Stars Q&A with General Manager Jim Nill

Jim Nill was named the NHL GM of the Year after last season and signed a two-year contract extension that takes him through 2025-26. He was in Traverse City, Mich. watching the NHL Prospect Tournament last week and stopped to chat with Staff Writer Mike Heika.

Q: You have been able to get deep in the playoffs in two of the past four seasons, losing to Tampa Bay in the bubble and to eventual champ Vegas last season. What does that mean for the organization?

Jim Nill: It shows that you’re making progress, that you’re in the process of what you need to do. Your goal is to win the Stanley Cup, so you want to be taking the right steps, and I think we are. We have a team that I believe can contend for the Stanley Cup. There are no guarantees, but you want to get to that place where you are consistently contending and then you hope that experiences like we have had in the playoffs will make you better.

Q: You look at players like Miro Heiskanen, Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson, and they are getting better each playoff and getting to a point where they can drive the team performance. Do you think last season, and even the 2020 run, helped build the hunger for this year?

JN: You can see how they are becoming impact players and how they have more of the reins. They share it more with the veteran players and you need that if you want to win it all.

Q: You are listed as the fourth oldest roster, but that’s deceptive because Joe Pavelski (39) and Ryan Suter (38) tilt the scale a little. You seem to be in a place that can win now. Can the youth help keep the window open for some time?

JN: I don’t worry about the age of our older players. They wouldn’t be here if they couldn’t help us, so it’s not really anything to be worried about. Our older guys are unique players and having won four Cups [in Detroit], you need that experience. Then, when you bring in the younger core and you also add players like Thomas Harley, Wyatt Johnston, you want players at every age level, and you want to keep moving forward.

Q: The coaching staff had a great first year together. What can they do to improve upon last season?

JN: When you look at the challenges from last year, they came in not knowing much about these players and really starting fresh. Now, they’ve been with the group for a year, they know what they have, and the group knows the coaching staff too. The coaches have had the summer to go through everything and break everything down. They talk among themselves, they analyze our team, they analyze other teams, and they’re driven to get better.

Q: In theory one could say that the opening night roster is already under contract, and that might block some of the younger prospects from having a chance to start in the NHL. How do you balance the need for veterans and the ability to keep prospects hopeful?

JN: It’s their job to force us to change [our minds]. Plus, there are injuries, and a good team has to have a lot of depth. I want the competition in camp, and our young players have to take advantage of their opportunities. We have good flexibility. If a younger player forces us to look at the roster and make a change, that’s a good thing. That’s something I want.

Q: Did you learn anything from how you handled Wyatt Johnston last season? He is unique in that you had to keep him in the NHL or send him back to junior hockey, but you also set up a good framework for him [living with Joe Pavelski] and he ended up scoring 24 goals as a rookie.

JN: It’s something we can learn from. Now, he’s a pretty special player, and every player is different, but we were patient with him, and he had to earn his chance through camp and his early games, and that’s going to be the same with young players this year. I think you need to do everything you can to have a great framework for everyone, but in the end, the players make the decisions for us. Wyatt did that last year. Honestly, you always have a plan, but then the plan changes and you have to adjust. There are times you have to have four plans, and that’s just the way it is.

Q: How much do you think the positive results and the good statistical rankings last season were a part of being healthy? And do you worry about that this year?

JN: That’s the unknown. I really believe we had good depth last year and we would have been ready, but because we didn’t have those injuries, we didn’t have to tax our depth or our top players. We could balance things out. Every season is different, and you just have to prepare and be ready.

Q: You signed a two-year contract extension that takes you through 2025-26 as GM. How do you feel about the state of the organization right now?

JN: My key is having good people, and we have good people. They’ve come up with me, they see how I operate, they’ve added some of their own ideas, and that’s even better. I think our organization, when you look at scouting, development, coaching, management, I think we’re in a very good place right now.

Q: How do you look at your group of forwards? Adding Matt Duchene is big, so what does that mean to your overall forward depth?

JN: We’ve got as much depth up front as an organization as we’ve ever had. I think we’re as good as anybody in the league if you’re talking about overall forward depth. Now, that’s on paper, so we still have to go out and do it on the ice. You look last year at what Jamie Benn and Wyatt Johnston were able to do and then how [Evgenii\] Dadonov added to that, and those are things that happen during a season. That’s why we have to be open when we come to camp and see what lines come together. Duchene was a bonus for us. We didn’t expect him to become a free agent, but now we’re looking forward to seeing where he fits. We feel very good about what we have, but you have to go through the season. Every year is different.

Q: And then the group of defensemen? There still are some questions there, but they have the potential to be improved.

JN: We have two guys we’ve been grooming in Thomas Harley and Nils Lundkvist, and now they have to step up. Thomas Harley showed us in the playoffs what he can do, and he needs to build on that. Nils Lundkvist has been in the NHL for two years, so he’s ready to take the next step. If those guys reach out and grab it, we’re in a pretty good spot on defense. It’s a good group. Miro is an elite player, and we have good depth around him. We’ve added some veteran guys in the AHL, so we should be fine.

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.