Dallas Stars Decide Jamie Benn's Future After Conference Finals Exit, Per Elliotte Friedman

The Dallas Stars fell short in the Western Conference Finals once again, and now, they've got a few decisions to make in the summer, especially with the recent trade chatter around superstar forward Jason Robertson.

Before they get to potential trades however, they've got some players heading to free agency, with perhaps the most important of all being long-time captain Jamie Benn, who just finished his 16th season with the team.

After playing out the final year of an eight-year, $76 million contract with the team, and he's now a free agent once again, meaning that at 35-years of age, the next deal he gets from an NHL team could be his last one in the league.

According to the NHL's top insider Elliotte Friedman, the Stars plan on being the team to give him his next contract, as the team are reportedly plan on bringing Benn back in free agency, retaining the player that's been captain since 2013/14.

In 2024/25, Benn tallied 16 goals and 49 points in 80 games played, and while he's definitely not the player he once was, his two-way play and his leadership make a deal worthwhile, and now that they'll likely get him on a deal much cheaper than a $9.5 million salary cap hit, it will allow them a chance to make some big moves this summer.

It's unclear what the market will be for Benn outside of Dallas, but given that he's been a one team player throughout his career thus far, the interest will definitely be mutual, so it would be a shock if he ended up elsewhere this summer.