Updated Landing Spots for the Rangers’ Artemi Panarin Amid NHL Trade Deadline Rumors

The arms race we anticipated happening in the Central Division, thanks to the Minnesota Wild adding Quinn Hughes, hasn’t materialized yet, but with the Colorado Avalanche hitting some snags recently, it’s opened the door for hope, and if the Stars want to seize on that, adding Artemi Panarin would do the trick.

Panarin would give Dallas another dangerous scorer to add to the mix to go along with Jason Robertson, Mikko Rantanen, Wyatt Johnston, and Roope Hintz. With how loaded up the Avalanche and Wild are now, the Stars adding their own elite player via trade would make the playoff positioning race even more intense.

There is some trickiness to this idea, however. With Robertson being an RFA this summer and in need of a new deal, and Rantanen, Johnston, Miro Heiskanen, and Thomas Harley already getting paid or set to be paid in a big way, getting Panarin the new contract he seeks after being dealt is much harder.

Adding Panarin could force Stars GM Jim Nill to decide how they’re going to handle Robertson’s situation and if nothing else, they’re probably looking at that as an offseason top of the to-do list item. That said, flags fly forever, and the Stanley Cup hasn’t been in Dallas since 1999. It’s go-time.