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Dallas Stars Daily Links: The 2017 Expansion Draft Is Over, But the Fallout Continues

Posted on by Kathleen Tibbetts

The Dallas Stars could have done worse than losing center Cody Eakin in the NHL Expansion Draft. The Ginger Ninja is an often polarizing player, and it’s not as if they don’t have the forward firepower to deal with the loss.

But the Stars also could have done better, writes Mike Heika of The Dallas Morning News:

He’ll be a great player for Vegas. He’s 26, he’s very strong defensively, and he was selected in the 2009 entry draft by current Vegas GM George McPhee when he was running the Washington Capitals. It’s a great fit for a team that should be able to be competitive next season.

Heck, Eakin could end up being one of the more popular players in Las Vegas and get a new lease on his career.

Now comes the real shuffle – on defense:

The departure of Eakin means Dallas didn’t lose a defenseman, but it doesn’t mean there won’t be some shuffling in that area. The Stars are expected to add a veteran to the core group of John Klingberg, Dan Hamhuis, Esa Lindell and Julius Honka. And with Dallas still controlling Stephen Johns, Jamie Oleksiak, Patrik Nemeth and Greg Pateryn, that means there are still players who are going to leave.

There’s much more at Mike’s place. [SportsDayDFW]

The Stars shared some farewell notes on Twitter:

Broadcasters Bruce LeVine and Julie Dobbs did the same:

EA Sports was more ready for the Expansion Draft than you were, whoever you are:

And Mark Stepneski got the Jim Nill quote.

First things first: The newly constituted Vegas Golden Knights will play the first regular-season game of their history in American Airlines Center, against Our Stars.

So much news we need headers:

The 2017 NHL Expansion Draft

The waiting is over – let the analysis begin. Satchel Price starts with the marquee names who (presumably) will be wearing those gray sweaters this fall. [SB Nation]

Last night’s 30 rounds of expansion-draft action included 10 trades. Here’s a list.

One of the bigger trades involved the Anaheim Ducks sending soon-to-be superstar blueliner Shea Theodore to Vegas along with draft pick Clayton Stoner.

One of the Golden Knights’ more sensational (and intriguing) picks was former Star James Neal. The Real Deal will leave the Nashville Predators, but how long he stays in Sin City is still in question. [On the Forecheck]

Do the Knights have a C in mind for defender Marc Methot? The now-former Senator may not be around that long, either. [Ottawa Citizen]

Former Star Reilly Smith was part of a trade that also involved a fourth-round 2018 pick, in addition to Vegas’ selection of Jonathan Marchessault. [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]

Fellow former Star Jason Demers, was, as usual, the first one to express good wishes.

The Foregone Conclusion was Marc-Andre Fleury as the team’s first starting goalie, but that didn’t mean these Vegas fans were any less excited about it.

The 2017 NHL Awards

First of all, here’s the complete winners’ roundup as presented by NHL.com.

Connor McDavid, predictably, cleaned up: The Edmonton Oilers’ Hockey Jesus went home with the Art Ross Trophy, the Hart Trophy, the Ted Lindsay Award, and the NHL 18 cover. [ESPN]

Auston Matthews became the first Toronto Maple Leafs player to win the Calder Memorial Trophy since Brit Selby in 1966. [Pension Plan Puppets]

Do you suppose John Tortorella is having some kind of last laugh now? From World Cup goat to NHL GOAT (well, at least for the season), he won the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year. [The Cannon]

The Columbus Blue Jackets brought home even more hardware as netminder Sergei Bobrovsky scored another Vezina Trophy. Officer Bob entered some pretty elite company with his second win.

Craig Anderson, who backstopped the Ottawa Senators into the Eastern Conference Finals even as his wife, Nicholle, was battling cancer, won a well deserved Masterton Trophy. [Silver Seven]

The league also honored Bryan Bickell, who retired after the Carolina Hurricanes’ final 2016-17 game due to his own MS (and whose post-diagnosis return to NHL play occurred after the Masterton nominations were due).

The Boston Pride’s Denna Laing helped introduce King Clancy and Mark Messier Leadership Award winner Nick Foligno and NHL Foundation Player Award winner Travis Hamonic. On Tuesday, she was the subject of a new TSN special on her life-changing injury at the 2016 Winter Classic, and how her life has moved forward from there.

If your house got really dusty all of a sudden, well, so did a lot of people’s.

Finally: Dave Strader gets today’s last word. Enjoy.

Talking Points