The last wave of players intending to be bought out by their clubs were placed on waivers this morning. Notable to Dallas Stars fans were the names not included on the waivers these last couple of days – and that’s anyone that is a current member of the Dallas Stars roster.
Though a buyout was a viable option to clear some cap space to fix the goaltending or clear out additional space for help on defense by way of trade and/or free agent signing, the Stars opted not to utilize this tool. Neither Antti Niemi nor Kari Lehtonen were placed on waivers with the intention of being bought out.
So the Stars move forward towards free agency with both goaltenders under contract for next year. Whether a trade comes to fruition to bring in fresh blood between the pipes or if they roll with the same duo as last season has yet to be seen.
There are still hints that Dallas is trying to make a move for Ben Bishop out of Tampa Bay, but the salary cap implications of that kind of trade are a little sketchy for both teams. Tampa would need to shed salary without taking salary back, having to fit Steven Stamkos and his shiny new deal under the cap along with several restricted free agents. Dallas would likely want to send a goatender back in any deal they take on another goaltender. It’s also possible that the Stars make a move for goaltending help and look for a subsequent move to ship a goaltender to another team.