I could ramble on for a paragraph or two about the Dallas Stars’ first day of free agency, but we’ll have plenty of time to dissect and overreact to each and every decision the Stars made. So let’s just jump right into it, shall we?
First up, former first-round pick Valeri Nichushkin is finally coming home:
Welcome back, Val!
The Stars have signed right wing Valeri Nichushkin to a two-year contract with an AAV of $2.95-million per year. https://t.co/6gloiavkvH
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) July 1, 2018
The Stars also signed defenseman Roman Polak to a one-year, $1.3 million contract:
Polak’s contract looks like a 7th D contract, at least I’d think that’s the case.
— Sean Shapiro (@seanshapiro) July 1, 2018
And to shore up their offense, Dallas also added veteran Blake Comeau on a three-year deal worth $2.4 million per:
For a team that needed forward depth Blake Comeau makes a lot of sense. Can’t imagine him playing a top 6 spot. But a solid move nonetheless
— Bruce LeVine (@BruceLeVinePuck) July 1, 2018
The final major NHL signing for the Stars was locking up goaltender Anton Khudoblin to play backup goaltender to Ben Bishop:
Heika: A two-year deal for Anton Khudobin, a veteran who brings experience as a backup goalie, allows Point, Oettinger and Bow the chance to prepare for a spot in the NHL down the road. https://t.co/7NAJLuKPjQ
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) July 1, 2018
There was, however, one more major goalie signing by the Stars, as they signed prospect Colton Point to his ELC:
Stars fans can breathe a sign of relief – Colton Point, who could have become a college free agent in two years, will instead join the AHL’s Texas Stars. @seanshapiro tells you about Point and his decision.https://t.co/B1IvynmoRM
— The Athletic (@TheAthleticDFW) July 1, 2018
There were several more minor deals made, all of which you can read up on here: [NHL]
And here’s Stars GM Jim Nill on the team’s newest additions:
Thanks for the Memories
Several former Stars found new homes yesterday. First up is Greg Pateryn, who used a career year to land himself a three-year contract with the Minnesota Wild:
#mnwild agrees to terms with defenseman Greg Pateryn on a on a three-year, $6.75 million contract → https://t.co/fI8wfmKTv8 pic.twitter.com/pV4ELcPQ8F
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) July 1, 2018
Next is Texas Stars captain Curtis McKenzie, who will be joining the Vegas Golden Knights for their second season:
B.C boy Curtis McKenzie gets 2 year deal in Vegas, 750,000 dollars per year.
— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) July 1, 2018
Another prominent Texas Star, Mike McKennna, continues his trek around North America as he rejoins the Ottawa Senators organization:
McKenna returns to the #Sens organization. His two-way deal is for $700,000 in the NHL and $175,000 in the AHL.
— Sens communications (@Media_Sens) July 1, 2018
Finally, fan-favorite Antoinne Roussel signed with the Vancouver Canucks for four years at $3 million per:
OFFICIAL: #Canucks sign Antoine Roussel (@Rous_ant) to a four-year deal. https://t.co/uwbdEDJB1Y
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) July 1, 2018
— Antoine Roussel (@Rous_ant) July 1, 2018
Other Free Agency News
The wait is finally over! John Tavares has picked his new team — the Toronto Maple Leafs:
I’m thrilled to be starting a new chapter of my career and life in Toronto with the @MapleLeafs. I feel very fortunate to come join a team with a great young core and play where I grew up learning and loving the game. I can’t wait to get started!
— John Tavares (@91Tavares) July 1, 2018
Tavares was given a $77 million contract spread out over seven years, and boy, was it bonus-heavy:
Correction on Year 2 signing bonus, it’s $14.99M, not $15.25M. So official breakdown reads like this: Year 1, $650k salary, $15.25M sb; Year 2, $910k salary, $14.99 M sb; Year 3, $910k salary, $11.09M sb; Year 4, $910k salary, $8.44M sb; Years 5-7, $910k salary, $7.04M sb each yr https://t.co/fqt0dFwl4K
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) July 1, 2018
After clearing up cap space to re-sign Paul Stastny, the Winnipeg Jets were left empty-handed when Stastny decided to join Vegas:
#FreeAgentFrenzy UPDATE: Vegas Golden Knights to sign F Paul Stastny to a three-year, $19.5 million contract, according to @TSNBobMcKenzie https://t.co/lGCSb56WrP #TSNHockey pic.twitter.com/TffWAqwOCG
— TSN Hockey (@TSNHockey) July 1, 2018
As reported in days prior, Jack Johnson is joining the Pittsburgh Penguins, and it doesn’t look like he had a friendly exit from the Columbus Blue Jackets:
Parting shots: Blue Jackets’ John Tortorella angered by comments from Jack Johnson, Penguins GM, by @Aportzline https://t.co/d1sa6c7zB3 #CBJ #NHL #Penguins
— The Athletic (@TheAthleticCBUS) July 2, 2018
Every free agency window has to have winners and losers, right? First up with the grades is Ryan Kennedy: [The Hockey News]
…and Greg Wyshnyski and Emily Kaplan are right behind him: [ESPN]
There were several other signings, such as Petr Mzarek to the Carolina Hurricanes, that could turn out to be major bargains:
Best bargains on day one of NHL free agency https://t.co/yqhq6nlT2b
— NHL on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) July 1, 2018
Finally…
One of the biggest stories of the day wasn’t even related to free agency — the Buffalo Sabres have shipped out Ryan O’Reilly to the St. Louis Blues:
TRADE: We’ve acquired forwards Tage Thompson, Patrik Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka, a 1st-round pick in 2019, and a 2nd-round pick in 2021 in exchange for Ryan O’Reilly. pic.twitter.com/I84OOvhCFP
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) July 2, 2018