Stars captain Jamie Benn has played over 1,000 games for the Dallas Stars. That’s his entire NHL career. And he’s seen a resurgence under coach Pete DeBoer, helping to lead his team to the upper echelon of the NHL.
After the Stars’ elimination in the Western Conference finals to the Edmonton Oilers for the second-straight year, Benn is having to answer retirement questions. Regardless of his decision, Benn has cemented himself as an all-time player for the franchise.
Here are 10 things to know about Benn.
1. No mercy for On The Bench
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We’re not sure what was better from this video: The hits by Benn and Tyler Seguin or how you can hear the two giggling throughout the whole game.
2. Growing up in Canada
Jamie Benn was born and raised in Victoria, the capital city of British Columbia, Canada. The current Stars captain started playing hockey at a young age when his mother signed him up to play in the popular Canadian youth program TimBits, sponsored by Tim Horton’s.
“My mom threw my brother in TimBits when he was little, I guess she got sick of me one day, so she threw me out there too,” Benn told ThePinkPuck.com.
Montreal Canadiens defenseman Jordie Benn (8) is hit by Dallas Stars left wing Jamie Benn (14) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Dallas, Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017. (AP Photo/LM Otero)(LM Otero / AP)3. Speaking of his brother…
The Benn brothers played together on hockey and baseball teams in their youth on Vancouver Island and have been pretty much inseparable since.
The two were teammates on the Stars for six seasons before Jordie was sent to the Montreal Canadiens. The two faced each other for the first time in Montreal in March 2017. Here’s what Jamie said of the trade:
“Now he can be Jordie Benn and not Jamie Benn’s brother,” Jamie said. “I think this is going to be great for him, and he can move on and move forward with his career. And I’m excited to see what happens with him.”
The two got into a little shoving match during a game in Dallas toward the start of the 2017 season.
The family had dinner before the game where the hit took place, and Jordie presented his parents with Canadiens jerseys to wear.
“It was the same old dinner with the Benn family — a little bit of arguing, a little bit of pictures,” Jordie said. “We were arguing over which jerseys my mom and dad will be wearing to the game tonight. I brought two Montreal jerseys with me, so if they don’t wear them, I’m going to be [ticked].”
The parents were shown in the stands and weren’t wearing either team’s jersey.
Some quick stats about the Benn brothers in Dallas:
— Jordie assisted on a Jamie goal eight times.
— Jamie assisted on a Jordie goal two times.
— Both Jamie and Jordie assisted on the same goal three times.
4. Playoff physicality
This wasn’t one of Benn’s finest moments.
Early in Game 3 of the 2023 Western Conference finals against the Golden Knights, Benn was called for cross-checking Vegas captain Mark Stone, then was given a game misconduct penalty for pushing Stone near the head area when he was on the ice. Benn was suspended from Game 4 and Game 5. The rest of Game 3 wasn’t any better for the Stars. Fans threw debris on the ice.
However, he turned over a new leaf in 2024. He delivered a controversial, but ruled clean, hit on the Colorado Avalanche’s Devon Toews in the second round, which helped set a physical tone in a series the Stars won in six games.
To top things off, in Game 5 of the Stars’ 2025 second round playoff series against the Winnipeg Jets, Benn delivered a left-handed punch to Jets’ Mark Scheifele, which resulted in the Stars’ captain being fined $5,000.
5. Making a name for himself
As a young player, Benn nearly slipped through the cracks and missed his chance at the NHL. According to the Boston Globe, many scouts overlooked Benn because he wasn’t a very strong skater. Passed up by major junior hockey teams in the WHL draft, Benn joined the Victoria Grizzlies of the BCHL for 2006-07 as an 18-year-old in his NHL draft year. He scored 42 goals and finished the season with 65 points in 53 games, impressing the Stars enough to select him with the 129th overall pick in the 2007 draft.
6. Dude Perfect
This whole video is amazing.
7. Showtime
When Benn’s time in junior hockey ran out, the Stars had seen enough to bring him straight to the big club. Benn made his Dallas Stars debut on October 3, 2009, the Stars’ first game of the season against Nashville. He notched his first point on an assist in the team’s second game and scored his first goal in the team’s fourth game of the year. In his 82-game rookie season, Benn scored 22 goals and added 19 assists. He finished seventh in voting for the Calder Trophy.
8. Unusual path to the minors
While Benn never spent time honing his craft in the AHL before making the NHL, he did have an impact on the AHL’s Texas Stars in a short stint. Following his rookie season, Benn was assigned to the AHL affiliate to participate in the Calder Cup playoffs. Benn helped push Texas all the way to the 2010 Calder Cup Final with a team-high 26 points in the playoffs. His 14 goals were tied for a playoff high, but Texas fell in the Final to the Hershey Bears 4-2 in a best-of-seven series.
9. Prank war with mom
It started out with a Valentine’s Day prank by Seguin and Benn.
The moms returned the favor on Mother’s Day.
10. Nearing the end?
The 2025 playoffs marked the third straight season the Stars lost in the third round, as their offense dried up during another deep run.
Benn enters the offseason as an unrestricted free agent, and his future with the team is up in the air. Nill and Stars owner Tom Gaglardi have said there’s a place for Benn on Dallas’ roster as long as he wants it, but during this playoff run, the captain showed he may be nearing the end of his career.
When asked about his future minutes after Game 5 of the Western Conference finals, the answers he gave are what you would expect.
“Any thoughts about your future,” a reporter asked.
“No,” Benn said.
“Do you feel good about your chances of being a Dallas Star for the foreseeable future?” another reporter asked.
“Yep,” Benn said.
Bonus: American Horror Story
Canada’s Jamie Benn (right) celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the Men’s Ice Hockey Semifinal match between the USA and Canada at the Bolshoy Ice Dome during the Sochi Winter Olympics on February 21, 2014. At left is Canada’s Corey Perry, who plays for the Anaheim Ducks. (AFP PHOTO / ANDREJ ISAKOVICANDREJ ISAKOVIC/AFP/Getty Images)(AFP)
Jamie Benn has carved a place in the hearts of many in Dallas for all he’s done — well, except that time he ruined all American hopes of returning to the pinnacle of world hockey. Benn was originally snubbed for a spot on the team and wasn’t invited to orientation camp the summer ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, but earned a spot with his NHL play.
He scored his first Olympic goal with a game-winner against Norway in Canada’s opener. His second was much bigger. In the second period of the semifinal against Team USA, Benn scored on a deflection in front of the net, the only goal of the game to send Canada to the gold-medal match, which it won 3-0 over Sweden.
A side note: The picture above of Corey Perry and Benn is pretty interesting. It was taken in February 2014, before the two were teammates in Dallas. Just two months later this happened between Perry and Benn during the NHL playoffs:
Trevor Daley had his captain’s back when he just absolutely wrecked Perry.
Perry’s actions from that game still cause him to be booed mercilessly by Stars fans today.
The two have fought in a game once since that playoff game…and it happened after the game was over.
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