{"id":81245,"date":"2025-07-21T18:11:09","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T18:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/81245\/"},"modified":"2025-07-21T18:11:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-21T18:11:09","slug":"seven-potential-destinations-for-dallas-stars-scorer-jason-robertson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/81245\/","title":{"rendered":"Seven potential destinations for Dallas Stars scorer Jason Robertson"},"content":{"rendered":"

In their first three trips to the podium (which sounds so much better than, \u201cduring their first three Zoom calls\u201d), Dallas selected Miro Heiskanen, Jake Oettinger and Jason Robertson<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If you find a No. 1 defenceman, high-end starting goalie and top-line scoring winger over the course of three different drafts, you\u2019ve done something great. To harvest those pieces over the course of about 20 hours is unreal.<\/p>\n

Two of those players \u2014 Heiskanen and Oettinger \u2014 have inked eight-year contracts with Dallas. In the latter\u2019s case, Oettinger first signed a three-year bridge deal with the Stars, before landing his big extension in the early stages of this past season.<\/p>\n

That brings us to Robertson.<\/p>\n

Like Oettinger, Robertson signed a shorter deal in his early-20s with Dallas. Those negotiations dragged out all summer in 2022, with the player and team coming together just before puck drop on the 2022-23 campaign to agree on a four-year deal.<\/p>\n

Robertson now has one year to go before that contract expires and just two seasons ahead of him before he could become an unrestricted free agent.<\/p>\n

Of course, a team\u2019s contracts all must work in concert with each other, and the big change between now and Oettinger signing last fall is the unexpected addition of a $12-million player in Mikko Rantanen. And the major consideration moving forward is the fact another fantastic draft pick, 2019 18th-overall selection Thomas Harley, is going to be due a big raise on his $4-million cap hit next summer, when his own two-year bridge deal runs out.<\/p>\n

Even with some extremely palatable contracts dotting other parts of the ledger, getting Robertson locked in on a long-term deal that does away with any UFA concerns is going to be a challenge.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to imagine Dallas parting ways with a 25-year-old who already has two 40-goal seasons on the books, but then again who would have imagined Rantanen going on a roundabout journey that ultimately routed him from one Central Division contender in Colorado to another in Texas?<\/p>\n

Even in a world where the salary cap is rising, teams \u2014 especially really good ones like the Stars \u2014 are forced into tough decisions on very talented players. After all, a spiking cap means players\u2019 asks are going up, too.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If Dallas does decide to bite down and move Robertson, it would be the kind of situation where you could see just about every other squad in the league making a call. Whether you\u2019re a contender that views itself as a piece away or a rebuilding team trying to push up the standings, who wouldn\u2019t be interested in a mid-20s, six-foot-three winger with an established point-per-game resume?<\/p>\n

While Robertson does not have any known trade protection at the moment, he does have leverage in the form of indicating whether he would or would not ink an extension with his new club. A potential deal of this magnitude would certainly require a few parts to line up, including the acquiring club having enough space itself to make a new deal for Robertson work.<\/p>\n

As for a return, it\u2019s hard to figure the Stars would land a player who could immediately impact the roster the way Robertson can. It could be a case of getting some small-scale immediate help, while also acquiring futures that could be flipped down the road to upgrade the roster. Hey, it\u2019s not like Robertson is the only player on Kipper\u2019s trade board (we\u2019re looking at you, right-shot defenceman Rasmus Andersson).<\/p>\n

Taking everything into consideration \u2014 and understanding Dallas might explore every path to NOT trading Robertson \u2014 we tried to pare a big list of potentially interested parties down to a shorter group of possible landing spots for Robertson should a trade come about this summer.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

How can we not begin with the hometown team?<\/p>\n

You have to believe the Kings would move heaven and earth to get Robertson on their roster if he becomes available. This would be the perfect storm, really; an L.A. kid who could help a Kings squad with a long-running need for high-end scoring as it tries to bust through the first-round barrier known as the Edmonton Oilers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

To be fair, the Kings have their own business to tend to, with Alex Laferriere due a new deal as an RFA and Adrian Kempe \u2014 a goal scorer the Kings would surely prefer to retain \u2014 eligible to become a UFA next summer and due a sizeable raise from the $5.5 million he draws annually now.<\/p>\n

Still, Los Angeles would have to look at it from every conceivable angle if a scorer like Robertson, who grew up in its backyard, became available.<\/p>\n

The Canes are in go-for-it mode as much as any club in the league. The difference between Carolina and a lot of other contenders, though, is the fact it still has about $10 million in 2025-26 cap room to work with.<\/p>\n

The Hurricanes, of course, already opened up the wallet to ink winger Nikolaj Ehlers, the best offensive player who actually hit the open market in 2025. Could you imagine if the squad that always needs more goals when it counts came back next fall with Ehlers\u00a0and Robertson in its top six?<\/p>\n

