Robo’s return: Jason Robertson excited for new deal, season ahead with Stars

Jason Robertson made a huge decision this week.

For a lot of people.

The Stars’ leading scorer in three of the last four seasons decided to bypass a Saturday arbitration hearing by signing a one-year contract at $12 million. The ripples from the deal will be reverberating for years.

Robertson was a restricted free agent who had come to the end of his four-year contract that averaged $7.75 million. After tallying 45 goals among 96 points, Robertson was in line for a huge raise. However, the Stars couldn’t afford much more than $12 million after being tight up against next year’s salary cap. That meant they had to consider trading him and allowing him to get his raise elsewhere.

The two sides went back and forth trying to find a solution and Robertson was presented with some options, including an offer from Seattle that reportedly would have put him at $15 million per season. However, Robertson declined those deals and decided to file for arbitration. That was scheduled for this week.

However, instead of waiting for that decision, the 27-year-old winger opted to sign with the Stars for one year at the figure that could work for everyone this season. As a result, the plan is for Robertson to be in uniform at training camp, play in Dallas this season and possibly agree on a longer extension when the negotiating window opens on January 1.

“It’s a fantastic team, fantastic organization, fantastic players, staff and everything, so I’m very comfortable being in this situation,” Robertson said. “I’m excited for it.”

Robertson knew that by tweaking his requests, he made it easier for the Stars to compete this year and potentially give him a bigger raise in the future. Tyler Seguin is in the final year of a contract that has a cap hit of $9.85 million, and the salary cap is set for another hefty increase next summer.

“Everyone can see that they are in a little crunch,” Robertson said. “But at the end of the day, they had my rights. I wasn’t free to go anywhere this year so, the chances of staying in Dallas this offseason were high obviously because of that. It just happened in this way and obviously we’ll have time to revisit it later this year.”

That could allow plenty of room to put Robertson at $13, $14 or $15 million. That’s not outrageous when Anaheim’s Leo Carlsson settled on $18 million and Chicago’s Connor Bedard signed for $15 million. The price of business is going up in the NHL, so the market is volatile.

Mikko Rantanen had set the Stars’ ceiling at $12 million, so Robertson matched that. He could exceed it now, just as Thomas Harley ($10.5 million) went past Miro Heiskanen ($8.45 million). Such is life in a rising cap world.

“I talked to Jason this morning. We had a good talk,” Stars GM Jim Nill said Wednesday. “He just wants to continue his training, get excited about this year. He loves hockey and he just wants to be training and know where he wants to be for this season.”

But Nill said he liked this path.

“It was very clear he wanted to be a Dallas Star and in the end, this was the best fit for the timing,” Nill said. “We have a cap situation and the league has a situation. In the end, we found a number.”

Now they have to find another. The great thing is they have time.

Robertson has been training at his summer home in Detroit and said he is ready to go. As much as there is pressure on him to have a great year before he can become an unrestricted free agent, he said it’s no different than what he went through last year. He wanted to make the US Olympic team (which he didn’t) and worked hard because of that. He wanted to convince everyone he deserved a big long-term deal and did just that.

“I made it very clear with you all throughout the season that I thought I was playing the best hockey of my career and just having the best time and the most opportunity, the most shots, the most scoring chances, creating, a well-rounded game, everything,” Robertson told reporters on a Zoom call. “So, knowing that and doing that last year, then having a full offseason of training and on-ice skating and just really having that confidence of coming back and knowing there’s more I can keep doing and keep working, it’s exciting.”

He added that the mental part of the challenge has been reassuring, as well. He said having a step-back after a 109-point season in 2022-23 helped with that.

“I think just doing it for myself is the most important thing,” Robertson said. “I mean, having one of the best seasons for anyone, really, for me especially four years ago, having had such a big season and then a little drop-off the season after and the season after and thinking, ‘If you can get back to where you want to be,’ is just super encouraging to myself, knowing I still have it, I know there’s another level.”

And finding that level should be fun.

“The team is only going to get better this season,” Robertson said. “Obviously there were a couple of injuries last year that hurt us. A couple of players [are] taking new steps, the older veterans still have a lot of juice left, so I’m excited for the season. I’m excited to come in healthy. I’ve had a great offseason so far. I haven’t had to worry about any [issues, such as] foot surgery, like a couple of years ago. I’m full go and very excited to get started."

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 X @MikeHeika.