Stars Notes: Dellandrea, Tanev, Carrier
Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek spoke about the Dallas Stars on the 32 Thoughts podcast today saying that the belief is that the Stars traded Ty Dellandrea to the San Jose Sharks to open up room on their roster for other moves. Dellandrea was dealt to the Sharks for a 2025 fourth-round pick and the speculation is that the Stars feel that Mavrik Bourque is ready to step into a full-time role and that ice-time could come from Dellandrea.
Bourque is a former first-round pick in 2020 (30th overall) and has played just one NHL game to this point in his short career. However, the 22-year-old has good offensive instincts and excellent hockey IQ and has excelled in the AHL posting 26 goals and 51 assists in 71 games last season for the Texas Stars. Given his progression, it seems likely that the Plessisville, Quebec native is ready for an NHL role.
In other Dallas Stars notes:
- Jeff Marek also noted on the 32 Thoughts podcast that the Stars have taken a run this week at re-signing Chris Tanev before he goes to unrestricted free agency. This was also mentioned earlier in the week by Darren Dreger on TSN 1200. Tanev and the Stars have an interest in extending their working relationship as they believe Tanev is an excellent fit on the team’s backend. At 34 years old, Tanev is looking at his last opportunity to secure a lucrative multi-year deal, and the Stars will likely need to up their offer to keep the Toronto, Ontario native in Dallas.
- Friedman notes on 32 Thoughts that he’s heard rumblings that the Stars have an interest in Vegas Golden Knights forward William Carrier. The 29-year-old Carrier will be an unrestricted free agent on July 1st and has played for Stars head coach Pete DeBoer before as a member of the Golden Knights. Carrier doesn’t score much, posting just six goals and two assists in 39 games this season, and has also struggled to remain in the lineup over the years, never playing more than 71 games in a season.
Sharks Acquire Ty Dellandrea From Stars
The Sharks have picked up pending RFA forward Ty Dellandrea from the Stars in exchange for the Jets’ 2025 fourth-round pick, both teams announced Wednesday.
It’s a fresh start for the 23-year-old Dellandrea, who Dallas selected 13th overall in 2018. The Toronto native spent this season in and out of the lineup after facing increased competition from some veteran free-agent signings, losing ice time to players like Craig Smith and Sam Steel. He was limited to 42 games this season after dressing in all 82 regular-season contests for the Stars one year ago.
Even when in the lineup, Dellandrea struggled to have much of an effect. Averaging 12:40 per game (down from 14:12 in 2022-23), he was limited to two goals and nine points with a -10 rating. He also didn’t play a regular role in the postseason, scoring once while only playing in six of Dallas’ 19 playoff games.
Across 151 NHL games in parts of four seasons, Dellandrea has 14 goals, 28 assists and 42 points. He was a good offensive contributor during his brief time in the minors with AHL Texas but hasn’t appeared there since 2021-22. He should be in line for an everyday spot with the Sharks next year, though, and has top-nine upside on an offense without much else to offer. San Jose owes him a $900K qualifying offer to retain his signing rights if they don’t come to terms on a deal by June 30.
This isn’t a cap-related move for the Stars, as Dellandrea wouldn’t have cost much to re-sign. However, it does free up some roster space and makes retaining the 25-year-old Steel, who had 24 points in 77 games this year, much easier to do. It also opens up more flexibility for AHL rookie standouts Mavrik Bourque and Logan Stankoven to claim spots in the opening night lineup.
San Jose previously acquired Winnipeg’s 2025 fourth-rounder in exchange for Vladislav Namestnikov in March 2023.
Afternoon Notes: Jeannot, Parekh, Bourque
Winger Tanner Jeannot is once again facing trade rumors, as the Tampa Bay Lightning look to clear enough cap space for a serviceable off-season. The team is facing the loss of their franchise player Steven Stamkos with just $5MM in cap space – not nearly enough to afford the services of the future Hall-of-Famer. That could push them to try and move Jeannot’s $2.665MM cap hit, though Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times shares that there’s been no legitimate discussions of a move just yet. Though Encina did speak to the idea being a tantalizing one for the Lightning, with many teams around the league still interested in acquiring Jeannot.
