Dallas Stars sign Magnus Hellberg to one-year, two-way contract

The Dallas Stars announced they have secured some goaltending depth, signing veteran Magnus Hellberg to a one-year, two-way contract.

Hellberg, 33, has been around the block since being originally selected in the second-round of the 2011 NHL Draft by the Nashville Predators. The well-travelled Hellberg saw some NHL action early on during the 2023-24 season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, appearing in three games, recording one win and posting an impressive 2.50 goals against average and .922 save percentage. Hellberg’s 2023-24 season also included stops with the American Hockey League’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and he finished the year with the Charlotte Checkers.

Hellberg’s NHL career spans across seven seasons, including stops with the Predators, New York Rangers, two stints with the Detroit Red Wings, Ottawa Senators and most recently the Penguins. The 33-year-old netminder is a towering presence at 6-foot-6 and holds a career NHL record of 8-8-1, with a 3.06 goals against average and .890 save percentage. He also spent five seasons from 2017-22 playing in the KHL.

At the AHL level, the Uppsala, Sweden native has collected a 100-83-17 record, along with a 2.52 goals against average and .913 save percentage. Hellberg has 15 shutouts over 218 AHL regular season appearances, which include stops in Milwaukee, Hartford, Grand Rapids, and the mentioned most recent games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Charlotte.

Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill adds Hellberg to his goaltending depth after backup netminder Scott Wedgewood signed a free-agent deal with the Predators. Nill has also signed veteran backup Casey DeSmith to a three-year, $1-million AAV contract so it’s quite obvious Hellberg is destined for the AHL and could see some NHL action should DeSmith or Stars’ starter Jake Oettinger go down with injury.

The Stars currently have $6.2 million available in cap space as the offseason winds down. Restricted free-agent defenseman Thomas Harley remains without a contract as Nill likely has this order of business up next on his summer to-do list.