Dallas Stars Need To Sign Patrick Eaves To Longer Term
The Dallas Stars have definitely seen a decrease in their offensive production this year. However, there is one player that is ramping his scoring up and earning himself a new contract in the process.
One year, $1 million.
That’s all Dallas Stars winger Patrick Eaves is playing on this season, a mostly dismal one for the reigning Central Division champions.
With a team-high 12 markers on the year, one in which the Stars find themselves on the cusp of a Stanley Cup Playoffs berth, Eaves is keeping a sub-.500 Dallas in contention with stellar offensive production.
A former first-round pick by the Ottawa Senators in the stacked 2003 NHL Entry Draft, Eaves presents a scoring touch that the heavily-ailed Stars are currently missing due to the injuries suffered by Patrick Sharp (concussions), Ales Hemsky (torn labrum), and Mattias Janmark (osteochondritis dissecans).
The native of Calgary, Alberta has a career-high of 20 goals, a personal best he set as a rookie in the 2005-2006 season with the Senators, but also one he’s on pace to demolish; the bearded righty has 12 goals in 32 games in 2016-17, a 29-goal pace.
Eaves notched 11 goals in last season’s divisional title conquest. In 2014-15, Eaves tallied 14 goals, but scored his 12th on April 8th; the Boston College product has tallied 12 by Christmas this season, including the opener in Tuesday’s clash versus visiting St. Louis.
The Stars will have a desperate need for depth on the right wing side after this current campaign, an absence that can be filled by a well-deserving 32-year-old like Eaves.
Patrick Sharp, Mattias Janmark, Ales Hemsky, Brett Ritchie, Curtis McKenzie, Adam Cracknell, Jiri Hudler, and Lauri Korpikoski all possess contracts that are set to expire at the end of the 16-17 season, and none of them have had the same excellence as Eaves.
The 6-foot, 200-pound forward’s unmatched work ethic and versatility isn’t what has earned him a new deal with the Stars, but it’s exactly why such a deal for Eaves won’t be regretted.
With Tyler Seguin/Jamie Benn, or with Jason Spezza, Radek Faksa, or even Devin Shore or Cody Eakin, the dual-citizen who often skips practices because of a foot injury still succeeds in contributing and often creating offensively.
The Eaves deal should be a no-brainer for general manager Jim Nill this off-season. He has made his mark in North Texas.
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