Are There Any Trades Left for the Blackhawks?
It’s been a busy couple weeks for the Chicago Blackhawks’ front office. BUSY. But now that the dust is settling in the wake of Patrick Kane being traded to the Rangers, the trade deadline is still two days away. So… is anyone else leaving? Let’s look at a few potential trade candidates and size up what the market might be for them.
A few thoughts before we dive in: Jason Dickinson has had a really good season for the Blackhawks but he’s banged up right now. I’m not sure the Blackhawks are interested in moving him or that they would get adequate return for him. Similarly, guys like Jarred Tinordi and Alex Stalock have played well above their salaries this year but their injury concerns may be too much of a detriment for a deal to happen.
Max Domi
There were some rumors that the Colorado Avalanche were understandably interested in Max Domi as a possible rental to fill their void at second-line center. It appears that ship has sailed; the Avs traded a second-round pick to Washington for Lars Eller on Wednesday.
There could still be a good market for a center winning 54 percent of his faceoffs with 18 goals and 31 assists in 60 games in a walk-year, but I’ve heard rumblings that there could be an extension for Domi in Chicago to be part of the bridge core to the next generation.
Connor Murphy
The market for defensemen has been ridiculous this year, so it makes sense that people would be talking about Murphy. With three additional years of term at a very reasonable $4.4 million, he’s a solid middle-pair defenseman who brings some leadership to the room.
We’re all still waiting for the Coyotes to trade Jakob Chychrun, though. And the longer that plays out, the more teams have looked elsewhere. Which could be a good and bad thing if you’re looking for the Blackhawks to get a deal done for Murphy.
Edmonton got their defenseman last night; the Oilers made a massive trade with Nashville for Mattias Ekholm. And David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period is reporting the Ducks will sit both John Klingberg and Dmitry Kulikov tonight. He reports Carolina is looking for depth on the back end.
I’m in the camp that Murphy has been a really good leader in the room for the Blackhawks and you need that — especially for the rest of this regular season. With three years of term left, the opportunity to move him is not exclusive to the deadline right now.
Andreas Athanasiou
Athanasiou, like Domi, signed a one-year, $3 million deal in Chicago for this season to re-invent himself and boost his career for the next contract. His 14 goals in 59 games represent his best output since he scored 30 for the Red Wings during the 2018-19 season.
Speed is his calling card, and he has plenty of that. He’s done a great job of creating high-danger chances this season but could probably have 5-7 more goals if he had finished more frequently when he got to the net. That said, if a team is looking for a relatively affordable middle-six player with dynamic speed, he could be a late-Friday move before the deadline.
Caleb Jones
Here’s a wild card. Jones, 25, signed a $1.35 million qualifying offer to stay with the Blackhawks this season. Thursday night will be his 52nd game this season, which will be his new career-high. And head coach Luke Richardson has openly appreciate his versatility on the blue line (and, one time, as a forward) with the injuries, young players and moving pieces.
As an RFA this coming summer, there’s some level of control an acquiring team would have with Jones. And, at just 25, he’s still young enough that there’s more growth to come from a player who was never utilized well by the Oilers before he was traded to Chicago in the Duncan Keith trade.
Considering the number of prospects the Blackhawks have coming on the blue line, he might be a piece the Blackhawks could look to move because of that versatility and his affordable cap hit. However, with his brother being the most expensive active player on the Blackhawks’ roster, trading him might be more politically complicated in the organization than simply moving a player to get another asset back.
