Deadline Primer: Dallas Stars

With the trade deadline fast approaching, we will be taking a closer look at the situation for each team over the coming weeks.  Where do they stand, what do they need to do, and what assets do they have to fill those needs? Next up is a look at the Dallas Stars.

Expectations were fairly high this season in Dallas.  The hope was that new head coach Jim Montgomery could help revive a team that many felt underachieved last season and help them get back to the playoffs.  Instead, they find themselves in the same situation as last season, in a dogfight to get to the postseason.  Things have gone off the rails enough that CEO Jim Lites went off on stars Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn and if the hope was that would get them going again, it hasn’t happened.  Accordingly, this all makes them one of the more intriguing teams heading into the trade deadline.

Record

24-21-4, fourth in the Central Division

Deadline Status

Moderate Buyer

Deadline Cap Space

$4.815MM in a full-season cap hit, 0/3 used salary cap retention slots, 45/50 contracts per CapFriendly

Upcoming Draft Picks

2019: DAL 1st, DAL 2nd, DAL 3rd, DAL 4th, MIN/PIT 4th*, DAL 5th, DAL 6th
2020: DAL 1st, DAL 3rd, DAL 4th, DAL 5th, DAL 6th

Trade Chips

Earlier this week, it was reported that winger Mattias Janmark was being dangled in trade discussions.  Although he is having a quiet season, he’s still on an affordable contract ($2.3MM) and is only a year removed from picking up 19 goals and 34 points.  There should be a sizable market for his services as there will be contenders who think he’d be a good complementary fit while he’s the type of player that could also be involved in a swap of players that could simply use a change of scenery.  In the short term though, they’ll be hoping that he can improve upon his goal total which stands at just three so far.

A pair of other underachieving wingers are known to be available in Valeri Nichushkin and Brett Ritchie.  Nichushkin’s return from the KHL has been nothing short of a disaster as he has yet to score in 37 games.  That’s terrible value on a $2.95MM contract which makes him a likely buyout candidate this summer as the cost will only be one-third instead of the standard two-thirds due to his age (24).  Ritchie could be a cheap addition to bolster (or simply shake up) a fourth line and his physicality will be of interest to teams looking to add some grit for the grind of the postseason.

Five Players To Watch For: F Blake Comeau, D Julius Honka, F Mattias Janmark, F Valeri Nichushkin, F Brett Ritchie

Team Needs

1) Secondary Scoring: As much as each of Benn, Seguin, and Alexander Radulov have struggled, they are by far Dallas’ top performers offensively this season.  In fact, they’re the only players to hit double-digit goals through 49 games (and the closest to getting there is rookie blueliner Miro Heiskanen).  There’s a reason this team is near the bottom of the league in goals scored.  It’s not that they’re lacking extra secondary scoring, it’s that they’re lacking any secondary production.

2) Clear The Clutter: On top of trying to add some help up front, they need to clear out some of the secondary pieces that aren’t pulling their weight.  Dallas has five forwards making between $1.75MM and $2.95MM and of those, only Radek Faksa appears to be a part of the long-term picture.  (The recently-acquired Andrew Cogliano falls just outside this pay range but it’s unlikely they’ll move him so quickly after acquiring him.)  Finding a way to swap struggling stragglers might help but simply moving one or two out and allowing a youngster like Denis Gurianov to play more of a regular role would be beneficial both long-term and short-term.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.