Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The Dallas Stars are entering a critical phase of their season after Tyler Seguin underwent hip surgery that will sideline him for 4-6 months. Seguin, who was off to one of the best starts of his career with 20 points in 19 games, leaves a significant void in the lineup.
General Manager Jim Nill emphasized the importance of internal depth while assessing the team’s immediate needs. But there’s still a feeling like the Stars could make a splash, go after someone with the cap space savings that come with Seguin being on LTIR and get Seguin back in time for the playoffs.
While Logan Stankoven has stepped into Seguin’s spot for now, and other forwards, including Wyatt Johnston and Evgenii Dadonov, could see increased roles, is there a player out there that could be acquired by the Stars and fit like a glove?
Evgeni Malkin, C, Pittsburgh Penguins
Cam Robinson of Elite Prospects isn’t necessarily known as an insider, but he ignited speculation with a trade rumor suggesting the Stars might have Pittsburgh Penguins star Evgeni Malkin on their radar.
He explained in a video on social media:
A couple weeks back, I had a little birdie whisper in my ear, watch out for Dallas and Evgeni Malkin… They were considering shutting him [Seguin] down before the December 10th deadline, putting him on LTIR until the regular season ended, then he’d be ready to go for the playoffs. They would save all that cap space and with that cap space, they would then go out and trade for Evgeni Malkin.”
It’s not clear that Malkin would even be up for an idea like this. It’s also not clear the Stars would be willing to give up what’s needed to acquire Malkin in a trade — the Penguins would ask for a lot. But, the cap situation works, assuming Seguin is out until the post-season.
Mika Zibanejad, C, New York Rangers
After trading Jacob Trouba and signing Igor Shesterkin, the New York Rangers might not be done making moves. As per RG.org, “According to a trusted NHL source, the Rangers are also letting it be known that Kreider’s linemate and star center, Mika Zibanejad, is also available on the NHL trade market.”
While it’s not confirmed the Stars are involved, according to the same source, the Rangers have spoken with a Western conference team about Zibanejad.
He carries an $8.5 million per-year cap hit for the next six seasons, but he’s a productive center that could fit in extremely well in Dallas. As some of their core ages out, Zibanejad would be coming in at the age of 31 and still be reliable in the team’s window to win.
This is a point-per-game player, who is arguably much more consistent at this stage of his career than Seguin.
Taylor Hall, LW, Chicago Blackhawks
Taylor Hall is not a center, but the Stars are actually still quite deep at the position with Roope Hintz and Matt Duchene playing well. What’s nice about Hall as an option is that the Chicago Blackhawks are making changes and might be eager to move on. Hall might be too, given the way his season went under the recently fired Luke Richardson.
What could be interesting here is a possible two-man trade that would bring Hall and right-shot defenseman Connor Murphy to Dallas. Between the two of them, their combined salaries would work (if the Blackhawks were willing to retain about $1 million). Hall won’t cost much, and the Stars would have to give up something for Murphy, but the costs would be a whole lot less than trying to acquire one of Malkin or Zibanejad.
Nill has opted for patience rather than rushing into the trade market, citing the need to evaluate the team’s performance and injury situation closer to the March 7 deadline. But, should Seguin move to the long-term injured reserve (LTIR), his $9.85 million cap hit could provide significant flexibility for Dallas to target reinforcements.
One other intriguing name not mentioned above is Brock Nelson, a pending UFA from the New York Islanders, though his availability remains uncertain.
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