There is, of course, quite a history between Carolina and Dallas, with the two clubs just having come together in March to complete the Mikko Rantanen swap. In fact, the Canes actually own first-rounders in both 2026 and \u201928 that originally belonged to Dallas before the big trade. Maybe getting those picks back would be the basis for the Stars to engage Carolina on another mega-swap.<\/p>\n

While Ehlers wound up inking with the Canes, the Caps were in it right down to the wire as they try to build on a fantastic 2024-25 showing that saw them finish with the most points in the Eastern Conference.<\/p>\n

The Caps are a little tight on cap space, but could likely shed a support player or two to make Robertson\u2019s $7.75-million cap hit work for the upcoming campaign. After that, there\u2019s at least a chance a $9.5-million hole opens up in Washington before next season, with goal-scoring king Alex Ovechkin turning 40 in September and embarking on the final year of his contract.<\/p>\n

Whether or not Ovi calls it quits in a year\u2019s time, there\u2019s obviously going to be a goal-scoring hole on the Caps\u2019 top line sooner rather than later, and Robertson would be a great candidate to help fill it.<\/p>\n

The Jackets are trying hard to keep moving up the standings and were in it down to the wire before defenceman Noah Dobson was traded from the Islanders to Montreal.<\/p>\n

One of the players Columbus was reportedly prepared to move for Dobson was big-bodied winger Dmitri Voronkov, who\u2019s coming off a 23-goal season as an NHL sophomore. He might be exactly the type of winger Dallas would be interested in acquiring, especially as the Stars try to figure out ways to build the type of post-season club that can push through the Western Conference finals ceiling it has hit the past three springs.<\/p>\n

Columbus has all kinds of cap space, with its only major item of unresolved business being a new contract for Adam Fantilli either this summer or next.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Only one forward in Blue Jackets history \u2014 Artemi Panarin \u2014 has posted an 80-point season for the club. Robertson would be the kind of offensive threat we just haven\u2019t seen much of in Central Ohio.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Detroit has not made the playoffs since 2016 and has not won a playoff round since three years before that, in 2013. You could be packing your bags for college this summer in Michigan and basically have only the foggiest recollection of a post-season series victory for the Wings.<\/p>\n

It sure feels like general manager Steve Yzerman is ready to jump, as he lamented the fact Detroit didn\u2019t even get to pitch many of the players he was interested in on July 1 because they re-upped with\u00a0teams before hitting free agency.<\/p>\n

If signing UFAs isn\u2019t a viable option to bring more scoring to the Red Wings \u2014 who finished 22nd\u00a0in the league last year with 2.87 goals per game \u2014 maybe Detroit goes the trade route again, as it did to acquire Alex DeBrincat in July 2023.<\/p>\n

The bottom line is Detroit must find a way to push this rebuild forward and Yzerman is more than prepared to act aggressively in the name of doing so.<\/p>\n

The Stars\u2019 off-season housekeeping included dumping a salary to Seattle, as big winger Mason Marchment \u2014 with one year remaining on his deal \u2014 was sent to the Kraken for a fourth-round pick.<\/p>\n

Could that be the precursor to a much more major deal between these squads?<\/p>\n

As much as any team in the league, it feels like Seattle could use an injection of high-end scoring. Even if the Kraken \u2014 deep down in their bones \u2014 don\u2019t see themselves as a playoff squad this coming season, Robertson is a player who could help for many years to come.<\/p>\n

The Kraken \u2014 who have ample cap space \u2014 hold two first-round picks in both 2026 and 2027. Dealing from that cache could certainly form the basis of a package that might intrigue the Stars.<\/p>\n

Even with the Mammoth acquiring JJ Peterka from Buffalo just before the draft, it feels like you have to consider Utah any time a premier young player could be on the move.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cap space has become a bit more limited for the Mammoth, but not to the point where the club couldn\u2019t find a way to make it work with Robertson. If anything, Utah could throw in a player like Nick Schmaltz \u2014 who has one year remaining on his deal at $5.85 million \u2014 to help Dallas recoup a top-six forward in the deal.<\/p>\n

Schmaltz could be part of a package topped by draft picks \u2014 Utah has three second-rounders in 2026 \u2014 or prospects, both of which the Mammoth are flush with.<\/p>\n

Again, trading Robertson could open the door to another move by Dallas and Utah \u2014 along with a few other teams \u2014 can help provide the pieces that could ultimately help the Stars complete their squad with another swap down the road.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In their first three trips to the podium (which sounds so much better than, \u201cduring their first three…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":81246,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[293,62,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-81245","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nhl","8":"tag-nhl","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114892576341825858","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81245","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81245"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81245\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/81246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81245"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81245"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81245"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}