It was announced yesterday that Alex Golisgoski has signed a 4 year $18.4 million contract, keeping him in Dallas until the end of the 2015-16 campaign. Goligoski has been one of Dallas’ standout defenseman this season and is a crucial ingredient in a decent defensive unit that the Stars have formed
Goligoski arrived in Texas after departing the Pittsburgh Penguins at the back end of last season. The Pens received James Neal and Matt Niskanen as part of the deal. James Neal showed a lot of promise as a Star but struggled to be a big points scorer alongside Jamie Benn and Brad Richards and was subsequently traded. A lot of the Stars fan base felt that the trade was a stupid one, but I firmly felt that Alex was just the man that the Stars had missed since Sergei Zubov left Dallas.
In 36 games this year, Goligoski has 5 goals and 15 points and has played a pivotal role in Dallas powerplay. Speaking about the new deal, Alex said, “I am relieved the process is over. It’s really exciting, four years I’m going to play in a place I love, we’ve got a good group of guys here and from the second I got here, I felt really comfortable and liked it a lot. It’s a little peace of mind and one less thing to think about during hockey season, which for me, is emotionally kind of draining.”
It really is a great move from the Stars and Nieuwendyk to secure his future. The American, aged 26, is currently in the prime of his career and should be for the majority of his contracted years. He is currently averaging 22:34 minutes of ice time a game, which is the most of any Stars player, emphasising how big he is to the Stars as a team.
Since joining the Stars and living in Dallas, Alex has expressed how much he enjoys playing at the American Airlines Center and how he has met some great friends and team mates. Alex is very popular in the dressing room and several of his team mates spoke positively about him when asked about his deal.
Goaltender Kari Lehtonen said, “He’s one of the best, tt’s always a solid game that he usually plays. He’s a good skater and most of all, a good decision-maker. He puts the puck in the right places and that helps everybody.” Fellow defenseman Mark Fistric said, “He definitely complements my game really well the way he plays he’s an elite defenseman and it’s great to play with a guy like that, where you can go in the corners, make your battles, win them, and then get the puck to him and he does the rest. He’s a great guy and he deserves it.”
Two young and upcoming defenseman for the Stars, Adam Pardy and Philip Larsen, have both said that Goligoski is a great man to have around the place and has impacted them both positively with their hockey. The Goligoski contract deal has been something to smile about for Stars fans as their team continues to struggle without the services of Jamie Benn and Mike Ribeiro. The Stars take on their divisional rivals the Anaheim Ducks at the AAC tonight with puck drop being at 7.30pm.
