Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Blackhawks Rumors

Blackhawks Not Expected To Pursue Top 2024 UFAs

at CDT | by 1 Comment

There’s been some talk recently about the Blackhawks being big players on the restricted and unrestricted free-agent markets next summer. Not so fast, however, says The Athletic’s Scott Powers, who doesn’t believe the Blackhawks will be in the conversation for top potential UFAs such as current Maple Leafs winger William Nylander.

Powers reports Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson strongly desires to stick to a conservative rebuild plan, allowing the team’s current young talent and expected prospect additions over the next year to develop more before determining what holes the team needs to plug long-term on the free-agent market. In theory, this approach should afford the Blackhawks more cap space after signing franchise cornerstones Connor Bedard and Kevin Korchinski to long-term deals that would begin in 2026, permitting them to dangle more cash to attract marquee free agents when their young core has already done most of the work to return them to playoff contention.

That doesn’t mean the Blackhawks will turn their phones off on July 1, either. Expect their offseason plan to look similar to last summer’s, adding veteran talent on short-term commitments to fill out a 23-player roster that allows prospects they deem necessary for seasoning to see extended action in the minors.

Blackhawks Move Anthony Beauvillier To Injured Reserve

at CDT | by 8 Comments

The Chicago Blackhawks have moved Anthony Beauvillier to injured reserve with a wrist injury. He joins a long list of injured Hawks, including Taylor Hall, Andreas Athanasiou, and Seth Jones. Chicago acquired Beauvillier via trade in late-November, sending a 2024 fifth-round pick to the Vancouver Canucks. He has since played in 15 games with Chicago, scoring six points and recording a -3.

Beauvillier’s performances with the Hawks bring his season total up to 14 points in 37 games. That’s a pace of 31 points across 82 games, a step down from the career-high 40 points he recorded 82 games last season, splitting the year between the New York Islanders and Vancouver Canucks. Beauvillier was a focal piece of the deal that sent Bo Horvat to the Islanders, with Vancouver also receiving Aatu Raty and a 2023 First Round pick. Vancouver then flipped the pick to the Detroit Red Wings for defenseman Filip Hronek.

The Blackhawks are experiencing a brutal losing skid, going 4-10-2 since the beginning of December. They’ve been outscored 62-to-33 in that stretch, with opponents averaging a staggering 33.5 shots each game. They’re experiencing the brunt of all of their missing scoring talent, with four of the team’s top 10 scorers currently inactive. It’s not all bad news, though, with generational rookie Connor Bedard looking plenty comfortable in his first year. Bedard has 15 goals and 33 points through his first 37 NHL games, on pace for 33 goals and 73 points. That’s a fantastic way to kick off an NHL career, and could be room for excitement form Hawks fans optimistic that Bedard’s scoring will only go up as top talents return from injury.

Blackhawks Claim Jaycob Megna Off Waivers

at CDT | by 5 Comments

The Chicago Blackhawks have claimed defenseman Jaycob Megna off waivers from the Seattle Kraken. Megna has served as Seattle’s seventh defenseman since being recalled on December 12th, though his only playing time this season has been through an AHL conditioning stint that saw Megna play two games, score one goal, and record a +3 rating. Seattle traded for Megna at last season’s trade deadline, sending a fourth-round pick to the San Jose Sharks that was used to select defenseman Luca Cagnoni.

Chicago will become the sixth NHL organization that Megna has been a part of, though he’s only played NHL games for three teams – serving out minor league deals with the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche. Megna’s career kicked off with the Anaheim Ducks, who took him with the second-to-last pick in the 2012 NHL Draft. He turned pro quickly, making his AHL at the end of the 2013-14 season. He spent the next four seasons in the minor leagues, capping the stretch off with 27 points scored across 62 games – a mark that remains the most Megna has scored in any league since juniors. Megna played his rookie NHL season two years later, scoring four points and recording 12 penalty minutes across 28 games.

Megna wouldn’t appear in the NHL again until he earned a strong role with the San Jose Sharks for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, playing in 44 and 48 games, respectively. Megna set an NHL career-high of 12 points in the latter season, adding 21 penalty minutes and a +6. He now joins a Blackhawks team that’s depleted of a lot of depth. He’ll look to carve out a role in competition with Louis Crevier and Jarred Tinordi.

Nikita Zaitsev To Return To The Lineup

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports is reporting that the Pittsburgh Penguins have transferred forward Matthew Nieto to the Long-Term Injured Reserve after activating forward Bryan Rust. Nieto has been out of action for the Penguins with a lower-body injury since November 30th and is free to return whenever he is physically able to as he has already exceeded the 10-game, 24-day requirement for LTIR.

Nieto signed a two-year deal with the Penguins on July 1st and has been terrific on the penalty kill but has struggled at even strength as the fourth line has been ineffective when he has been a part of it thus far. In 22 games this season the 31-year-old Long Beach, California native has a goal and three assists. The timing of Nieto’s injury was unfortunate as he was starting to gain traction in the games leading up to him getting hurt.

