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The Dallas Stars are currently playing in the Western Conference Finals for the third straight season. While the Dallas Stars are focused on trying to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, soon they will be focused on the offseason. The Stars have multiple high-quality free agents. We look at the three best destinations for Dallas Stars center Matt Duchene in this 2025 NHL Free Agency season.
Duchene experienced a career resurgence in Dallas. After struggling in three of four years in Nashville, he has been solid in Dallas. In 2023-24, he scored 25 goals, adding 40 assists, good for 65 points. Then, this past season, he scored 30 goals and added 52 assists, good for 82 points. Duchene led the Stars in assists this year and points, while also sitting third in goals this season. Further, he has been solid on the power play, with eight goals and 19 assists.
Last season, Duchene decided to stay with the Stars before hitting free agency. The Stars will be in contention to re-sign Duchene once again, but other teams will be looking to sign Duchene as well. Duchene is expected to have a big payday on this contract, with an expected AAV of $7 million according to Cap Wages.
Duchene returns to Dallas again
Matt Duchene has already returned to Dallas once, and a reunion in Dallas is not outside of the question. Duchene came back to Dallas on a team-friendly deal to stay with a cup contender, and could do so again. His $3 million salary this year was well below the market average. Further, the Stars need team team-friendly deal. Currently, they are projected to have just $4.5 million in cap space heading into next season. Jamie Benn comes off the books, and the Stars may look to re-sign him as well. Still, Mikko Rantanen and Jake Oettinger take large pay bumps this year, and it may be difficult for Dallas to re-sign Duchene.
Still, Duchene may be willing to take a decrease in pay. Dallas has a team at the level needed to win a cup. Duchene has yet to win a Stanley Cup, and the closest he has come is with Dallas. Further, he is coming off one of his best seasons of his career. His 52 assists were a career high, while his 82 total points were the second highest total of his career.
Duchene signs in Montreal
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The Canadiens will look to be aggressive in the free agent market this offseason. They made the playoffs for the first time since losing in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2021. Still, they lost in the first round in five games to the Capitals. The top line of Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield was great this year. Both players had over 30 goals and 70 total points. Further, both players are young, with Suzuki turning 26 this offseason and Caufield turning 25 during the season. An exciting young core may be attractive to Duchene, who did look at signing with Montreal in the past. Duchene does not add youth, but will add depth.
Duchene can play both on the wing and at center. While he would most likely not take the spot of Juraj Slafkovsky on the top line, Duceñe would add a major scoring option on the second line. Brendan Gallagher was the top option on the second line, as he had 18 goals and 33 assists. Montreal is expected to have over $21 million in cap space this offseason, which will be enough to not only bring in Duchene but also take care of some of their free agents as well.
It is a reunion in Columbus
It is expected to be an aggressive offseason for the Blue Jackets, who are willing to trade their first-round picks. They could also look to bring in Matt Duchene. Duchene spent part of the 2018-2019 season with the Blue Jackets. After being traded from the Senators, Duchene spent 23 games with the Blue Jackets. He scored four goals with eight assists in his 23 games. He helped the Blue Jackets earn a playoff birth and would upset the Lightning in the first round before falling to the Bruins. Duchene was great in the playoffs for Columbus, scoring five goals and adding five assists as well.
Further, Duchene would fit well on the second line for Columbus. With Sean Monahan, Kirill Marchenko, and Boone Jenner taking the top line, Duchene could fit in with Adam Fantilli and Kent Johnson on the second line. Johnson was third on the team in points this past year, giving the Blue Jackets two full lines of scoring options. The Blue Jackets also have plenty of cap space. While they need to re-sign Ivan Provorov and Sean Kuraly, they do not have many other major free agents. Further, Columbus is expected to have one of the largest amounts of available money this offseason. They are expected to have almost $43 million in cap space.
