The Dallas Stars have their goaltending tandem finalized for the 2024-25 season. Jake Oettinger and Casey DeSmith will be the goaltenders for the Stars. However, two days ago, the Stars signed Magnus Hellberg to a one-year, two-way contract. This is very odd, considering we are close to training camp, and the Stars have their tandem already set. Fans have a lot of questions about this signing. Let's look at Hellberg's background and why the signing makes sense for the Stars.
Magnus Hellberg background
Before understanding why the Stars signed Hellberg, let's look at his hockey background. Hellberg was drafted by the Nashville Predators back in 2011. After getting some NHL action and bouncing around in the Predators' farm system, he was traded to the New York Rangers. He would remain in New York for a few seasons and return to Russia. The Detroit Red Wings brought Hellberg back over to the States in 2021. He last played with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
With a 6'6 body frame, it's surprising that Hellberg has bounced around the league. Teams should have been more patient in developing him into a solid goaltender. Nowadays, teams are always looking for a goaltender that's over 6'5. The Stars did it when they signed Ben Bishop to a six-year contract back in 2017. The Stars even drafted 6'5 Jake Oettinger back in 2017 in the first round of the draft
Why did the Stars sign Magnus Hellberg?
My guess is that the Stars signed Hellberg to a contract because they are preparing for any goaltender injury. The Stars saw Jake Oettinger go down and miss a month of the season. Scott Wedgewood was able to fill in and keep the Stars afloat at the top of the Central Division. Hellberg would be called up if DeSmith or Oettinger were injured this upcoming season. The Stars are just getting ahead of the situation if it comes up in the middle of the season.
What happens to Remi Poirier or Ben Kraws?
I guess one of the two goaltenders will end up in the ECHL with the Idaho Steelheads to start the season. Both goaltenders should get ample playing time during the preseason to fight for the fourth goaltender spot. It will be one of the many questions the Stars must have answered by the end of training camp. Whoever has the best preseason performance will remain in Cedar Park.
It's good that the Stars prepared for the goaltender injury scenario by signing Hellberg. The last thing the Stars needed was to scramble to find a goaltender if an injury occurred. Hellberg has the NHL experience that the Stars are looking for in case an injury occurs.