Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Blackhawks Rumors

Blackhawks Core Not Happy With Chicago’s Rebuilding Plan

at CDT | by 14 Comments

After years of adding veterans to their squad in hopes of fueling a hybrid rebuilding effort to keep the team in contention of a playoff spot, the Chicago Blackhawks have made quite a statement in the last few days, which included opting not to bring back long-time netminder Corey Crawford as well as Saturday’s Brandon Saad trade, suggest that the team intends to start a rebuild. That isn’t sitting well with the team’s core players, especially captain Jonathan Toews, according to The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus (subscription required).

The 32-year-old was a key element to the Blackhawks’ advancement into the round of 16 when the team eliminated the Edmonton Oilers in four games two months ago. He tallied four goals and seven points in that series before Chicago fell to the Vegas Golden Knights in the following round.

“Bottom line is, I want to win,” Toews told The Athletic on Saturday night. “The expectation for the other leaders on this team and myself is to come ready to training camp every year to be a playoff team. We prepare ourselves to win a Cup for our fans. I’ve never been told that we were going through a rebuild. That has never been communicated to me, for that matter. A lot of this comes as a shock because it’s a completely different direction than we expected.”

All four members of the Blackhawks’ remaining core, including Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Toews have made it clear they wanted to stay in Chicago and weren’t going anywhere. Now, just as the team was showing progress that their youth movement, especially from recent play from Dominik Kubalik, Kirby Dach and Adam Boqvist. However, despite an impressive year from the 35-year-old Crawford, the team has decided to allow their young netminders, Malcolm Subban, Collin Delia and Kevin Lankinen to battle it out in the net. The team then sent Saad and most of his $6MM contract to the Avalanche for bruising defenseman Nikita Zadorov.

Lazerus writes that the change comes from the removal of team president and CEO John McDonough during the pause on April 27, who was completely against a teardown of the team. Interim president Danny Wirtz has been more open to the idea of a full rebuild and with an upcoming season with few fans in the stands, this might be the best time to undergo transforming the team.

Of course, all four remaining members of their Stanley Cup core are still under contract for another three years with Seabrook having four more years on his deal. All four players have no-movement clauses in their contracts, but would the team undergoing a full rebuild change their minds on leaving Chicago and waive their no-movement clauses? That’s hard to say as each player likely has a different mindset, although Toews made his stance clear.

“I haven’t been a part of that conversation,” he said. “This has all happened pretty suddenly, but the answer is no. Chicago’s my home, and I want to win here again.”

Colorado Avalanche Trade Nikita Zadorov

at CDT | by 19 Comments

Who needs the free agent market anyway? The Colorado Avalanche have added to their forward group through trade, acquiring Brandon Saad from the Chicago Blackhawks. Sadd will come alongside prospect defenseman Dennis Gilbert in exchange for Nikita Zadorov and Anton Lindholm. The Blackhawks will also be retaining $1MM of Saad’s $6MM cap hit. Zadorov subsequently accepted his $3.2MM qualifying offer for 2020-21.

This is now the second time that Saad has been traded by Stan Bowman, who originally sent him to the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2015 only to reacquire him in 2017 (sending Artemi Panarin the other way). This time he’ll exit just a year away from unrestricted free agency as his six-year $36MM contract winds down.

It also comes after three somewhat disappointing seasons in Chicago, even if there’s not really a lot to complain about with the 27-year-old. Saad is an excellent player who racked up 62 goals and 115 points over those three years, but even more was expected of him after he reached the 30-goal and 50-point marks in Columbus.

Still, the other things that Saad brings to the table shouldn’t be overlooked. He is an excellent puck-retrieval option on the forecheck and protects it well once it is under his control. While he may not have the high-end playmaking ability that is required to be a real star in the NHL, he’ll be another weapon for the Avalanche to deploy in what is now one of the deepest attacks in the entire league.

Avalanche GM Joe Sakic touches on another important factor in the deal, telling Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic:

In Brandon we are acquiring a two-time Stanley Cup champion who brings veteran leadership and experience to our team. He is a proven goal scorer and at age 27, is in the prime of his career.

Saad had two Cups under his let by the time he was 23, averaging more than 20 minutes a game in the Blackhawks 2015 championship. That proven playoff experience is important to a team like Colorado that is attempting to get over the hump.

Not to be forgotten for Colorado is Gilbert, who is heading into the final year of his entry-level contract and played 21 games for the Blackhawks this season. The 2015 third-round pick spent three seasons at Notre Dame and though he doesn’t possess much offensive upside, will serve as some important depth for the Avalanche behind their star-studded blue line.

That blue line of course is losing Zadorov, who has been (rightly or wrongly) one of the faces of the Avalanche franchise since his acquisition in 2015. One of the main pieces in the trade that saw Ryan O’Reilly head to Buffalo, his explosive open-ice hits were immediately met with fanfare in Colorado.

