Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch reports Jamie Benn won't be disciplined for the hit on Columbus Blue Jackets D Fedor Tyutin late in Monday's game. The hit certainly looked worthy of a suspension, but who are we to disagree with Brendan Shanahan. Benn owners have to be happy the Stars center won't miss any more time after his holdout lasted into the regular season. It'll take Benn some time to get up to speed, but he could be in for quite a year once he finds his groove.

Jamie Benn registered an assist in his season debut Monday night against Columbus. It may take Benn some time to get up to game speed, but the Victoria, BC native was still able to deliver a suspension-worthy cross check at the end of the game. Benn really stepped it up last season, scoring 26 goals and adding 37 assists. The 23-year-old is heading into what should be the best years of his career and he'll do it as a Dallas Star.

Jamie Benn has settled his work visa paperwork and will make his season debut Monday night against Columbus. Benn produced career-highs with 26 goals and 63 points in 71 games last season. It may take him some time to get up to game speed, but he should help give the Dallas offense a boost when he returns to form.

The Dallas Stars are working diligently on the paperwork to make Jamie Benn eligible to play on Monday night. "I know Mark Janko [of Stars hockey operations] is working on it, and he's probably working his butt off," Benn said. "I am going to find out later in the afternoon." The Stars are trying to get his work visa cleared, but he's expected to be in the lineup for his season debut if everything goes smoothly. Look for him to play between Loui Eriksson and Jaromir Jagr if he gets the nod to play.

Jamie Benn's status is still up in the air for Monday's tilt as he has not received a visa to work in the United States. Benn is a native of Canada and could not apply for a work visa until he had a signed contract. The former restricted free agent signed his five-year deal Thursday night and while the visa was applied for Friday, government offices were not opened on the weekend so the hope is that Benn will get it before game time tonight. Stay tuned.

Jamie Benn will not make his season debut Saturday night. The recipient of a new five-year deal still has to get his work visa before he can return to action. The hope is that he's in the lineup Monday versus Columbus.

The Dallas Stars have signed Jamie Benn to a five-year/$26.5 million deal. The Stars and their star player finally agreed to the deal five days into the season. The restricted free agent really stepped it up last season, scoring 26 goals and adding 37 assists. The 23-year-old is heading into what should be the best years of his career and he'll do it as a Dallas Star. He may take a while to get going this season but expect a lot out of him in 2013-14.

There are no new updates on the possible signing of restricted free agent Jamie Benn. He has already missed two games and will miss tonight's game unless something totally unforeseen happens. He is practicing at home in British Columbia and should be ready to go when both sides agree to a contract. Stay tuned.

With the regular season starting, Jamie Benn is still a restricted free agent. The Dallas Stars and Benn haven't gone into the specifics of the negotiations, but this is obviously a source of concern. Benn did get playing time with DEL's Hamburg Freezers during the lockout, but he has now missed the entirety of training camp and won't participate in the Dallas Stars' season opener. Given how tightly packed Dallas' schedule is in January, Benn could end up missing a healthy chunk of the season as a result of these contract negotiations.

Dallas Stars owner Tom Gaglardi remains optimistic about his chances of re-signing restricted free agent Jamie Benn in the near future. "We're deeply commited to getting Jamie back in here in time for the weekend," Gaglardi said. "I know Joe (Nieuwendyk) and his group are talking daily with Jamie and hopefully making progress. We're deeply commited to having Jamie in a Dallas Stars jersey for a long, long time. He's a key part of our future. Hopefully, we're going to have some good news in the next few hours regarding that." Don't take the 'next few hours' literally, but the two sides might be close to an agreement.