Former Stars Defenseman Shining In New Role As Key Blueliner For Maple Leafs
The Dallas Stars are off to a 4-0-0 start to the 2024-25 regular season, but that doesn’t mean there’s not room for a little bit of regret for how roster moves turned out this past summer. And the biggest ex-Stars player who’s making Dallas fans pine for the short time he was a Star is veteran defenseman Chris Tanev.
The 34-year-old Tanev has been everything the Toronto Maple Leafs wanted and more since they signed him to a four-year, $18-million contract that carries an average annual salary cap hit of $4.5 million. Tanev has averaged 19:37 of ice time per game in Toronto’s first three games – nearly the exact same amount he averaged for Dallas (19:13) in 19 games as a Star after being acquired from Calgary last season.
Tanev has yet to register a point this season, but that’s not why the Maple Leafs brought him in. In fact, Tanev has been more or less off the radar of casual fans and hard-core fans alike – and that’s a good thing. The Buds value his physicality, high panic threshold and all-around businesslike attitude he brings to the rink day-in and day-out.
Related: Chris Tanev Named Perfect Match For Stars
Dallas GM Jim Nill essentially replaced Tanev with former Leafs/Sabres/Ducks blueliner Ilya Lyubushkin, and he’s been solid thus far, playing 18:35 a night as the Stars’ fourth-most-utilized D-man. But that doesn’t mean Dallas brass don’t wish Tanev was still around. If there were no salary cap ceiling, the Stars would’ve happily brought back Tanev and built one of the top defense corps in the league.
Dallas still has an above-average group of blueliners, but sometimes you can’t help but reminisce fondly over a piece that fit perfectly with your team. And that’s true of Tanev’s brief stint with the Stars. Both sides have moved on, but as a short-term experiment, Tanev’s acquisition was a great one, and he’ll always be welcomed back by Dallas fans anytime the Leafs are back in Stars country.
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