Unfortunately, those hits weren’t surrounded by enough other skills to warrant the kind of ice time that he received early on. Zadorov never did put together much of an offensive game, scoring a career-high of 20 points in 2017-18 and was quickly passed by other more dynamic defensemen in the system. While he has remained a viable option, he was made a healthy scratch several times this season and was obviously headed towards a breakup with the organization

After accepting his $3.2MM qualifying off Zadorov will be well paid, and perhaps he can find a new level to his game. He is still only 25 and will certainly receive enough opportunity on a Blackhawks team that suddenly appears to be in something near rebuild-mode.

After letting Corey Crawford walk, Chicago is expected to go with a young tandem of Collin Delia and Malcolm Subban in net, and haven’t made any substantial additions to the roster through free agency. With just a few years left on the hefty contracts for Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith, a new reality is coming in Chicago.

Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey, Zadorov’s agent, actually broke the news on Twitter

Chicago Blackhawks Expected To Sign Malcolm Subban

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Chicago Blackhawks didn’t qualify Malcolm Subban by this week’s deadline, but won’t be watching the goaltender hit the free agent market after all. Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that Subban is expected to sign a two-year contract with the Blackhawks today. The deal will carry an average annual value “just south” of $900K.

Once again, the Blackhawks have indicated that they expect the trio of Subban, Collin Delia and Kevin Lankinen to compete for both NHL roles in 2020-21. That certainly doesn’t give the team much experience at the position, but Delia and Subban both have flashed the potential to start in the past.

Amazingly, this comes just a year after the Blackhawks started the season with both Corey Crawford and Robin Lehner on the books for a combined $11MM. The team has decided to go the exact opposite route apparently, now spending almost nothing on the position. Delia signed a three-year $3MM deal in Feburary of 2019, meaning he and Subban will total less than $2MM on the cap next season.

Subban, who has a career .899 save percentage in 66 NHL appearances, will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this contract.

Blackhawks, Dominik Kubalik Sign Two-Year Deal

at CDT | by 1 Comment

11:00am: The deal is official now, but comes in quite a bit smaller than expected. Kubalik has signed a two-year contract with an average annual value of $3.7MM.

10:00am: While Chicago is set to lose veteran goalie Corey Crawford in free agency, they’re closing in on a contract with one of their pending restricted free agents.  Mark Lazerus of The Athletic reports (subscription link) that the Blackhawks are nearing a three-year deal with winger Dominik Kubalik with a cap hit within the $3.75MM to $3.9MM range.

The 25-year-old had quite the rookie season after being acquired from Los Angeles, scoring 30 goals along with 16 assists in 68 games, good enough to earn him third place in Calder Trophy voting.  He was even better in the playoffs, picking up four goals and four assists in nine games.

With this being his rookie season, there weren’t many direct comparable players in Kubalik’s situation which certainly would have made these contract talks a little more challenging.  Assuming the deal is done as reported, Chicago will buy an extra year of team control while getting him signed at a second-line rate.  There’s always a risk in making a commitment to someone with as minimal of a track record as he has but if Kubalik can even come close to matching his rookie-season output, he should be able to provide a strong return on that contract.

Chicago Blackhawks Will Not Re-Sign Corey Crawford

at CDT | by 24 Comments

It’s the end of an era in Chicago, as Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman has announced that the team will not re-sign Corey Crawford. Bowman explained it was an emotional decision and suggested that Crawford should be recognized with the great Chicago goaltenders like Glenn Hall and Tony Esposito after winning two Stanley Cups with the organization. Crawford will become an unrestricted free agent tomorrow. While Bowman confirmed Malcolm Subban was not given a qualifying offer (along with Slater Koekkoek, Drake Caggiula and others), the team is hoping to re-sign him to a different contract.

Crawford, 35, will leave the Blackhawks after 497 games in the Chicago crease and one of the most consistent goaltenders of his generation. He has posted a 260-162-53 record over his decade-plus with the team, recording a .918 regular season save percentage in the process. His postseason performances were even better, with two magical runs to the Stanley Cup championship in 2013 and 2015. He was a Vezina candidate on three different occasions, took home the Jennings twice and was named to the All-Rookie team in 2011. There is little that Crawford hasn’t accomplished during his time in Chicago.

If he wants to keep playing (which he does), then he’ll have to try and take that magic somewhere else. After returning from serious concussion issues this season he managed to post a .917 in 40 appearances, creating an excellent tandem with Robin Lehner. Lehner was moved at the deadline and then re-signed by the Vegas Golden Knights, meaning if it’s not Crawford, the Blackhawks will have to look elsewhere for their 2020-21 starter. Collin Delia is still in the organization and under contract, but neither he or Subban are legitimate starting options if the team has plans on returning to the playoffs.

