The Dallas Stars and captain Jamie Benn have come to terms on a one year deal worth up to $2M on Friday afternoon. Benn will earn a base salary of $850K with another $1.15M in potential performance bonuses.
Benn will earn an additional $200K at each of the 10, 20, and 40 games played mark, $150K if Dallas reaches the postseason, and an additional $100K for each playoff round the team wins. The deal reunites the two sides for an 18th season in Texas in what could be the soon to be 37 year old’s final NHL season.
“Jamie’s leadership and commitment to this organization is truly unmatched and he has helped define our culture,” general manager Jim Nill said. “He continues to set the standard on and off the ice, and we’re excited to have him leading our team for another season.”
“Obviously, the goal is to win the Stanley Cup, and when you don’t do that there’s an empty space, a little pit in your stomach, where you have some fire to change things up for next year,” Benn said at Stars final media availability of the 2025-26 season.
“That’s what [stinks] and is so hard about doing this right now,” Benn continued “We feel as a group it’s too early. We felt like we should have made it a longer playoff run. Hopefully with some extra rest, get healthy again, get motivated again to come back here and do something more special next year.”
“There’s a lot of good players on this team. Good people and a lot of them are just taking off right now. This organization’s in a great spot and the future is exciting.”
Originally selected by Dallas in the 5th round (129th overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, Benn has amassed 992 career points (414G, 578A) across 1,252 regular season games with the Stars. In the postseason, the veteran forward has 80 points (28 goals, 52 assists) in 126 playoff games.
With a major milestone (1,000 career points) on the horizon and the chance to cap off his career with a Stanley Cup championship, Benn didn’t spend much time exploring outside options when it came to his 2026-27 plans. “It’s such an honour to put on a Stars jersey and play for this organization in front of the fans and for the city of Dallas,” Benn said. “It’s all I know and it’s been a great honour.”
Dallas will now turn their attention back to free agency, and head back to the negotiating table with restricted free agent Jason Robertson who is due for a major salary bump this offseason.
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