As if it wasn’t already good enough that Chris Martenet and his London Knights were headed to the MasterCard Memorial Cup, it was announced on Wednesday that the Dallas Stars signed the big defenceman to a three-year entry-level contract.
The 19-year-old Martenet was taken in the fourth round of the 2015 draft – 103rd overall by the Stars and will have an impact on the Stars lineup down the road. He’s a six-foot-seven blueliner that weighs in at just over 200 pounds – and loves to play the physical game.
In two seasons with the OHL’s Knights, Martenet has 28 points (10g-18a) in 131 regular season games. He also brings 28 OHL playoff games to the table and will now have the chance to increase his experience with the 2016 Memorial Cup tournament.
He brings a lot to the table being an agile skater for a player of his size. While he’s not offensively inclined like his new Stars’ colleague John Klingberg, he does have a powerful shot and knows how to clear the puck with a strong first pass.
Martenet should make for a good top two pairing and will be a tough, defensive-minded NHL defenceman when he does make the jump to the big leagues.