3 Last-Minutes Roster Moves the Stars Still Need to Make Before the Season

3. Keep Jordie Benn... in the AHL

A familiar face returned to the Stars this preseason, sort of. The organization issued a professional trout to veteran defenseman Jordie Benn, who recorded 71 points across 302 games with Dallas between the 2011-12 and 2016-17 seasons.

On one hand, many fans are feeling nostalgic over seeing Benn back in a Stars jersey. On the other hand, it just doesn't make sense to have him in the NHL.

It's been six years since the Victoria, BC native last played for us and a lot has changed since then. He spent most of his 2022-23 campaign playing with the American Hockey League's Toronto Marlies, marking his first AHL stint since the 2012-23 NHL lockout.

He's also slower than he was seven years ago and he just turned 36 back in July, so I doubt he'll find a way to get faster. Considering how we already have Ryan Suter clogging up the backend with his lack of speed, we don't need to make things slower by adding Benn to the mix.

I wouldn't mind Benn starting in the AHL and coming up when the injury bug strikes, but nothing more than that. There's no reason why he should be the seventh D-Man over someone like Joel Hanley, especially when the latter has more upside.

Reunions and nostalgia tours are fun, but they can also be blinding. The Stars don't need anything or anyone slowing them down — literally, in this case — from making a play for the Stanley Cup.

Let's start Benn in Austin and let him prove that he deserves a crack at the NHL again.

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