When the Dallas Stars season ended, a challenge was laid at the feet of the organization. They knew it. So did everyone else. This would be the most important Stars offseason in recent memory, and unquestionably the biggest since Jim Nill took over as the team's General Manager. How would the team approach it? Three months after the offseason began we now know.
The Stars answered perhaps the biggest offseason in team history with arguably the best offseason in team history.
What the Stars have done in less than 100 days since last leaving the ice is the stuff of video game GMs. Need a new coach? Get the future Hall-of-Fame defensive specialist. A goaltender? Go grab a guy who was a Vezina Trophy finalist a year before. Want to shore up the blue line? Get a big, physical, defensive-defenseman who makes his living lining up next to offensive guys like the ones on your roster. Feel like bolstering the offense? Get an elite right winger to play with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin. Also add one of the top two-way centers in the league. While you're at it, mix in an intriguing low-risk, high-reward young forward to lead a group of depth additions.
If you saw a lineup that read Ken Hitchcock, Ben Bishop, Marc Methot, Alexander Radulov and Martin Hanzal, you might wonder what awards banquet you were at. Instead that is the list of additions to an already star-studded lineup.
On the Radar - SUMMER SPLASH
© Dave Sandford
But as impressive as the Stars roster looks, how it came together is even more impressive. Think about the pieces that the Stars got. Then consider the demand for them.
In a summer where nine teams will have hired a Head Coach, the Stars got the best one on the market. Amidst a goaltending carrousel where netminders were sought-after throughout the league, Dallas landed the most decorated one. With clubs clamoring for top-four help on the blueline, the Stars acquired one of the top available options. That was all done with maneuvering prior to free agency opening. Once it did, the Stars signed the best forward on the board, and in the opinion of many, the second-best as well.
The Stars essentially walked onto the NHL lot, looked at the best available option at every position, and said, "I'll take it!"
How many teams were tripping over themselves for any of those pieces? The Stars got all of them.
In recent years Dallas has had the reputation of being the most aggressive team on the ice. This summer they were the most aggressive team off of it. They saw what they wanted, and they got it.
Meanwhile, as they were adding, the Stars managed to pull off an equally remarkable feat. They never sold.
Nill made it clear early that the Stars were open for business. As a team with their eye on the present, they were ready to make moves. He said that they would not mortgage the future, but they were ready and willing to deal if it helped them in the short term.
Not only did Dallas not mortgage the future, they improved that as well. Despite several deals on the table, the Stars held on to their two first-round draft picks. They even traded up late in the first round to draft their goaltender of the future. Prior to that they kept their highest pick in team history and drafted what many believe will be a franchise defenseman in Miro Heiskanen.
Last month we saw multiple teams lose 30-goal scorers in the expansion draft. Others traded first and second-round picks to protect their roster. The Stars, on the other hand, added five roster players, held two first round selections, and subtracted only two players off their roster - Cody Eakin to Vegas and Antti Niemi to a buyout.
The Stars core of Benn, Seguin, Jason Spezza, and John Klingberg remained untouched. So too did the young pool of NHL players like Radek Faksa, Devin Shore, Esa Lindell, Julius Honka, and Stephen Johns. Same for any prospects like Dennis Gurianov, Jason Dickinson, Roope Hintz, Riley Tufte, Jake Oettinger and Heiskanen. Outside of the expansion draft, the Stars essentially lost nobody off their roster. And aside from a second-rounder three years from now, they did not lose any notable draft picks.
Being buyers is one thing. Buying without having to sell is another.
In fact the Stars are so stocked that they will probably have to shed a player or two on the blue line before the season starts. They also have well over the allotted 12 forwards in play, so training camp looks to feature multiple position battles on what will be one of the toughest lineups in the NHL to crack.
An offseason like this requires multiple pieces to take shape. First, ownership needs to be on board. The Gaglardi family has certainly done their part, green-lighting around $100 million in contracts. Then management has to have a plan and execute it. They did both. In doing so, the Stars set themselves up for what looks to be a solid present as well as future.
Dallas has had a habit of making summer splashes in the past, but 2017 provided a tidal wave that few could have seen coming. It's one the Stars will ride into the upcoming season and well beyond.
Josh Bogorad is the Studio Host on Stars television broadcasts. He can be seen 30 minutes before face-off on 'Stars Live' and immediately after games all season long on Fox Sports Southwest. Follow him on Twitter at @JoshBogorad.
