in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. After drafting Miro Heiskanen at no. 3, the Stars moved up three spots at the end of the first round to make Oettinger the first goalie selected in the draft.
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Oettinger had just wrapped up his freshman season at Boston University, posting a .927 save percentage and 2.11 goals against average. Those numbers had him among the top goaltenders in college hockey and quickly turned him into one of the best goalie prospects in the class.
And with that, a Dallas Stars team in need of a young goaltender to develop for the future stepped in.
Oettinger posted a .915 save percentage and 2.45 goals against average during the 2017-18 year and also tacked on a bronze medal in the World Junior Championships to go with his gold medal from 2016-17.
This past season at Boston, he finished 16-16-4 with a .926 save percentage (10th in NCAA) and 2.45 GAA (9th in NCAA among goalies with at least 2,000 minutes of action).
He wraps up his career at Boston with a 58-39-11 record along with a .923 SV%, 2.34 GAA, and 13 shutouts.
And now, he’s joining the pros. With Oettinger in the AHL, he’ll get a chance to contribute to the playoff push with the Texas Stars. He’ll get an opportunity to play at the AHL level, learn the ropes of professional hockey, and show himself off before the 2019 offseason alongside some of the Stars’ other top prospects.
Oettinger wraps up a strong career at the NCAA level and will now take the next step in the Dallas Stars organization. It’s a big, but promising step that offers plenty of potential for the Stars’ future in the crease.