The biggest question for the Blackhawks and the future of the franchise really doesn’t go beyond the date of March 3rd. For non-hockey fans, March 3rd this year is the annual NHL trade deadline. Any team looking to be a buyer or seller in the player market has until March 3rd to make any deals for the rest of the regular season. With big name trades already in the headlines, the Blackhawks have been remarkably silent for a team embracing the “rebuild” mantra.
The future of the Central Division has already been rocked with the St. Louis Blues making marquee trades in the past week. As a key divisional and geographic rival, the Blackhawks have been affected by the Blues’ trade moves as they traded away franchise stalwarts Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko to two Eastern Conference teams making definite playoff runs- the Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Rangers, respectively. The Vancouver Canucks started the annual trade deadline party off with another marquee trade when they sent team captain Bo Horvat to the New York Islanders. Emotions and sentiments aside, the National Hockey League is a sports business and trading away iconic players is just a necessary part ot this business.
Will the Blackhawks do anything before the March 3rd trade deadline?
Well, folks, this is the million dollar question right now. I’ve previously discussed the obvious trade bait scenarios where both Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are gone from Chicago to some other teams looking to find an edge in the Stanley Cup playoffs this spring. Maybe GM Kyle Davidson is playing the waiting game to see what the trade market will bear in terms of pricing and value – the Canucks and the Blues know they’re in melting ice when looking at their playoff hopes this season but marquee trades can affect the future of a franchise for years to come.
The trades of Bo Horvat, Vladimir Tarasenko and Ryan O’Reilly already impact the values placed on any potential trade that the Blackhawks can hope to offer other franchises. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are already legends in Chicago and will go down in Blackhawk history as some of the greatest to play for this organization-that is not in doubt. What is in doubt, however, is their current trade value. Both are approaching the twilight of their playing careers so another Stanley Cup run needs to come-fast. Both players have No Movement Clauses (NMC) in their contracts so any trades have to be officially approved by the players themselves. What this means is don’t expect Kane to head to Anaheim or Toews off to Columbus unless they personally sign off on the trade negotiations (no offense to the Anaheim Ducks or Columbus Blue Jackets implied.)
If not Kane or Toews, then who?
Well, that isn’t the million dollar question but it could be worth $999,999.00 if you get the answer to that question correctly. The biggest Blackhawk name that still comes to mind is Max Domi. Why would you be willing to trade away the one player who’s making the biggest impact for the Blackhawks this season? On the surface, it makes perfect sense to keep Max Domi around as part of the rebuilding process and hope he develops into a team leader-a role he seems destined for anyways. Domi is having a great season and why trade away a piece of the rebuilding puzzle at this time?
The answer is simple – Domi is at the heart of it a rental player. Signed by the Blackhawks this season to a one-year contract, Domi was probably never looked upon to be a permanent solution to the Blackhawks’ rebuilding program but maybe a litle bit of a positive spark this season. Domi’s value speaks larger than his statistics this season in the fact that he helped the Carolina Hurricanes win a playoff game with a game-winning goal last year. That factor alone makes Domi a bi-time potential trade prospect. Of course, having a fantastic season won’t hurt Domi’s trade value either.
At this point, it’s anyone’s guess as to who the Blackhawks will trade or will they just ride out the season and begin their real rebuild this coming summer? The only big race that this organization is in right now is the Connor Bedard or any other top draft pick race and for that consolation prize, the Blackhawks have steep competition from Anaheim and Columbus on the ride down to the NHL basement. Maybe a marquee trade in the right direction will send a signal that this franchise wants to move in the right direction.
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