FRISCO, Texas -- Dallas Stars General Manager Jim Nill announced today that the club has signed center Riley Damiani to a three-year, entry-level contract. Damiani will report to the Texas Stars, Dallas' top development affiliate in the American Hockey League on an amateur tryout for the remainder of the 2018-19 season.

FRISCO, Texas -- Dallas Stars General Manager Jim Nill announced today that the club has signed goaltender Jake Oettinger to a three-year, entry-level contract.

Oettinger will report to the Texas Stars, Dallas' top development affiliate in the American Hockey League on an amateur tryout for the remainder of the 2018-19 season.

Slowly, but surely, the Stars are adding young scorers to their lineup -- and the results could be seen fairly quickly at the AHL level.

Dallas on Tuesday announced the signings of college players Rhett Gardner, Joseph Cecconi and Josh Melnick, and also the assignment for 2018 first-round draft pick Ty Dellandrea to the Texas Stars. All four could be in the lineup within the next two or three games.

FRISCO, Texas -- Dallas Stars General Manager Jim Nill announced today that the club has signed center Rhett Gardner and defenseman Joseph Cecconi to two-year, entry-level contracts, and has signed right wing Josh Melnick to a one-year, entry-level contract, each beginning in 2019-20. Additionally, Gardner, Cecconi and Melnick will report to the Texas Stars, Dallas' top development affiliate in the American Hockey League on amateur tryouts for the remainder of the 2018-19 season.

The club also assigned center Ty Dellandrea to the Texas Stars (AHL). Dellandrea, 18, spent the 2018-19 campaign with the Flint Firebirds of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and led the club with 63 points (22-41=63) in 60 games. Over three seasons with Flint, the forward has amassed 146 points (62-84=146) in 184 games. The 6-foot-1, 190 pound center from Toronto, Ontario was selected by the Stars in the first round (13th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft.

FRISCO, Texas -- Dallas Stars General Manager Jim Nill announced today that the team has signed center Justin Dowling to a two-year, two-way contract extension, which will run through the 2020-21 season.

The Dallas Stars added a new player to the prospect pool, signing RW Tye Felhaber to a three-year, entry-level contract on Friday. The 20-year-old Felhaber is putting up impressive numbers in the Ontario Hockey League, leading the league in goals (56) and ranking fourth in points (100) in 62 games with the Ottawa 67's.

Felhaber, an undrafted free agent, is an overage player and in his final year of eligibility in the OHL. He drew interest from many NHL teams before signing with the Stars.

FRISCO, Texas -- Dallas Stars General Manager Jim Nill announced today that the club has signed right wing Tye Felhaber to a three-year, entry-level contract.

Dallas Stars forward prospect Jason Robertson continues to rack up the points in the Ontario Hockey League and so do Dallas prospects Riley Damiani and Liam Hawel, who both have been on nice runs recently.

Center Ty Dellandrea, the Stars' first-round pick in 2018, continues to be productive despite playing on a team that doesn't win very often. And in Europe, forwards Albin Eriksson, Jacob Peterson, and Oscar Back are faring well as young players in Sweden's top two leagues.

In the college ranks, after a slow start with a struggling Boston University team, goaltender Jake Oettinger has come on strong as the season has moved along.

Here's an update on Dallas prospects playing in Europe, college and juniors.

The 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship didn't end the way Stars prospect Jason Robertson and the United States had hoped.

Kaapo Kakko scored with 1:26 left in the third period to lift Finland to a 3-2 victory over the U.S. in the gold medal game at world juniors on Saturday night in Vancouver.

Robertson and the U.S., which had defeated Czech Republic and Russia in the playoff round to get to the title game, took home a silver medal. It was the fourth straight medal at world juniors for the U.S.

The 19-year-old Robertson tied for seventh in tournament scoring with seven points (one goal, six assists) in seven games.

The intriguing thing about first-round draft picks is just how much everyone wants them to succeed.

The scouts that pick them are connected to these selections for life, with evaluations inside their team and reputations throughout the league linked to their top decisions.

The front offices that hire the scouts are likewise linked, but even more so in the big picture. While a good year might be getting two NHL players out of any one draft, the odds say your best chance is always with your first choice. The odds also say that pretty much every team has to build its core through the draft.

The coaches know talent is a huge part of winning at the NHL level, so they want the best talent to perform, and the best talent typically comes from first-round picks. They also realize there is pressure within the organization to have these guys succeed.