Stars GM Jim Nill Inks Two-Year Contract Extension
Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill has re-upped for two more seasons in a new contract extension, the team announced via social media on Monday.
Nill, previously set to enter the final year of his current contract next season, is now signed with the franchise through the 2025-26 campaign. He will begin his 11th season as Dallas’ GM in 2023-24.
The 65-year-old executive became the 11th general manager in Stars history in April 2013. Since then, the organization has gone 403-280-98 and has made the playoffs six separate times, including a fifth all-time Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2020.
As his tenure spans over a decade, Nill stands as the longest-tenured GM in Minnesota North Stars/Dallas Stars franchise history.
Dallas finished second in the Central Division at 47-21-14 with 108 points this past season, placing one point back of the division-winning Colorado Avalanche. That included a second consecutive playoff berth, which saw them advance to the Western Conference Final before falling to the eventual Stanley Cup-winning Vegas Golden Knights.
Even so, Nill won the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award upon conclusion of the postseason, becoming the first Stars executive to accomplish that historic feat.
“Jim has proven himself to be one of the best general managers in the NHL,” Stars Owner and Governor Tom Gaglardi said in a press release on Monday. “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.”
Nill spent nine NHL seasons as a player from 1981-90, including stints with the Winnipeg Jets, Vancouver Canucks, Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins and St. Louis Blues, before retiring following the 1990-91 season.
The Hanna, AB native began his post-playing career as an amateur scout with the Ottawa Senators for two seasons before being promoted to a pro scout in his third year. He then joined the Red Wings organization in 1994, overseeing their player development and scouting programs.
The Stars have featured five head coaches under Nill: Lindy Ruff (2013-17), Ken Hitchcock (2017-18), Jim Montgomery (2018-19), Rick Bowness (2019-22) and Peter DeBoer, who was hired prior to the 2022-23 campaign.
“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. “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.”
Despite all that Nill’s accomplished thus far, he’s still searching for the elusive Stanley Cup victory, with Dallas’ lone championship celebration occurring in 1999 – its sixth season since moving from Minnesota.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: Michael Barera. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.