Stars, Flames Swap AHL Defensemen Jeremie Poirier and Gavin White

Dallas and Calgary completed a minor‑league trade that sends 23‑year‑old left-shot defenseman Jeremie Poirier to the Stars organization in exchange for 23‑year‑old right‑shot blueliner Gavin White. Dallas general manager Jim Nill announced the acquisition, and the move is being treated as an AHL‑level roster and development swap with limited immediate NHL implications.

Poirier will be assigned to the Texas Stars, Dallas’ AHL affiliate, while Gavin White will report to the Calgary Wranglers. Neither player has yet reached the NHL, and both arrive in new organizations at a pivotal stage, each is a pending restricted free agent who will use the remainder of this season to audition for a bigger role or a contract push this summer.

Poirier arrives as the higher‑profile prospect on paper. The Valleyfield, Quebec native was a third‑round pick (72nd overall) in 2020 and has built a strong AHL résumé with the Wranglers: 198 career AHL games, 102 points (18‑84, 102) and three Calder Cup playoff appearances (17 GP, 3‑9, 12). He was named to the AHL All‑Rookie Team in 2022‑23 and led the Wranglers with 37 assists in 2024‑25, finishing that season with 42 points in 71 games. This season Poirier has 6 points (1‑5, 6) in 35 games with 24 penalty minutes and a minus‑18 rating reported by Sportsnet. ProHockeyRumors called Poirier “the bigger name involved in the trade, just based on his pedigree as a prospect” and projected that “He’s likely to be Texas’ top power play quarterback, a role he lost with the Wranglers.”

Gavin White is a right‑shot option Calgary has wanted. A Brockville, Ontario product and a 2022 fourth‑round pick (115th overall), White has 118 career AHL games, all with the Texas Stars, and totals 27 points (5‑22, 27). This season he has 5 points (3‑2, 5) in 23 games with a minus‑6 rating reported by Sportsnet. White won back‑to‑back OHL championships, skating for the Hamilton Bulldogs in 2022 and the Peterborough Petes in 2023, and played in the 2022 Memorial Cup final against Poirier’s Saint John Sea Dogs. Calgary media noted team staff are “bullish on his skating ability, his steady style and his big‑game experience.” White is in the final year of his entry‑level contract and will be an RFA this summer.

The trade answers immediate organizational questions for both clubs. For Dallas, Poirier supplies a left‑shot, offensive defenseman who could revamp the Texas Stars’ power play and provide a fresh look for a player who has shown playmaking upside at the AHL level. For Calgary, White bolsters the Wranglers’ right‑handed depth pool, a need highlighted after the Flames moved Rasmus Andersson, though the Herald noted “the Flames have five right‑shot blue‑liners on their active roster, so [White] won’t immediately be a call‑up candidate.”

A curious detail for roster watchers: public sources list two different weights for Gavin White, NHL.com has him at 6‑0, 185 pounds, while the Calgary Herald lists him at 6‑0, 196 pounds. Teams will likely clear any roster or medical questions as White reports to Calgary.

For fans, this is a midseason chess move that matters most at the AHL level. Expect Poirier to be slotted into Texas’ power‑play duties and for White to provide Calgary with a young, right‑shot option with playoff experience. Both players now have a new audition platform heading into restricted free agent summers that could decide whether they remain AHL fixtures or take the next step toward NHL jobs.