Jason Robertson Saga Nearing a Conclusion
This offseason is aging Dallas Stars fans by about 10 years so far. The immediate focus is on next week, as the current shape of the roster will change.
A year of rumors about Jason Robertson has led to this, and it’s not looking good for the Stars.
This is a long road leading to the inevitability that Robertson will not play on the Stars next season. Several teams are making roster-shattering moves, with one of them looking to take its turn at the big prize this offseason.
There still is a chance the Stars retain his services, but the money is not there. It looks like Robertson has played his final game with the Stars, nearly sealing chances of a contract extension.
There is still hope he stays. The Stars will make one final effort to get him locked into a contract.
Rest assured, the year-long rumors will come to an end this week.
The Money
Apparently, Robertson turned down an 8-year, $96 million extension, the same as Rantanen. His agent is trying to get him Leon Draisaitl’s numbers for an 8-year $14 million AAV deal. That’s $2 million apart in a cap-strapped team like the Stars. They can’t afford him.
The Stars have about $10 million worth of available cap space and need serious moves to get that number to $14 million. Other players also need contract extensions, like Mavrik Bourque. It’s looking like a game-over situation for the Stars unless something happens this week.
Trade
Other teams are making moves to line up for a shot at Robertson. The Ottawa Senators traded Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers in exchange for three 1st round draft picks plus change. Dylan Larkin of the Detroit Red Wings wants out and has named the Stars as a primary destination. The Stars have options if the extension doesn’t work out.
The Stars can get a major draft-pick haul of 1st-rounders if they trade him to Ottawa, or receive an established player like Larkin in return. Every single Stars fan has absolute trust in Jim Nill. Whatever he does is just fine for the team. I wouldn’t give up hope on a contract extension just quite yet.
Keeping Robertson
You can bet your bottom that the Stars are not done with negotiations. You’ll probably see an end to this saga over the next week. The Stars have business to get done during that time. The two other major moves the Stars want to make are to extend Bourque and Benn. Money is not a friend to the Stars. It’s not that they don’t have it; it’s that the salary cap is crunching their style.
Robertson’s camp wants and deserves a $14 million AAV contract. The Stars are hard-pressed to provide that number.
They can make it work with the little room left. Seguin’s contract comes off the books, paired with a major increase in the salary cap next season. That leaves the Stars with an extra $15-20 million next season. If only they had done this this year.
Offer Sheet
Other teams may extend an offer sheet to Robertson. The Stars will have the option to match any contract another team signs him to. If not, many first-round draft picks are coming back to the Stars. This is not the ideal scenario, but it’s where they’re headed. This is the final week before Free Agency on July 1st. We’ll have much more clarity on the situation before then. Robertson is about to receive a big payday from the Stars or another team.
Robertson is the type of player that any team would love to have. He is a perennial superstar on the Stars, who are cash-strapped. $14 million is too much for the Stars to afford. Trading with the Red Wings and getting Larkin is the logical route to take if no extension is reached. The Stars may throw one last-ditch effort to sign him. He’ll probably be part of a sign-and-trade in which the Stars receive a major haul for him.
The Robertson era on the Stars may come to an end this week.
Hold on because this offseason is just getting started.
Discover more from Dallas Sports Nation
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
