Blackhawks Two Truths and a Lie: Let’s Make A Deal

With a lull on Blackhawks hockey, it seems the right time for a bit of a Blackhawks Two Truths and a Lie. Trade talk will be at the forefront of the next month, with the first of a few deals dropping with the major one out of Calgary.

One of those players, Andrei Kuzmenko, was a player many Hawks fans wanted to see wearing the iconic sweater. Now that he’s off to the Flames, should the Blackhawks and general manager Kyle Davidson look elsewhere?

Or stand pat? Here’s the “Let’s Make a Deal” version of Blackhawks Two Truths and a Lie.

Truth: Kaapo Kakko is Worth Calling the Rangers On

I wrote about this one yesterday but did so weighing the pros and cons. I’m now putting my GM hat on and saying that a call or text to Chris Drury to investigate the asking price is worth it. Kakko will be 23 in a couple weeks, and it’s evident things won’t work out in New York. So how about playing for another big market, with a bit of a dim from the blinding lights of the Big Apple.

Kakko had massive expectations when he skated into his rookie season–no different that Connor Bedard. But unlike Bedard, Kakko has never hit his stride. Coming to Chicago would allow him to reset while also taking much of the pressure and stigma of “not hitting” off and letting him look at things a bit differently. The tough part is seeing Lukas Reichel go through a similar fit, but the situations are a bit different as they’re both different players.

The Blackhawks wouldn’t have to give much up, either, and some reports even have the Rangers potentially eying Tyler Johnson. A good old fashioned hockey trade–with the Hawks retaining salary? Perhaps a draft pick to the Blueshirts to help them save room by sending Kakko’s $2.1M cap hit over?

It’s worth a look–especially with time to spare. Sometimes it’s a change of scenery that helps unlock things.

Truth: Davidson’s Trade History Favors Chicago If a Deal is Made

Whether a big trade or small, Kyle Davidson has been on the right end of things. Whether it’s the Alex DeBrincat trade, Brandon Hagel, or even Kirby Dach, Davidson has moved the needle for the Blackhawks. How about the Jake McCabe traded that netted a first-round pick, too?

But the aforementioned trades from DeBrincat and Dach netted then Kevin Korchinski, Frank Nazar, Paul Ludwinski, and Gavin Hayes. So if Davidson indeed decides to make a deal, there’s some great history behind not only what he acquires but what he gets with those draft picks.

That is of course, if any deals happen at all.

Lie: The Blackhawks Shouldn’t Let the Deadline Pass Without a Deal

So here’s where it’s interesting. The trade deadline, once upon a time, used to be like Christmas Day for hockey fans. With the salary cap and over time, first-round picks being more valuable, it softened the glow of the day. That isn’t to say there haven’t been fun deals–but most of the big ones happen before deadline day (think the Hagel deal three days before in 2022) or in the offseason. Occasionally, there’s one during the season long before the day, like the Calgary-Vancouver one on Wednesday.

So as deals go down, there’s often this angst of teams not active just wanting to make a deal. It’s sports FOMO and isn’t limited to hockey, either. Baseball is notorious for fans itching for a deal–but it’s even more complicated than hockey.

Davidson and the Blackhawks are in a great spot where there’s no need to do anything rash. The big time names on the roster don’t exist like they once did, and even when they did, Davidson waited until the Draft (or even right before it) to make a few deals.

What Davidson could do, is if he’s still seeking to snag some picks or prospects, is to take on some salary in the way of bloated contracts. Heck, Petr Mrazek brought over a first-round pick and has been stupendous just over two years since that. Jason Dickinson had a moderate cap hit of a deal, and had a second-round pick bundled with him–that they’ll use in just four months.

The trade deadline is still fun–but it’s likelier that the more fun deals that grab fans’ attention will be a few years down the road .