Dallas Stars Re-Sign Thomas Harley to 2-Year Contract – Hockey Writers – NHL News

Not long after giving defenseman Esa Lindell a five-year extension through the 2029-30 season, the Dallas Stars locked up their last unsigned player, Thomas Harley. The 23-year-old left-handed defender signed a two-year, $4 million contract. He will still be a restricted free agent (RFA) in the 2026 offseason when his new contract expires.

We signed Thomas Harley. 🫡@Shift4 | #TexasHockey

— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) September 18, 2024

In 79 games last season, Harley scored 15 goals and 32 assists for 47 points, boasting 28 assists. He also averaged 21:01 of ice time, a significant increase from his 14:09 average in 40 contests from 2021-22 to 2022-23.

Is Harley Heiskanen’s Longtime Partner?

The Stars’ top defender, Miro Heiskanen, found a new defensive partner last season. He played 619 minutes of his equal-strength minutes with Harley, which was among everyone else on the team. Ryan Suter was just shy of 588 minutes next to Heiskanen, but he was acquired in the offseason, meaning he’s out of the equation. It looks like Harley is going to be one of the best in the business again.

Heiskanen benefited greatly from having Harley by his side (and vice versa, of course). In their time on the ice together, the pair had a 60.0 expected goals percentage (xGF%), which ranked them third of the 60 defensive pairs in the league with at least 500 minutes of ice time last season. In terms of relative xGF% (xGF% Rel), they finished 22nd, which is still pretty good.

When Suter was in the picture instead of Harley, that xGF% only fell to 10th but xGF% Rel dropped to 34th. In terms of generating scoring opportunities overall, the pairing of Harley and Heiskanen was the best. For that reason, it makes sense to see that the duo stays together and is likely to play around the entire 2024-25 season together as long as life allows.

Harley only signed for two years here is a result of the Stars spending money in the offseason (something I will get to) but also because the team forced this young player to prove himself. After all, he only had 40 games under his belt before last season and was only used for deep minutes — a long-term deal would be a huge risk, especially for a contender like Dallas.

Stars prioritize Cap Flexibility

Back in May, I said the following in my contract prediction for the budding outfielder: “Ultimately, Harley and the Stars will have two options: sign a bridge deal, or get a long-term contract out of the way as soon as possible. . One option could give Dallas short-term wiggle room, while the other could extend their Cup window if the price is good enough. “

I predicted this would happen, but it makes sense why the Stars weren’t willing to throw a bunch of money at Harley. Not only is he unproven, but they are trying to win a championship. They lost in the Western Conference Final in back-to-back seasons, proving that they are right up there with the best teams in the NHL.

If Dallas gave Harley an eight-year deal, for example, they wouldn’t have much flexibility next season because the price would be higher. Following this season, Wyatt Johnston will be added—that will be expensive. Instead of reorganizing parts of the team to make room, the assumption here is that there will be enough money to spend to bring back every key player.

At the end of the day, the value here is very good for Harley if he continues to improve his game. In 2026 when his contract expires, the Stars may have to pay a hefty fee to retain his rights.

Statistics courtesy of Natural Stat Trick