Stars sign drafted winger Charlie Paquette for 2026-27 depth</final
Texas added a 6-foot-2, 207-pound winger who scored 70 goals in junior and could quickly become a middle-six name in Cedar Park.
Charlie Paquette looked worth the bet because Texas did not just buy size, it bought a 20-year-old winger with a scoring track record, a captaincy résumé and enough physical frame to fit the next wave of the Stars’ development model. The Texas Stars signed Paquette to a standard player contract for 2026-27, a one-year AHL deal that keeps Dallas’ NHL rights intact without forcing the club into a three-year entry-level commitment.
That makes the move feel bigger than routine depth. Paquette, listed at 6-foot-2 and 207 pounds and from Essex, Ontario, arrived with 192 points in 323 Ontario Hockey League games and a clear upward arc that Texas could not ignore. Dallas took him 222nd overall in the seventh round of the 2025 NHL Draft after he posted 70 points, including 37 goals, in 68 games with the Guelph Storm. For an organization building toward a 2026-27 identity, that is the kind of low-risk, high-upside profile that can shape a roster before training camp even opens.
Paquette’s value was not a one-year surge. His NHL player page shows a steady climb from seven points in 54 games in 2021-22 to 17 in 2022-23, 35 in 2023-24, and 70 in 2024-25. He opened 2025-26 as Guelph’s captain and kept producing, finishing with 36 points in 36 games before a Jan. 4 trade to Brantford. In Bulldogs colors, he added 27 points in 29 games and then chipped in 11 more in 15 playoff appearances, a useful sign for a player Texas is banking on to handle both production and pressure.
That combination of size, leadership and offense is what makes Paquette a player to track quickly in Cedar Park. He has already shown he can score as a junior leader, then adjust midseason without losing his pace. Texas also brings him in at the right age curve, with room to grow into a pro role over the next two seasons rather than being treated as a finished product. If the offense translates, Paquette could compete for a middle-six AHL wing job and eventually work his way into a heavier, net-front role that matches the way Texas seems to be assembling its future.
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