The Stars announced the captain signed a one-year deal worth $850,000 on Friday, bringing him back to Dallas for an 18th season as he continues to pursue a Stanley Cup title before his retirement. The contract includes an additional $1,150,000 in potential performance bonuses.
“Jamie’s leadership and commitment to this organization is truly unmatched and he has helped define our culture,” general manager Jim Nill said in a team press release. “He continues to set the standard on and off the ice, and we’re excited to have him leading our team for another season.”
There was much speculation at the start of the offseason whether Benn’s career had come to an end. At the time, Benn said he planned to take some time to think about his decision. However, his coaches, teammates and front office staff were adamant that they wanted him back. Head coach Glen Gulutzan called it “a slam dunk.”
The captain signed a one-year contract last summer worth $1 million to chase the one major accolade he had yet to achieve in his career — winning the Stanley Cup. He earned $2 million in bonuses in a season where he scored 15 goals in 60 games.
Benn faced more adversity than he had in years, missing the first 20 games of the season with a collapsed lung suffered during preseason before suffering a concussion in December.
In the last few postseason runs, Benn has struggled to contribute outside of some costly penalties, prompting many to wonder whether it was time for his career to come to an end. Benn did not record a point in six playoff games and was minus-7 this postseason.
The team made it clear it would be Benn’s decision whether he wanted to return or not. Even as his play on the ice has been far from what it was in his prime, the organization maintains that his leadership is invaluable.
Benn has spent his entire career with the Stars, drafted in the fifth round of the 2007 draft before making his NHL debut in 2009.
He is just the second player in Stars/North Stars history to play 1,000 games. He joined Mike Modano in 2023 and has played 1,252 games, recording 992 points (414 goals and 578 assists).
He reached the height of his career in the mid-2010s when he was named to the NHL’s first All-Star team and won the Art Ross Trophy as the league’s top scorer (87 points) in 2013-14. Two seasons later, he recorded a career-high 89 points and was again named to the first All-Star team in 2015-16.
Benn also won Olympic gold, representing Team Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the last time NHL players participated in the Olympics before this year.
In his prime, Benn was known for his scoring abilities but has also developed a reputation in the latter half of his career as a physical forward that no team liked to play against.
Benn has proven especially durable, playing in 371 consecutive games from 2021-25 before missing a game on April 3, 2025, for the birth of his son Knox.