NHL Insider Says Stars "Never Were Favorites" in Pursuit Of Flames' Rasmus Andersson

The Dallas Stars had fallen short on their pursuit of new Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Rasmus Andersson with NHL insiders helping unveil the layers behind the scene and how close each team was. 

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman explained on Monday's edition of his podcast 32 Thoughts, that he heard the Boston Bruins, who had emerged as the early favorite through the trade rumors, had dropped out of the race due to inability to land an extension with Andersson. This was also the reason why teams like the Detroit Red Wings did continue their pursuit of Andersson and left just a few teams left in the mix. 

Friedman would go on to explain that the Stars were still in the conversation when it came to Andersson but mentioned that Dallas had always been behind the pack. He would continue saying that there was never a point where the Stars had emerged as the favorite and that their offers likely weren't good enough to match the Golden Knights offer. 

"I think they got a little more into it at the end but again I don't know if there was ever a point in time here that Dallas was the favorite, I think they got into it a little bit at the end but I'm not sure that they could have beaten that," Friedman said. 

On the same day, the Stars had just finished being handed their tenth loss in their last 12 games and fans really could've used the positive news. Not grabbing an two-way defenseman like Andersson is certainly a sting considering Dallas could really use an offensive spark with just four even-strength goals over their last four games. 

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Friedman did note later on in the episode that the Stars are still very much in the mix for Flames forward Blake Coleman. Although many other teams are also looking to grab the 34-year-old veteran and could create another bidding war that Dallas may not be able to win with their limited assets. 

To close things out, Friedman said he isn't too worried about the Stars and their current skid as the group is battle-tested and has seen much rougher days. Although the losses start to pile on, Dallas is still in a great position still sitting second place in the Central division and the Western Conference.

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