The Lightning acquired Jeannot from the Nashville Predators ahead of the 2023 Trade Deadline, sending the Music City defenseman Callan Foote, the picks that turned into Dylan MacKinnon (2023 third-round, 83rd-overall), Jayson Shaugabay (2023 fourth-round, 115th-overall), and Kevin Bicker (2023 fifth-round, 147th-overall), as well as a second-round pick in 2024 and a first-round pick in 2025 in return. Nashville traded the Shaugabay pick back to Tampa four months later, in exchange for a 2024 fourth-round pick, and moved the Bicker pick to the Detroit Red Wings to move up in the 2023 second-round.
Jeannot scored just four points in his 20 games with Tampa after the trade, though that didn’t dissuade their faith in him, with the Lightning signing Jenanot to a two-year, $5.3MM contract last summer – a deal that avoided the arbitration hearing Jeannot filed for. The rough-and-tumble winger wasn’t able to rekindle his spark on the new deal, though, scoring just 14 points in 55 games this season. He added 75 penalty minutes and a -10 – and tallied just one assist in four postseason games.
There’s still reported interest in Jeannot around the league despite his lacking scoring. Teams like the Calgary Flames have been looped into trade rumors, though Encina emphasized that a trade isn’t likely Plan A. Tampa will need to get a hefty return in any Jeannot trade, if only to hedge their losses from a costly 2023 move.
Other notes from around the league:
- Saginaw Spirit defenseman Zayne Parekh has won the CHL’s Defenseman of the Year Award, beating out Memorial Cup Finals competition Sam Dickinson. Parekh was dazzling this season, posting a position-leading 33 goals and 96 points in just 66 games this season. He’s just the second OHL defenseman to top 95 points since 2000, joining Ryan Ellis’ 100-point season in 2010-11. But while Ellis was already an NHL draftee, Parekh is headed into his first year of eligibility in the 2024 NHL Draft. He’s seen as one of the top defensemen in the class and should rival a top 10 selection.
- The Dallas Stars are swapping talented young forwards, with Ty Dellandrea stepping out of the Game 6 lineup in favor of Mavrik Bourque, shares Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link). Bourque won the AHL’s ‘Les Cunningham’ MVP Award this season after posting 26 goals and 77 points in 71 games this season. Bourque formed a dynamic duo with Stars standout Logan Stankoven in the first half of the season. Dallas will look to use that pairing as their X-factor, as they face elimination at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers.
Snapshots: Seguin, Felcman, Panthers, Escrow
Top Dallas Stars forward Tyler Seguin will be held out of the team’s Tuesday night game, per an interview between NHL.com’s Mike Heika and head coach Pete DeBoer (Twitter link). DeBoer added that Seguin hasn’t faced a setback and that this move is simply a rest day out of caution. Seguin made his return from an 11-game absence on March 20th, after bearing with a lower-body injury that held him out for a month. He’s scored four points in three games since returning, including a three-point performance on Sunday in 17-and-a-half minutes of ice time – the most he’s played since mid-January. The performance must have taken a toll on Seguin, who will now be held out of the lineup despite 22 goals and 49 points in 61 games this season.
Ty Dellandrea is expected to fill in for Seguin in the Stars lineup, set to play in his 41st game of the season. He has two goals and nine points on the year so far, a big step down from the 28 points he recorded in 82 games last season. This is Dellandrea’s second season in a full-time NHL role, though he’s retreated to being a healthy scratch after playing in every game last season.
Other notes from around the league:
- The Chicago Blackhawks have signed 2023 third-round draft pick Jiri Felcman to an AHL amateur try-out for the remainder of the season, per Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). Felcman is moving to North American pros after spending much of the season in Switzerland’s U20 league, where he’s managed 23 points in 26 games. The 18-year-old centerman has also scored four points in 13 Swiss League games – Switzerland’s second-tier league – and one assist in five National League games – Switzerland’s top league. His move to North America will void his previous commitment to Langnau of the National League for next season.
- The Florida Panthers welcomed both Aleksander Barkov and Gustav Forsling back to the lineup on Tuesday per a team announcement (Twitter link). Barkov has missed the team’s last three games with an undisclosed injury, while Forsling is returning after missing two games with illness. These returns will likely bump Kyle Okposo and Uvis Balinskis out of the lineup.
- Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports that players are expected to receive around half of the 6% escrow they paid this season if the NHL’s revenue projections hold. That’s particularly notable as it suggests that the potential exists for future salary caps to go up quicker than anticipated. As it stands, there is a maximum 5% escalator on the cap for next season as dictated by the CBA but that can be waived if both the NHL and NHLPA agree.
Dallas Stars Sign Ty Dellandrea
The Dallas Stars’ most important remaining restricted free agent has a new contract. Today, the team signed forward Ty Dellandrea to a one-year deal worth $900K.