It’s the long list of free agent options that may have cost Crawford an opportunity to return, since the Blackhawks can bet on signing someone else when the market opens on Friday. That doesn’t mean his career is over though, as long as he’s willing to take a backup or tandem role somewhere else. Perhaps even Vegas and a reunion with Lehner would be of interest to him if the Golden Knights can find a way to get rid of Marc-Andre Fleury’s contract.

At any rate, Crawford will bid farewell to the only professional franchise he’s ever known. It was a good run.

Los Angeles Kings Acquire Olli Maatta From Chicago

at CDT | by 12 Comments

The Los Angeles Kings announced they have traded for defenseman Olli Maatta, acquiring him from the Chicago Blackhawks for ECHL prospect Brad Morrison. The Blackhawks will also retain $750K of Maatta’s contract as part of the deal, bringing down Maatta’s salary cap number to around $3.33MM.

“Olli is a well-rounded player who will fit well with our group of defensemen,” said Vice President and General Manager Rob Blake. “He is a young player that already has a lot of valuable NHL experience, including a pair of Stanley Cups, and we look forward to having him join our organization.”

For the Kings, the team just acquired a two-time Stanley Cup champion for practically nothing besides that two year, $3.33MM AAV price tag. Maatta, who originally signed a six-year, $24.5MM contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins back in 2016. While he has struggled with his play the last few years, he still should make an immediate impact with Los Angeles, who needs as much defensive help as it can. After star defenseman Drew Doughty, Maatta likely becomes the second best defenseman on the team as most of their defense is comprised of younger, unestablished players.

Of course, Maatta hasn’t been nearly as sharp since signing that deal, especially considering the original costly $4.1MM AAV. With only two years of more than 20 points on his offensive resume, Maatta has even had some trouble dominating on the defensive side and found himself on the Penguins’ third pairing before they traded him last offseason to Chicago. His play wasn’t much better with the Blackhawks where he put up four goals and 17 points in 65 games. However, Maatta did play better in the playoffs, posting three goals and six points in nine playoff games for Chicago.

For Chicago, it’s a great deal to free up as much cap room. The team has a number of key players it must re-sign, including unrestricted free agent goaltender Corey Crawford as well as the need to work out long-term extensions with restricted free agents Dylan Strome and Dominik Kubalik, who have become top-six players recently.  Because of that, unloading Maatta’s contract was expected to occur at some point. There was some discussion that the Blackhawks had planned to buy out Maatta if they couldn’t find a trade option. With Maatta’s contract (or most of it) off the books, the team now has $11.1MM of available cap space with 16 players signed.

While the loss of Maatta takes away a veteran from the team’s defense, the Blackhawks are loaded with young defensive players who look close to NHL-ready, including Adam Boqvist, Ian Mitchell, Nicolas Beaudin and Lucas Carlsson, amongst others.

Chicago did acquire Morrison, who played 50 games at the AHL level in 2018-19, but found himself in the ECHL with the Fort Wayne Comets where he played just 17 games. A fourth-round pick of the New York Rangers in 2015, has one year remaining on his entry-level contract.

Blackhawks Have Shown Interest In Matt Murray

at CDT | by 5 Comments

Chicago’s goaltending situation appears to be in some question as the Blackhawks and veteran Corey Crawford appear to still have a notable financial gap to bridge for a deal for next season.  Meanwhile, the future of Matt Murray in Pittsburgh has been in question for a while and even more so now with today’s re-signing of Tristan Jarry.  The two teams could wind up providing the answer for each other as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports (Twitter link) that the Blackhawks have expressed some interest in Murray.

The 26-year-old is set to become a restricted free agent with arbitration eligibility next week and in a recent column, Garrioch noted that there’s a sense that Murray’s preference may be to go through that process and become eligible for unrestricted free agency next offseason.  While the acquiring team could certainly try to sign him to a new deal, that particular approach won’t help his trade value which may not be all that high anyway given the other options available in trades and free agency.  Speaking with reporters today including Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review following Jarry’s signing, Penguins GM Jim Rutherford suggested that he expect Murray’s case to proceed towards a hearing:

I would suspect it will be an arbitration case, and we’ll just walk through it as each event comes along.

Murray is coming off the worst statistical season of his career as he managed just a .899 SV% in 38 games (all starts) which allowed Jarry to make a push for more regular playing time, earning himself an All-Star nod in the process.  Although Murray has won two Stanley Cups with the Penguins, it’s clear that the team views Jarry as their goalie of the future and with limited cap space, it will force their hand into moving Murray even though his value isn’t at its peak.

