The Stars had "nearly 4,000 empty seats" per home game last year, but GM Jim Nill yesterday took a "giant step toward filling those seats by adding two former All-Stars" on the opening day of free agency, according to Rick Gosselin of the DALLAS MORNING NEWS. The Stars yesterday traded for Senators C Jason Spezza and signed free agent RW Ales Hemsky. Nill made similar signings last offseason with Cs Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, which, along with a trip to the playoffs, "lured an average of 15,400 fans back into" American Airlines Center. Nill said, "We’re putting hockey back on the map here. I think there are great days ahead for this organization" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 7/2). THE HOCKEY NEWS' Adam Proteau wrote the Stars were one of the "winners" of the first day of free agency. They signed Hemsky to a "very reasonable" three-year, $12M deal, and added RW Patrick Eaves and G Anders Lindback, but their "best acquisition" was the trade for Spezza. Nill made his team "significantly better up front at very little cost to the roster -- and, just as importantly, he’s given up virtually no contract flexibility to do it." That is "as much as you can ask for on free agent day" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 7/1). USA TODAY's Kevin Allen also listed the Stars as the biggest winner in free agency yesterday. They now have a "one-two center combination" of Seguin and Spezza, which is an "important improvement in the center-rich Western Conference" (USA TODAY, 7/2). In Dallas, Mike Heika wrote Nill "made this team much better for next season, and that is worth the risk" of just signing Spezza to a one-year deal. Nill also "opens the door to making it better for several years going forward if Spezza decides to stay" (DALLASNEWS.com, 7/1).
