The Dallas Stars passed the June 1 deadline for signing all unsigned prospects and left four players on the table. As a result, those four prospects will now take the next step in their hockey careers.
June 1 came and went and the Dallas Stars made no substantial moves. And while the day typically flies under the radar for NHL fans with the Stanley Cup Final and upcoming NHL Draft and free agency period taking all of the attention, it’s an important day for all 31 organizations.
That’s because it’s the yearly deadline for all 31 NHL clubs to sign all of their unsigned prospects. These prospects are typically from one of the last four draft classes, with each player being different based on the CBA’s ruling on player draft rights.
In other words, it’s the last chance for all players to sign a contract with their team before the team has to forfeit their rights.
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And on June 1, 2019, the Dallas Stars had four unsigned prospects from their past few draft classes. They didn’t sign any of the players to contracts, meaning that they have officially forfeited the rights to all four.
The four prospects include center Liam Hawel, right wing Brett Davis, right wing Jermaine Loewen, and goaltender Markus Ruusu. Hawel, Davis, and Loewen will now re-enter the NHL Entry Draft coming up on June 21, while Ruusu will become a free agent.
Hawel was drafted by the Stars in the fourth round of the 2017 NHL Draft (101st overall) and has spent the past two seasons playing with the Guelph Storm (OHL). In those two seasons, he has played in 128 games, scoring 51 goals and tallying 119 points. He’s also helped the Storm to two consecutive playoff appearances, where he scored seven goals and tallied 19 points in 30 games.
Davis was drafted by Dallas in the sixth round of the same draft at 163rd overall. He split time over the past two seasons with the Kootenay Ice and Red Deer Rebels, amassing 137 total games played. In those contests, he scored 55 goals and registered 108 points.
Loewen was a member of the 2018 NHL Draft that was held in Dallas and became one of the final players taken in the class. The Stars selected him in the seventh round at 199th overall to round out their 2018 draft group. Loewen, as you probably remember from last summer, is famous for being the first Jamaican-born player ever selected in the NHL Draft. This past season, he served as the captain of the Kamloops Blazers in the WHL, tallying 28 goals and 46 points as well as a +20 rating in 59 games played.
Finally, Ruusu was the oldest of the Stars’ unsigned group at 21 years old. He was originally selected by the Dallas Stars in the sixth round of the 2015 Draft (163rd overall). Ruusu has spent the past few seasons in Finland, primarily playing in Liiga. He played this past season with HIFK and logged 20 games along with a 2.70 goals against average and .881 save percentage.
With June 1 passing, all four will move on to the next steps of their hockey careers while the Dallas Stars will look ahead to the upcoming 2019 draft class.