Drafted 13th overall in 2018, Dellandrea’s development has been a slow burn, but he burst onto the scene last season as a full-time player in the strictest sense of the word. One of eight Stars to play in all 82 regular-season games, Dellandrea tallied nine goals and 28 points. Interestingly enough, Dellandrea was not eligible for Calder voting, nor was he considered a rookie – he suited up in 26 games for Dallas two seasons ago in 2020-21, putting him just above the cut-off mark.
Nevertheless, Dellandrea demonstrated high-end two-way upside in a bottom-six role, posting high-end possession numbers and even excelling when used on the penalty kill. Still just 22 years old, there is still plenty of time for his offensive totals to improve. He showed strong scoring flashes in the minors in 2021-22, posting 23 goals and 50 points in 68 games with the AHL’s Texas Stars.
Despite those positive strides, Dellandrea will likely get boxed out of a top-nine role, at least to start next season. The team’s re-signing of Evgenii Dadonov and acquisition of Matt Duchene via free agency gives them one of the best top-nine forward units in the entire league, but it does diminish Dellandrea’s potential for increased ice time. If injuries strike, however, he carries the most upward mobility of any depth forward on the Stars and will get a chance higher up in the lineup.
RFA Notes: Frost, Dellandrea, Newhook
With fewer and fewer of the top unrestricted free agents still left on the open market, the focus in some markets has shifted from who teams will be bringing in this offseason to what sort of contracts their restricted free agents might receive. The Philadelphia Flyers are one of those teams, and The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reported today on Twitter that contract talks with restricted free agent center Morgan Frost “are ‘positive’ and progressing.”
Frost, 24, set himself up extremely well for this summer’s negotiations with a breakout 2022-23 campaign. He flew past his career-highs to post 19 goals and 46 points in 81 games, and he could end up a long-term middle-six center for Philadelphia. The Flyers still have more than enough cap space to entertain all possible forms of a Frost extension, whether bridge contract or long-term pact, so the main issue will likely be how the Flyers evaluate Frost’s long-term future and how comfortable they are making a long-term financial commitment to that future.
Some other notes on RFA’s across the NHL:
- Pagnotta reports that the Dallas Stars have “just started discussions” on a new contract for RFA forward Ty Dellandrea. Just 22 years old, Dellandrea is a valued leader in Dallas who took a major step forward this season. The 2018 13th overall pick followed up his strong 2021-22 AHL campaign by establishing himself as a full-time NHL player and scoring 28 points. The Stars’ cap situation might mean that a short-term deal is necessary here, though the Stars are obviously big believers in Dellandrea so a long-term pact wouldn’t be entirely surprising either.
- Finally, Pagnotta reports that the Montreal Canadiens and newly-acquired RFA forward Alex Newhook still “haven’t begun” negotiations on a new contract. Seeing as the Newhook trade was widely cited as mirroring last year’s Kirby Dach deal, it would be no surprise to see Newhook’s contract match the deal Dach signed last offseason, a four-year pact with an AAV a little above $3MM. Newhook has been more productive in the NHL than Dach was to that point, so Newhook’s deal could look a little different, but using that contract as a general guide is likely to be wise.
Stars Notes: Marchment, Hakanpaa, Dellandrea
The Dallas Stars will be without a key forward as they take on the Seattle Kraken in Game 5 of their second round series. Mike Heika of NHL.com reports Mason Marchment will not play tonight in a pivotal game as one team will split the deadlock and take a 3-2 series lead. Marchment left Game 4 early after taking an elbow to the face from Kraken forward Alex Wennberg, which appeared to be accidental.
Marchment put up decent numbers for the Stars in his first season in Dallas, scoring 12 goals and 31 points in 68 regular season games as well as five points in ten postseason contests. The 6-foot-4 and 210 pound winger also brings a physical presence that teams are always searching for to find an edge in a lengthy playoff series.
- In better news for the Stars, Heika also reports defenseman Jani Hakanpaa will be back in the lineup. He missed Game 4 of this series with a lower-body injury but will be back on the ice as the Stars look to take a series lead. Hakanpaa has quietly earned a big role with the Stars, playing over 20 minutes per game in this postseason and taking care of business in the defensive end.
- Youngster Ty Dellandrea also missed Game 4 with what was called a sickness, but Heika also mentions the 22-year-old forward is returning to the ice for Game 5. He will slot in on the fourth line after his first full NHL season saw him score nine goals and 28 points in 82 games. Dellandrea has one point in nine playoff games this spring as well.
