Summer School: Jamie Benn enters season laser-focused on 'ultimate prize'

As players get ready for the 2018-19 season under new head coach Jim Montgomery, let's take a look at what they did last season and where they can improve in a series we'll call "Summer School." Next up, DallasStars.com senior staff writer Mike Heika takes a look at winger Jamie Benn.
Previous installments:Jason Spezza, Tyler Seguin, John Klingberg, Mattias Janmark, Radek Faksa

Jamie Benn

Position: Left Wing
Age:29
Height:6-foot-2
Weight: 210 pounds
Shoots: Left
2017-18 Stats:
82 GP, 36 G 43 A, 79 Pts, plus-20, 54 PIM
2018-19 Status:Cap hit of $9.5 million.

What happened last year

Benn led the team in several offensive categories,
finishing with 79 points in 82 games and posting a plus-21
. Still, there was a feeling that he wasn't as dominant as in past seasons. That may have been because of the more conservative approach from the coaching staff. That may have been because he
deferred to linemates
Tyler Seguin and Alexander Radulov. Or maybe the perception is wrong and he did everything he could to help the team win. New Stars coach Jim Montgomery said he has reviewed the film and likes what he has seen from Benn.

Heika's outlook

Jamie Benn is an NHL superstar, and continues to gather points every season. He ranks third in the league over the past five seasons with 403 points in 404 games, so there is no expectation that his game is slipping. What's encouraging is that if Montgomery's aggressive, attacking style is effective, Benn could easily see his numbers increase this season.
He was one of the first players back in Frisco
working out and seems determined to have a big year. With a first-year coach, the captain will be even more important in adding direction and motivation to the team, and Benn seems
ready to embrace that challenge
.
BEST SEATS, BEST PRICES: [Single Game Tickets for all 2018-19 preseason and regular-season games are on sale now]

They said it

"The games I've watched, he's either been good or he's been very good. He understands momentum in a game and he knows how to change a game, and his competitive fire is something his teammates feed off of. I can definitely say we're going to feed off of it this year. The fact that he got 80 points and people said it was a bad year gets me excited about what he's going to do this season." -- New Stars coach Jim Montgomery on his assessment of Jamie Benn's season.

"It's my 10th year and not much to show for it. It definitely gets you focused and excited for a new season and it gets you motivated to make something happen. You are always thinking about winning the ultimate prize, and that's something that keeps pushing you. You want to take advantage of the good teams you have, and we want to do that right now." -- Benn on winning one playoff series in his first nine NHL seasons.

"What has excited me about him is you can see an urgency to him already. That excites me, because when great players have urgency to their game, they tend to bring people into the battle with them." -- Montgomery on Benn's offseason motivation.

"We've been going at this for a couple of years now, so we have a lot of good young players, and I think they are ready to play. He's a coach who has coached young players, so I think he's going to be a great fit here. The leaders, we know our job, and we know what we have to do. It starts with us playing the right way and setting a good example." -- Benn on working with Montgomery and a younger lineup.

"When that line is going, the other team can't handle them. So when they are going, you are going to see that line play together. But there are going to be other times where I might not like what they're doing and I am going to move one of the three. I don't know which one, but I'm going to try to create something different or new."-- Montgomery on how he might deploy the top line of Benn, Tyler Seguin and Alexander Radulov.
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.
Read more: Jamie Benn, Jim Montgomery, Dallas Stars