CHICAGO — One week after Tyler Seguin expressed his disappointment with the lack of negotiations regarding a contract extension with the Dallas Stars, there’s been some movement.
“The update from those comments is there’s dialogue now,” Seguin told Pro Hockey Talk during the NHL Player Media Tour in Chicago on Thursday. “My agent’s talking to our team and I’m hoping to have something here soon.”
Seguin has one year left on a deal he signed six years ago while with the Boston Bruins. Since joining the Stars in 2013, the 26-year-old forward leads the team in goals with 173, one more than captain Jamie Benn. He’s second in points over that stretch with 384. Coming off a career-best 40-goal season, a rich, long-term deal is going to come at some point.
But for the moment, Seguin is going to let his focus go solely to on-ice matters now that the business side of things is getting taken care of. The biggest issue is helping get the Stars back into the playoffs and fixing what went wrong a season ago.
“I think last season, for us, a lot of it was timing,” said Seguin. “Everyone has that one tough trip or tough homestand during a year. Ours came at a time when we couldn’t have it. We lost seven or eight in a row [in March] on the road and that killed us.”
Head coach Ken Hitchcock retired and Jim Montgomery was hired after spending the last five seasons with the University of Denver where he won the 2017 NCAA title. The new bench boss’ style is something that could lead to a turnaround of a season for the Stars, and that has Seguin ready to get going.
“We’ve talked a few times and met when I got back to Dallas. His excitement is definitely something that rubs off on you. That makes me excited,” said Seguin. “It’s going to be a learning curve for our team and for new coaches, especially some that haven’t coached in the NHL yet.
“I’m excited to work with him. He’s going to bring our speed back a little bit and how quick we play, and I think it’s going to work out.”
MORE PHT DALLAS STARS COVERAGE:
• Under Pressure: Tyler Seguin
• Three questions facing the Stars
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Sean Leahy is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @Sean_Leahy.