Stars Injury Notes: Marchment, Dellandrea, Hakanpaa
Dallas Stars radio analyst Bruce LeVine tweeted today that after a conversation with Stars head coach Pete DeBoer he put a 10% chance that Mason Marchment dresses tonight for game 5 against the Seattle Kraken. DeBoer said Marchment was a game time decision after the forward took part in the team’s gameday skate. However, LeVine also tweeted that Marchment and DeBoer had a conversation on the ice and the 27-year-old did not participate in the hard skating portions of the team’s practice.
Marchment left game 4 of this series after taking an elbow to the face from Kraken forward Alexander Wennberg. Dallas offered little information up after the game and just deemed his status as questionable for game 5. Should Marchment sit out tonight it would be a big blow for the Stars as Marchment has provided a little bit of everything for Dallas in these playoffs. In ten games the Uxbridge native has put up three goals and two assists while playing 14 minutes a night.
In other Dallas Stars injury notes:
- Bruce LeVine also speculated that forward Ty Dellandrea had a 90% chance of dressing for game 5 tonight. The young center was one of the first arrivals to the Stars practice and took part in it. DeBoer called Dellandrea a game time decision, but it appears he will dress after missing game 4 with what was described as a flu. Dellandrea has struggled in these playoffs with just a single goal in nine games while playing 15:31 a game. He has seen his faceoff numbers dip as well as he is winning just 38.7% of the draws he takes, a far cry from his 51% average in the regular season.
- LeVine put Jani Hakanpaa’s availability for tonight’s game at 50/50 after Pete DeBoer called the defenseman a gametime decision. The 31-year-old missed game 4 with what was described as a lower body injury. No information was released on how Hakanpaa suffered the injury but he appeared okay when he last dressed on Sunday night as he put up six hits, scored a goal, and played over 20 minutes. In these playoffs the 6’6” defender has a goal and an assist in nine games for the Stars.
Tyler Seguin Leaves Game With Cut On Leg
The Dallas Stars have announced that forward Tyler Seguin won’t be returning to tonight’s game against the Buffalo Sabres. Seguin left the game with what TSN is reporting as a laceration above his knee after he was cut by a skate.
Seguin becomes the third high profile NHLer to suffer a severe cut this season after Ryan Johansen was cut by a blade on his ankle, and Evander Kane had a frightening scene when he had wrist cut against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
With the NHL GM meetings set to take place next week, one has to wonder if the issue of cuts from skate blades will make its way onto the docket. The horrific Kane injury is one that most people will not forget. Player safety is always an issue and with this recent trend it could make for interesting dialogue should changes be discussed.
If Seguin is out long term, it would be a big blow to a Dallas Stars team that is leading the Central Division. Seguin has 17 goals and 42 points in 64 games this season and has been playing much more of a 200-foot game for head coach Peter DeBoer. Should the 31-year-old miss substantial time it would likely mean moving youngster Ty Dellandrea onto the third line to play wing next to newcomer Max Domi.
Evening Notes: Stars, Letang, Samsonov
The Dallas Stars are off to a strong start under new head coach Pete DeBoer, and they’re looking to get stronger. Per TSN’s Darren Dreger on tonight’s edition of Insider Trading, the Stars are still looking to add a top-six forward, preferably to play with Tyler Seguin and Mason Marchment.
They’ve had a rotating cast playing on the wing with those two, and although Seguin and Marchment have played well, they’d obviously like some added depth and to get a player that boasts chemistry with them. Jamie Benn is having a resurgence in limited minutes, scoring 26 points in 23 games, and they’d prefer to keep his ice time down below 15-16 minutes. If nothing comes to fruition, the strong performances of youngsters Ty Dellandrea and Wyatt Johnston should still safeguard their depth scoring.
- Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang has been in and out of the lineup recently, and he’s missing another contest tonight. Letang is absent from their game against the Carolina Hurricanes with an undisclosed illness, the team announced before puck drop. It’s his second missed game of the season after missing a game earlier this month, also with an illness. He revealed weeks ago that he had been battling an illness for a stretch of games; whether or not this is a related illness is unclear.
- Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Ilya Samsonov says he’s pain-free after his knee injury and is “ready to play,” according to TSN’s Mark Masters. Head coach Sheldon Keefe pumped the brakes on his status, however, saying the team would check on him tomorrow to determine his return to play. The young netminder, who had a strong start to the season, has missed nearly a month.