Spoke with a close source today who passed along an intriguing rumor out of Dallas: General manager Jim Nill is "moving forward with an aggressive plan to make over the Stars roster now and in the future, which could include making a push for acquiring the top spot in the 2013 Draft from Colorado in order to select Seth Jones."
While every team in the NHL covets Jones and.... as so often mentioned... Jones' interest in hockey took off in Colorado, he arguably has even stronger ties to the Dallas area. He was born in Plano, TX and was a member of the Junior Dallas Stars youth hockey program in his formative years until joining the USNTDP at age 16.
According the source, "Many in Dallas view Jones as the perfect centerpiece player to truly get Stars hockey back to popularity the team had around the time the team won the Stanley Cup. Jones has the local ties, the talent to be a franchise player and his father's well-known name and tenure with the Dallas Mavericks would make him an even bigger instant celebrity and gate attraction."
Dallas also has a lot of stockpiled assets from which they could put together a package deal, including a pair of first-round picks in this year's Draft (the #10 and either #29 or #30 depending on what Boston does in the Stanley Cup Final), a highly-regarded defense prospect in their own right in Jamie Oleksiak and other fast-rising talents such as forward Alex Chiasson.
Don't be surprised if Dallas makes a heavy push to move up come Draft day. It is going to be awfully tough to convince the Avalanche to give up that top overall pick but there are going to be teams that give it their best shot with trade offers, and the Stars very well could be among the most active suitors.
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