Stars GM: 'Very open dialogue' with Robertson as training camp looms

Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill said Tuesday he's in consistent communication with representatives of unsigned restricted free agent Jason Robertson and believes the impending start of training camp will help facilitate an agreement.

"We’re having healthy discussions," Nill said, per Matthew DeFranks of The Dallas Morning News. "We have very open dialogue with his representation. That’s just kind of where it stands."

Nill added: "We're having constant communication, just working through different avenues of the contract. It's negotiations."

Dallas' training camp is set to open Sept. 22, and Robertson, who's established himself as one of the club's best forwards over the past two seasons, is the only Stars player without a contract.

"History has shown any time players miss camp, it usually stagnates their training camp a little bit and their start to the season,” Nill said. "Our goal is to get him here for training camp, yes."

Training camp is especially important for the Stars this fall as it's their first under new head coach Pete DeBoer, who was hired in June to replace Rick Bowness.

Dallas inked its other key RFA, goaltender Jake Oettinger, to a three-year, $12-million contract on Sept. 1. The Stars have $6.3 million in remaining cap space, according to CapFriendly, which might not be enough to lock up Robertson on a long-term deal.

Robertson was the runner-up for the Calder Trophy in 2020-21 and followed his first full campaign with a team-high 41 goals while ranking second on the Stars with 79 points in 74 games.

Dallas drafted the California native 39th overall in 2017.