The Dallas Stars took a big step forward in 2022-23, and they now extended NHL GM of the year Jim Nill for two more years following this season.
Outgoing Nashville Predators GM David Poile awarded Jim Nill the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award at the 2023 NHL draft.The Dallas Stars avoided waiting until later in the season to sign the NHL's GM of the year to a contract extension.
Stars GM Jim Nill's contract is now extended through 2025-26, the team announced Monday morning.
“Jim has proven himself to be one of the best general managers in the NHL," Dallas Stars owner and governor Tom Gaglardi said in a press release. "He has meticulously built a team through free agency, trades and the NHL draft that's among the best in the league, while also ensuring that the Stars are championship contenders for years to come. He'll be able to continue his vision of working toward our goal of bringing another Stanley Cup to the state of Texas."
Since being hired by the Stars in April 2013, Nill's Stars amassed a 403-280-98 record. Nill began his tenure by taking a team that missed the playoffs for five straight years and getting them to the first round. After that, the Stars had mixed results over the years, such as placing second in the NHL in 2015-16 before losing in the Western Conference semifinal, then finishing last in the Central Division the following year.
More recently, however, Dallas made the playoffs in four of the past five seasons, winning six rounds. In 2019-20, they got to the Cup final in the COVID-19 bubble before losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning and missing the post-season in 2020-21.
But the Stars took a huge step up in 2022-23, even though they were eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup champions in the Western Conference final. They put up a 47-21-14 record for 108 points, the most since 2015-16 and just the second time the team reached triple digits since 2006-07.
hanks to strong drafting and player development, the Stars had 24-year-old left winger Jason Robertson leading the way with 109 points, while 26-year-old center Roope Hintz recorded more than 70 points for the second straight season. Nill extended Robertson through 2025-26 at an affordable $7.75-million cap hit and Hintz through 2030-31 at $8.45 million per year. Rookie forward Wyatt Johnston jumped onto the scene as well, with 41 points in 82 games.
Their No. 1 defenseman, Miro Heiskanen, is also just 24 years old and is extended through 2028-29. Even their elite starting netminder, Jake Oettinger, is 24, which is relatively young for an NHL goalie to perform consistently that well.
Nill's top veterans also put up nice numbers under new coach Pete DeBoer last season, with captain Jamie Benn having a bounce-back year with 78 points in 82 games. Joe Pavelski had 77 points, and Tyler Seguin had 50 points.
After adding Matt Duchene, Craig Smith and Sam Steel in the 2023 free agency, the Stars enter 2023-24 with a clear direction toward Cup contention, earning Nill an extension to see it through.
"My family and I are grateful to Tom Gaglardi for his commitment to the organization and giving me every resource available to build this team," Nill said in a statement. "I'm fortunate to have an incredible team of individuals alongside me that have worked tirelessly behind the scenes to help build our team into what it is today. I'm excited to continue my work in developing a winning culture and reaching our shared goal of winning the Stanley Cup."