Stars’ Tyler Seguin move gives Dallas maximum trade deadline flexibility

The Dallas Stars are back from the Olympic break with the Stanley Cup on their minds. They have made big trades, risky coaching moves, and drafted well to put themselves in this position. The Stars made the move on Friday to end Tyler Seguin’s season amid an ACL injury on Friday, which gives them NHL trade deadline flexibility.

“There is word Dallas filed paperwork declaring Tyler Seguin out for the rest of the regular season & playoffs. By doing this, Stars get full cap relief heading into trade deadline. Feel for Seguin, who underwent surgery for a torn ACL. Wanted to return, but couldn’t,” Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported.

Seguin suffered an ACL injury and underwent surgery in December. It is the second consecutive season that featured a lengthy injury for the 16-year veteran. Seguin was out from December 1 until April 14 last season, but was able to return for the playoffs. This year, even though it was an ACL injury, he tried to come back for a Stanley Cup run for the Stars.

New salary cap rules prevent teams from bringing players back just for the playoffs while ignoring the salary cap constraints. That means that if Seguin were to come back in April, they would need to have $9.85 million in cap space free to activate him. Now that he is not coming back, they can use that space to add at the trade deadline.

The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reported that the Stars have interest in Evander Kane from the Vancouver Canucks. He is a veteran winger with playoff experience and a cap hit they can fit under the ceiling. Dallas is likely to prioritize a rental piece over a player with term on their contract, as they are heading towards difficult cap conversations in the summer.

The post Stars’ Tyler Seguin move gives Dallas maximum trade deadline flexibility appeared first on ClutchPoints.