In other evening notes:

  • Philadelphia Flyers writer Bill Meltzer is reporting that the Flyers have returned forward Alexis Gendron to the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the QMJHL. The 20-year-old had played in 17 games for the Flyers AHL affiliate the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and had posted five goals and two assists. His QMJHL rights were traded by the Gatineau Olympiques to Drummondville on December 30th meaning he will be suiting up for the Voltigeurs for the first time.
  • Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago is reporting that the Chicago Blackhawks are set to welcome defenseman Nikita Zaitsev back to the lineup tonight when they take on the Nashville Predators. The 32-year-old has been out with an illness and will draw back into the lineup in place of Isaak Phillips after a two-game absence. Zaitsev has dressed in 18 games this season and has averaged 15:42 of ice time per game while registering a goal and four assists.

Blackhawks Recall Brett Seney, Place Tyler Johnson On IR

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Blackhawks recalled forward Brett Seney from the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs on Monday, according to a team announcement. In a corresponding transaction, the team moved veteran Tyler Johnson to injured reserve.

This is the first recall of the season for the 27-year-old Seney. The 5-foot-9 natural center has been a bona fide top-six scorer in the minors since turning pro in 2018, but has never been able to truly lock down a full-time NHL role.

After spending the first five seasons of his pro career with the Devils and Maple Leafs, Seney joined the Blackhawks on a one-year, two-way deal with a salary guarantee of $475K prior to last season. He responded with a career-high 23 goals and 31 assists for 54 points in 59 games with AHL Rockford, which resulted in two call-ups in the second half of the season. Skating in seven NHL games with Chicago last year, his most since logging 51 in his rookie season with the Devils in 2018-19, Seney recorded a goal and a -2 rating while averaging 13:08 per game.

In late March, Seney’s strong AHL production earned him a one-year extension with a small pay bump, increasing his salary guarantee to $500K for 2023-24. He’s responded with a slower start in Rockford after clearing waivers during training camp, posting eight goals and 21 points in 29 games, good enough for second in points behind Dave Gust on the struggling IceHogs. However, his -17 rating is the worst on the team, and he’s the only player with more than one point on the season with a rating worse than -10.

Still, he’s one of the better options left in the Blackhawks system to provide a punch to an already-weak offense that’s been destroyed by injuries. Major offseason acquisition Taylor Hall remains out for the season with a knee injury, while Joey Anderson, Andreas Athanasiou and Taylor Raddysh are all also on injured reserve.

Johnson, 33, now becomes the fifth Blackhawks forward on IR. He sustained a right foot injury in yesterday’s game against the Stars, and there is no timeline for his return. The aging Johnson had seen top-six minutes on multiple occasions this season thanks to the team’s rash of injuries and has nine goals and 13 points in 35 games, including a two-goal effort against Dallas last Friday.

He will miss at least the next seven days due to his IR placement, during which period the Blackhawks have four games. He’ll be eligible to return on January 9 against the Oilers.

Reichel May Lose Money On Next Deal

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

  • Lukas Reichel could be set to lose a significant amount of money on his first NHL contract after his entry-level deal, per The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus, who shares that the promising 21-year-old was set for a comfy pay raise from his entry-level contract prior to the season, but now may only receive a cheap qualifying offer as a restricted-free agent after a season of struggles. Reichel has managed just eight points through 34 games this season and currently sits with a -19. And while Reichel continues to struggle, Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson and head coach Luke Richardson both told Lazerus that Reichel has proven he’s an NHL talent, and that a move to the AHL isn’t in the cards yet.

    [SOURCE LINK]

Blackhawks Place Taylor Raddysh On IR, Recall Boris Katchouk

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Blackhawks have made a pair of roster moves this morning as the team announced that they’ve placed winger Taylor Raddysh on injured reserve with a left groin strain.  Taking his place on the roster will be winger Boris Katchouk who has been recalled from AHL Rockford.

Raddysh was a bright spot on Chicago’s offense last season, putting up 20 goals and 17 assists in 78 games in his first season of being a full-fledged regular after coming over from Tampa Bay in 2022.  That was good for a tie for fourth in team scoring.  However, production has been harder to come by this year as the 25-year-old has been limited to just five goals and five assists through 35 games so far despite logging over 16 minutes a night in playing time.  Those numbers will stay put for the time being as with the placement, Raddysh will be out for at least the next week after being injured in the first period last night against Dallas.

As for Katchouk, he came to Chicago in the same swap as Raddysh but hasn’t had the same level of success.  He had 16 points in 58 games last season and was with the Blackhawks for the first couple of months of the year, notching two goals and two helpers in 17 contests before clearing waivers earlier this month.  Since then, he has played in six games with the IceHogs, picking up three tallies and two assists.  He can play in ten games or be up for 30 days before needing to go through waivers once again.

Nick Foligno Open To Extension With Blackhawks

at CDT | by 10 Comments

Before free agency opened up, the Blackhawks acquired the negotiating rights to winger Nick Foligno from Boston as part of the Taylor Hall trade.  From there, they wasted little time signing him to a one-year, $4MM contract, one that many viewed as an overpayment but GM Kyle Davidson clearly valued his potential off-ice contributions as well.