For Chicago, Murray would have the potential to represent a long-term solution between the pipes if he was willing to sign for more than one year this summer.  With Crawford being 35, he’d only represent a short-term fix if he re-signs while none of their options in the minors projects to be a starter at the NHL level.  However, Chicago has limited cap space to work with already with Dominik Kubalik and Dylan Strome likely to gobble up most of that room.  Murray will quite likely cost more than Crawford next year so bringing him in would only increase the amount of money they need to free up this offseason.  But if GM Stan Bowman thinks that Murray is part of the long-term puzzle for Chicago, it’s something that would be worth doing even with the challenges of clearing out cap room in this current environment.

Blackhawks, Corey Crawford Remain Well Apart In Contract Talks

at CDT | by 2 Comments

Both Corey Crawford and the Blackhawks have made it known that there is interest in a new deal for next season but there is a fair bit of work to be done as Ben Pope of the Chicago Star-Tribune reports that there is still a notable gap in terms of what that contract will cost.  While Chicago is believed to be offering between $3.5MM and $4MM, Crawford’s camp is seeking between $4.5MM and $5.5MM to re-up.  Both of those ranges are below the $6MM AAV he played under for the last six years.

The 35-year-old has spent the entirety of his 13-year NHL career in the Windy City and has held a few different roles in that stretch.  He has been the outright starter, the clear-cut number two, and in recent years, more of a platoon netminder.  This past season, he played in 40 games, posting a 2.77 GAA and a .917 SV% while making all nine of their starts in the playoffs.

It’s clear that Crawford can still be an impactful goalie but there are two key issues at play here.  Crawford wants to be a starter again and considering that the Blackhawks saw fit to bring in Robin Lehner last offseason, they may be hesitant to anoint him the clear-cut number one.  The other is Chicago’s cap situation.  While they have more than $7MM in cap room, they also still have winger Dominik Kubalik and center Dylan Strome to re-sign (among others).  The two of them could sign for the majority of that which wouldn’t leave much of anything for a goaltender.

That’s what makes this gap so significant, even though it could be only $500K depending where both sides’ current offers are in those ranges.  In an offseason where the cap has been held flat and many teams are trying to free up money, it’s going to be difficult to clear salary for value.  The less that they have to free up to accommodate a new deal for Crawford (or a replacement), the better.

There’s still a little less than a week before free agency opens up so there is still time for both sides to reach an agreement but as things stand, it certainly appears as if Crawford could be testing the open market for the first time in his career.

Chicago Blackhawks Loan Brandon Hagel To Switzerland

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Chicago Blackhawks forward Brandon Hagel is headed to Switzerland to get his season started. The team announced that they have loaned the young winger to HC Thurgau of the Swiss NLB, the country’s second-tier league. Hagel will be recalled for NHL training camp, where he will look to earn a spot with Chicago.

Hagel, 22, made his Blackhawks debut this season as a first-year pro. However, he appeared in just the one game versus 59 games with the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. Yet, Hagel’s decent production in the minors last year combined with his 100+ point season in the WHL the year before makes him an exciting possibility to crack the NHL roster. Getting a head start in Switzerland will only help his odds of making the opening night roster.

In Thurgau, Hagel will be one of just six players without Swiss citizenship and the only one with NHL experience. He should play a major role for the team and against NLB competition he could produce at a high rate. Regardless of the quality of play, Hagel will simply benefit from playing big minutes in a key offensive role.

Chicago Blackhawks Trade Dylan Sikura

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The Chicago Blackhawks have traded Dylan Sikura to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for a familiar face. Brandon Pirri, who started his career with the Blackhawks, will be coming back to Chicago in the one-for-one deal.

Despite strong numbers in the minor leagues, Sikura never seemed to fit into the Blackhawks plan and has played just 47 NHL games since turning pro in 2018. He’s scored just a single goal in those games and recorded 14 points, not nearly enough for a player of his offensive nature.

In Vegas, perhaps Sikura will be given a bigger opportunity to show what he can do, but that chance wasn’t going to come in Chicago. He’s heading into the final year of his current deal and can become a Group VI unrestricted free agent if he fails to play in 33 NHL games next season.

Pirri meanwhile is a much more proven NHL commodity, though he comes with warts of his own. Now 29, the Blackhawks second-round pick from 2009 has shown an aptitude for scoring goals at the highest level but not a lot else. Pirri has 72 tallies in his 275-game NHL career, but just 49 assists to go with it. In his best offensive year, he scored 22 times with the Florida Panthers and amazingly recorded just two assists.

Technically Pirri will be staying put, given he has spent the last three seasons playing most of his games with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. The Golden Knights have changed their affiliate to Henderson, Nevada, but Pirri could very well stay in Chicago if he can make the Blackhawks roster. He comes on the final year of his contract and carries a $775K cap hit.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top