PAYDAY! Stars Sign Roope Hintz to Eight-Year, $67.6 Million Extension

The Dallas Stars announced Tuesday that they have signed forward Roope Hintz to an eight-year extension worth $67.6 million. Hintz will carry an AAV of $8.45 million. The contract will go through the 2030-31 season.

"It's nice that I can stay here," Hintz said. "Great city, great fans, great organization, great team. I have nothing bad here, so it's great to stay here." 

Hintz' previous contract was a three-year, $9.45 million deal signed in 2020. 

The 26-year-old Finnish forward was originally drafted by Dallas in the second round in 2015. He has recorded 194 points in 261 career NHL games with the Stars. 

Hintz really broke out as an elite player when he was slotted onto the Stars top line along with Jason Robertson and Joe Pavelski during the shortened 2020-21 season. Playing through an injury that required off-season surgery, Hintz tallied 15 goals and 43 points in just 41 games. 

"He is in the prime of his career," Stars General Manager Jim Nill said. "He is 26 years of age. He's a six-foot-three number-one centerman in the NHL that can skate well, got great skills, and has put up big points. He is a high-demand player, he's a hard player to find."

"They wanted eight years, which he should be asking for, he deserves. We also agreed with that. Then it was just finding the right number that worked for both parties. The eight-year term, that was non-negotiable. We knew that was going to be part of the process with his age and where he's at in his career."

Read More: Stars: Do Not Overlook What Roope Hintz is Doing Right Now

In 2021-22, Hintz recorded career-high numbers with 37 goals and 72 points in 80 games. 

So far this season, he ranks fourth on the team with eight goals and 24 points.  

The timing of the move came as a bit of a surprise, as Hintz does not become a free agent until this summer and the Stars are well against the NHL salary cap. However, the club just went through a bit of a holdout period that caused Jason Robertson to miss all of the preseason and they dealt with contract issues with John Klingberg for the past two seasons.

"We had Roope under contract for another year and then another RFA year, so I knew we had a little bit of time," Nill said. "But also, we now have our corps signed up. As soon as I got through Jake Oettinger's contract and Jason Robertson, they did not have contracts so that was the key to get those guys signed up. And then the next step was Roope. Trying to keep this core together for as many years as we can and that's why we made this move now."  

"We wanted to do something quick if we could," Nill added. "I didn't want this to drag on. It's not easy for players during the season to live through negotiations. We found a common ground that we thought worked for both parties."