Earlier this week, a report surfaced from Jeff Marek suggesting that the Dallas Stars were one of the teams interested in Columbus Blue Jackets' forward Mathieu Olivier if he had hit the open market.
Olivier was one of the Blue Jackets’ top unrestricted free agents this past offseason outside of Ivan Provorov. Because of his unique style of play, general manager Don Waddell made sure to prioritize re-signing him to a six-year extension before free agency began, ensuring he wouldn’t land with another NHL team.
As we know now, the Stars were hoping he’d become available so they could make a push to sign him. Marek also noted that Dallas wants a player in that mold and will keep searching for someone like Olivier, which won’t be easy given how rare his skill set is in today’s NHL. There aren’t many players who can be among the toughest in the league while still scoring 15-plus goals in a season. He isn’t a power forward, but more of an enforcer who can score, similar to those who came before him in the 1980s and 90s.
Last season, Olivier put up a career year with 18 goals and 14 assists for 32 points, along with 139 penalty minutes and 15 fights across all 82 games. With the trust that Blue Jackets head coach Dean Evason has in him, Olivier could be poised to match or even surpass those numbers in 2025-26.
