With Marc Methot nearing a return from a knee injury, and the Stars seemingly ready to put Julius Honka in the regular mix on defense, Dallas on Tuesday traded defenseman Jamie Oleksiak to Pittsburgh for a conditional fourth-round draft pick in 2019.
The moves frees up the remainder of Oleksiak's $964,688 salary cap hit and also allows the Stars to carry just seven defensemen. The team has routinely carried eight for the previous two seasons and this one, and would have been back to eight when Methot returns from injured reserve. Now, the team can rotate the seven defensemen they have in the NHL and rely on AHL defensemen like Gavin Bayreuther, Dillon Heatherington and Brent Regner for depth.