To his credit, the 36-year-old has bounced back nicely this season, already notching eight goals and nine assists through 34 games, good for third on the team in scoring.  One reason for the improvement is the fact that he’s logging more than five minutes per game extra compared to a year ago.  Speaking with Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription link), GM Kyle Davidson indicated that it’s not too early to be thinking about the possibility of an extension and that there’s no reason that they wouldn’t want to keep him around while Foligno himself stated that he’s open to discussing a new deal as well:

I’m definitely open to talking.  We got to move this in the right direction, so I want to be a part of that and helping. It’s great to hear (Davidson has been thinking about that). I’ve really haven’t had a ton of conversation with Kyle on that. But I’m of the mindset right now, I’m just taking it day by day, kind of being in the moment. And if that presents itself, we’ll discuss it with my agent and see if there’s a way forward. But all signs from me right now are I’m really loving everything about this organization and the guys and, like I said, trying to help push this in the direction I expect it to go.

Since Foligno is playing on a one-year agreement, he is ineligible to sign an extension until January 1st; Davidson noted that the two sides aren’t even able to discuss a new deal until then.

Having said that, it certainly would make sense for this arrangement to last a little longer.  Davidson noted how Foligno has shown his value off the ice with a very young roster while on it, he is certainly contributing as well.  The Blackhawks also have the benefit of being able to pay an above-market rate as they are now to keep him around; per CapFriendly, they barely have $35MM in commitments for next season which means they’re looking at roughly $30MM in needed spending simply to get to next year’s cap floor.

On the other hand, an early extension would take away the possibility of moving him at the trade deadline.  Chicago has two of its three remaining salary retention slots available (the other is being used on Jake McCabe) and Foligno at a prorated $2MM price tag (if they retained the maximum 50%) would likely be appealing to some playoff-bound teams.  A contract before the deadline would then take that potential return off the table.

But if Chicago values Foligno as much as it appears they do, getting him to put pen to paper on a new deal in the near future is worth foregoing what would likely be a mid-to-late-round selection in the draft.  Accordingly, it feels like there’s a good chance the two sides will be able to work something out, even if they have to wait a little longer to officially start discussions.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Blackhawks Prospect Roman Kantserov Signs Two-Year Extension In KHL, Isaak Phillips Set To NHL Roster

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

KHL club Metallurg Magnitogorsk announced a flurry of contract extensions Thursday morning, including a two-year pact for Blackhawks right-wing prospect Roman Kantserov. The 19-year-old will remain in Russia through the 2025-26 season, although he wasn’t expected to challenge for NHL ice time before then.

  • Sticking with the Blackhawks, the team converted defenseman Isaak Phillips’ emergency call-up to a regular one today, per CapFriendly. Phillips received his third call-up of the season earlier this month after youngster Kevin Korchinski took personal leave from the team after the death of his father. Korchinski returned to play for Chicago before the holiday break, but Phillips remained on the roster under emergency conditions as Seth Jones, Jarred Tinordi and Alex Vlasic were also sidelined with injuries. Jones remains out, but Tinordi and Vlasic are now healthy. That gives Chicago seven defenders on the active roster, including Phillips. The team’s choice to keep Phillips around instead of returning him to AHL Rockford is notable, given some comments made by head coach Luke Richardson earlier this week. He expressed disappointment in Phillips’ inconsistency despite the player’s belief that he’s ready for a full-time NHL role, calling him a “50-50 player” with some equal flashes of skill and defensive lapses. In 18 games across multiple recalls with the Blackhawks this season, Phillips has five assists and a -6 rating while averaging 18:08 per game. His 44.3% Corsi share at even strength and -3.8 expected rating are rather middle-of-the-pack on a weak Blackhawks roster, and only Jones and Korchinski have put up better possession metrics on the Chicago blueline this season.
  • The Jets brought depth forward Dominic Toninato back up from AHL Manitoba prior to yesterday’s 2-1 loss to the Blackhawks, Jets color analyst Mitchell Clinton relayed. Toninato, who was waived just over two weeks ago, slotted into the lineup against Chicago in the wake of a lower-body injury to David Gustafsson, logging an assist in his first appearance of the season for Winnipeg in 8:23 of ice time. The Jets did not assign Toninato to the minors immediately after he cleared waivers, however, instead waiting until just before the holiday break to do so. Toninato, 29, was a healthy scratch in all 17 Winnipeg games he’d been rostered for this season before last night’s showing.

Latest On Andreas Athanasiou

at CDT | by 4 Comments

  • Chicago Blackhawks forward Andreas Athanasiou has hit a bit of a setback in his recovery from a groin injury, according to NBC Sports Chicago’s Charlie Roumeliotis. Roumeliotis relays word from head coach Luke Richardson who said that Athanasiou’s gym workouts have been shut down, though he plans to start them back up again now that he’s received clarity on the nature of his injury after visiting another doctor. While there still isn’t a firm timeline as to when the Blackhawks can expect to see the former 30-goal scorer back on the ice, it does seem as though that is still a ways away.

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

scroll to top