Carter Klippenstein

Stars captain Jamie Benn is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, the same fate he faced last year before signing a one-year deal to remain in Dallas.  While Lia Assimakopoulos of the Dallas Morning News believes that the organization would be willing to bring him back, there would need to be some tough discussions first as he’s now coming off his second straight subpar playoff performance.  He’ll be 37 when next season starts so while he could still hold his own in a bottom-six role during the regular season but will those postseason struggles give them enough pause to start the search for a new captain?  If not, Benn is eligible to once again sign a bonus-laden deal as long as it’s a one-year pact.  He did so last summer, accepting a $1MM base salary with up to $3MM in bonuses, $2MM of which were reached and will count against their salary cap in 2026-27 thanks to them ending the year using LTIR.

More from the Central:

• Still with the Stars, forward Arttu Hyry won’t be available for AHL Texas in their series against Chicago, relays 100 Degree Hockey (Twitter link). The 25-year-old suffered a lower-body injury in the fifth game of the Dallas-Minnesota series earlier this week and while it was initially thought that it was a day-to-day issue, it appears that’s not the case.  Hyry was on Texas’ roster at the trade deadline, meaning that Dallas can send him down once he’s cleared to return.  He had 19 points in 27 AHL games along with five points in 20 NHL appearances during the regular season.
• Wild prospect Carter Klippenstein will be leaving the WHL next season to make the jump to the NCAA. Providence College announced on its Instagram page that the 19-year-old has committed to playing for them next season.  A fifth-round pick last summer, Klippenstein was limited to just 38 games this season due to injury.  Still, he was fairly productive, tallying 11 goals and 17 assists in those outings.  With the transfer of leagues, Klippenstein’s signing timeline will be extended, giving Minnesota a couple of extra years to determine if they want to sign him.  Had he stayed in junior, they’d have had to make that call just over a year from now.