The Dallas Stars had one more chance to send Jacob Peterson to the minor leagues before he would need to pass waivers, so they took it. The team has assigned Peterson to the AHL’s Texas Stars and recalled Matej Blumel, who is off to an outstanding start in North America. Had Peterson played one more NHL game, he would have been waiver-eligible.
Blumel, 22, was an Edmonton Oilers fourth-round draft pick in 2019 but failed to sign with the team before his exclusive rights expired. That made him an unrestricted free agent, and he decided to come to North America following two excellent seasons in Czechia. Through five games with Texas, he has been one of the best players in the AHL, scoring five goals and eight points.
He’ll now get a chance to join a Stars team looking for some consistency out of the lower part of their lineup. Denis Gurianov was made a healthy scratch recently, but several Dallas players haven’t been able to find a groove. Gurianov, Jamie Benn, Ty Dellandrea, Joel Kiviranta, Luke Glendening and Radek Faksa have combined for just three goals on the year, putting a lot of pressure on the top six to carry the load. While Blumel may not immediately change things, a shakeup certainly can’t hurt.
Peterson could have potentially been that answer himself, given he scored 12 goals in limited minutes last season and had played only once so far, but this may be more about protecting the asset than anything else. There will be a time that he gets back into the lineup but for now, the Stars have made the switch, giving him a chance to stay fresh in the minor leagues before his waiver status kicks in.
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