Blackhawks Just A Marginal Part Of Blockbuster Avs/'Canes Trade, But Chicago Still Has To Suffer

Lost amid Friday’s gigantic trade featuring stars Mikko Rantanen and Martin Necas is the team that facilitated the financial part of the deal – the Chicago Blackhawks. The Hawks found a way to add a draft pick – a 2025 third-rounder that was their own they had traded away earlier – as they parted ways with left winger Taylor Hall and retained 50 percent of Rantanen’s $9.25-million salary. But Chicago isn’t likely to be done dealing by or before the NHL’s March 7 trade deadline. And that’s probably for the best, as the Blackhawks are a team whose best days won’t be coming for at least the rest of this season, and likely, well into next season.

For one thing, Chicago’s pending UFAs – one of which was Hall prior to Friday’s trade – are going to be shopped around. Primarily, we’re talking about center Ryan Donato, defenseman Alec Martinez, center Craig Smith and enforcer Pat Maroon. Martinez’ $4-million salary will be the hardest to move, but given his Stanley Cup championship pedigree, he could be a solid pickup and depth option for a true Cup contender.

Meanwhile, Donato has been very quietly enjoying a good year, posting 14 goals and 28 points in 46 games. The 28-year-old’s $2-million salary makes him an attractive option for a Cup front-runner – and, as was the case with Hall, the Hawks aren’t going to be asking for an arm and a leg in any Donato trade. Another mid-tier draft pick is going to be as good as it gets for Chicago GM Kyle Davidson when he moves Donato. And if you’re looking at the macro picture for the Blackhawks, you’ll see that Davidson getting whatever he can for these players is absolutely the right move for the organization.

Certainly, Hawks fans are well aware of how long the road to respectability still is for the Original Six franchise. This isn’t a team that’s merely a player or two away from getting back into the playoff picture for the first time since the 2019-20 campaign. Landing franchise cornerstone Connor Bedard was a foundational addition, and there are also some quality youngsters in the pipeline. But the hard work isn’t close to being over.

The reality for the Blackhawks is that they need at least one or two more elite prospects to build the team around. They don’t necessarily need the first-overall pick this coming summer – although that would be a best-case scenario – but Chicago would do well to add a dynamic blueliner and winger. And you don’t get those types of difference-makers by finishing in the mid-tier of the standings. You get those needle-movers by landing high-end draft picks, and that’s really all the Hawks need to be focused on for the rest of this season. They’re currently the league’s second-worst team with a 15-28-5 record, and those losing ways are bound to continue for them.

With more young talent on board next year, the Blackhawks are likely to start scratching and clawing their way out of the basement of the Central Division. But the rest of this season is more or less a lost cause. They’re going to be playing non-meaningful hockey very soon, if they’re not playing that type of game already.

Some people picked Chicago to take a step forward this year, but we weren’t one of them. It was fairly evident they didn’t have nearly enough skilled depth to push their way into a post-season berth. And now, with the Hall trade, the Hawks have acknowledged the rest of the season is going to be an exercise in looking on the brighter side of things.

To be fair, the future does seem bright in the Windy City, but it took suffering to get them the players they are now building around. And it’s going to take more struggles to fully stock their competitive cupboard before they’re at a point where they can be seen as legitimate playoff contenders. It’s not going to be sunshine and rainbows in Chicago anytime soon, but with the right amount of patience, Hawks fans will eventually see light at the end of the tunnel.

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