The Dallas Stars rewarded General Manager Jim Nill on Monday with a two-year contract extension.
Nill was voted the NHL’s general manager of the year after his moves were instrumental in the Stars reaching the 2023 Western Conference finals.
The 65-year-old Nills will be with the team through the 2025-2026 season. He has been with the Stars for 10 years and has said he wants to work out a succession plan with owner Tom Gaglardi.
Dallas made the 2020 Stanley Cup finals.
“Jim has proven himself to be one of the best general managers in the NHL,” Gaglardi said in a statement to The Dallas Express.
“He has meticulously built a team through free agency, trades and the NHL draft that’s among the best in the league, while also ensuring that the Stars are championship contenders for years to come.”
Nill’s top draft pick in 2021, Wyatt Johnson, now 19, emerged as a standout for the Stars this season. In the 2017 draft, Nill picked defenseman Miro Heiskanen and goalie Jake Oettinger in the first round and high-scoring forward Jason Robertson in the second.
“My family and I are grateful to Tom Gaglardi for his commitment to the organization and giving me every resource available to build this team,” Nill said.
“I’m fortunate to have an incredible team of individuals alongside me that have worked tirelessly behind the scenes to help build our team into what it is today. I’m excited to continue my work in developing a winning culture and reaching our shared goal of winning the Stanley Cup.”
Last season, the Stars scored 108 points and a record of 47-21-14. Nill was responsible for hiring Coach Pete DeBoer, who became the second coach in NHL history to reach the conference finals with four different franchises.
Nill is a native of Alberta, Canada. He joined the Detroit Red Wings’ front office in 1994 after three seasons with the Ottawa Senators. He played nine seasons as a right wing in the NHL, appearing in 524 regular-season games.