For the past few seasons, buyout talks have lingered within the Dallas Stars organization. Every time the offseason have come around, there have been speculations about the Stars buying out a certain player.
And every time, the talks were directed towards the crease, specifically at Kari Lehtonen. Ever since Lehtonen put together a pathetic run in the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs (.885 SV%, 3.29 GAA) which contributed largely to the Stars being eliminated in the first round, his legitimacy as a contending starter have been in question.
After 2014-15, which happened to be one of the worst seasons of Lehtonen’s career statistically, fans wanted his head on the chopping block.