The Dallas Stars have signed defenseman Jordie Benn to a PTO that will see the 36-year-old join the team at training camp next month. CapFriendly has reported that Benn will be given a chance to earn a contract with the team that he started his NHL career in 2011-12. The Victoria, British Columbia native is the older brother of Stars captain Jamie Benn who is coming off a bounce-back season and has spent his entire 14-year-career with the team.
Jordie is coming off a season in which he struggled to remain in the NHL. Benn signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs in July of 2022 and seemed poised to be their seventh defenseman. However, he struggled with his footspeed and found himself turning the puck over with an alarming frequency. Benn dressed in 12 games for the Leafs and posted just a single goal and one assist. Toronto demoted Benn and he found himself in the AHL for the first time since the 2012-13 season. He fared better with the Toronto Marlies posting two goals and four assists in 23 games but still struggled with his puck handling.
Benn has never been the quickest of skaters, but he isn’t a bad one. However, like most players pushing 40, he has lost a step or two along the way. He doesn’t offer much offensively but he still reads the game well and can contain opponents when the play slows down.
Dallas likely doesn’t have room for Benn to play in the team’s top 6, however, he could crack the Stars' lineup as a seventh defenceman. Injuries happen, and as teams have shown over the last few years, it’s never a bad idea to have 8-10 NHL-caliber defensemen to rely on in case injuries begin to stack up.
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