June 1, 2025 | 11:58am ET
TheFourthPeriod.com

DUCHENE LOOKING FOR “STABILITY” ON NEXT DEAL

Matt Duchene, forward

Matt Duchene joked that he wants to “keep playing” hockey in the NHL when speaking with the media on Saturday, but whether his career continues with the Dallas Stars remains to be seen.

Duchene, 34, is set to become an unrestricted free agent July 1 after signing back-to-back one-year contracts with the Stars and hopes to keep playing in Dallas, but would like to sign a new deal that comes with more term on it.

“Like I said last year, I’m pretty open about it, I’d like to stay here and make it work,” he said. “I’m in a little different place than I was last year, looking at things. I believe in this group and want to be here. I know how close we are, and I don’t take that lightly.”

After putting up 82 points in 82 games this season, Duchene produced a second-best offensive year of his career, cracking his third 30-goal season and a career-high 52 assists. He admitted he has not yet had contract talks with the Stars, but that should come in the near future.

After losing in the Western Conference Final for the second-straight season – third straight for the Stars organization – Duchene admitted “it was hard waking up yesterday, hard going to bed the night before” and wants to get over that hump next season.

With just under $5 million in overall salary cap, though, the Stars will need to be creative in how they form their roster for the 2025-26 campaign. Keeping Duchene, after the season he just had, will eat up a big chunk of the team’s cap.

“As a family, my kids are getting to the point where you’re looking for stability, so one-year deals are tough,” Duchene admitted. “I don’t know what’s going to transpire and I’ll have to wait and see what’s out here. I feel like I’ve hopefully put myself in a good position.

“I’ve really enjoyed being here and I’ve gotten good feedback about things. Hopefully we can continue to move forward.”