Most fans are well aware of the Blackhawks’ shortcomings last season and there are tons of holes on the roster. The core group of players is also getting up there in age. Jonathan Toews is 30 years old, Patrick Kane is 29 years old, Duncan Keith is 34 years old, Brent Seabrook is 33 years old, and Corey Crawford is 33 years old with major injury concerns.
The window to win a Stanley Cup with this group is rapidly closing. 2018 NHL Free Agency officially starts Sunday, July 1st and it could be the last chance to squeeze one more Stanley Cup out of these guys.
The defense was the biggest problem area last season. Besides Keith and Seabrook, there were really no other solid options. The team’s struggles really boil down to a combination of two things, a lack of experience and poor performance across the board.
In my opinion, the team is not going anywhere next season if StanBo and the rest of the management team do not make a splash in free agency. Here is the latest rumor about the Blackhawks’ free agency plans.
Source just now: “no way” Saad is getitng dealt for Faulk. So we got that goin’ for us. Which is nice. Everything else unsettled by Tavares Drama. Hawks getting positive feedback from DeHaan, Hickey, John Moore. Also, have inquired about . . . Roussel.
— John Jaeckel (@jaeckel) June 29, 2018
2018 Offseason Priorities
In a previous article, I had talked about the Blackhawks’ 2018 offseason priorities. I think it is pretty obvious that defense will be the top priority this offseason. This will be the first season in a long time where the Blackhawks will have some wiggle room with the salary cap.
The NHL Salary Cap has been set at $79.5 million this season which is up from $75 million the previous season.
NHL salary cap ceiling set at $79.5M for 2018-19 season https://t.co/Itpej2eBaQ pic.twitter.com/2KEM3GAQQA
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) June 21, 2018
The Blackhawks will have $9.2 million in cap space and could possibly free up an additional $5.275 million if they are able to unload Marian Hossa’s contract to a team looking to get to the NHL salary cap floor. This would leave them with approximately $14.475 million in cap space.
How should the #Blackhawks prioritize their cap space, going into #NHLFreeAgency? @BoyleNBCS & @CRoumeliotis discussed what the Hawks can do with what they’ve got at https://t.co/t3v3iguEM6 🎧 pic.twitter.com/HjWviyYUeE
— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) June 28, 2018
Top Offensive UFA Free Agent Targets For Blackhawks
Paul Stastny (C)
Paul Stastny is the next best thing after John Tavares. Stastny led the Winnipeg Jets to a deep playoff run in the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs. He is a 13-year veteran who brings leadership and plays a solid two-way game. I would pair Stastny up with Kane and DeBrincat on the 2nd line. Stastny can also win faceoffs which is something the Blackhawks have struggled with in recent history. He is 32 years old and this will likely be his last big payday. I estimate his value to be somewhere between $5-6.5 million AAV.
Scor Scor Scor Shot Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM S% TOI ATOI FO% Awards 2006-07 21 COL NHL 82 28 50 78 4 42 15.1 1490 18:10 Calder-2 2007-08 22 COL NHL 66 24 47 71 22 24 17.4 1391 21:05 51.0 Byng-15Selke-26 2008-09 23 COL NHL 45 11 25 36 -9 22 9.3 956 21:14 51.8 2009-10 24 COL NHL 81 20 59 79 2 50 10.1 1733 21:24 50.0 Byng-33Hart-23 2010-11 25 COL NHL 74 22 35 57 -7 56 12.2 1460 19:44 53.1 2011-12 26 COL NHL 79 21 32 53 -8 34 11.1 1488 18:50 55.4 2012-13 27 COL NHL 40 9 15 24 -7 14 10.3 774 19:21 52.4 2013-14 28 COL NHL 71 25 35 60 9 22 16.7 1306 18:24 54.1 Selke-16 2014-15 29 STL NHL 74 16 30 46 5 40 11.2 1304 17:38 58.3 2015-16 30 STL NHL 64 10 39 49 3 26 9.7 1226 19:09 56.1 2016-17 31 STL NHL 66 18 22 40 4 36 16.1 1263 19:08 55.7 2017-18 32 TOT NHL 82 16 37 53 1 18 10.1 1501 18:18 54.9 2017-18 32 STL NHL 63 12 28 40 -5 14 8.9 1177 18:41 55.2 2017-18 32 WPG NHL 19 4 9 13 6 4 16.7 324 17:02 53.8 Career NHL 824 220 426 646 19 384 12.5 15893 19:17 53.9
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
James Neal (RW)
James Neal is a power forward who is basically a lock to score 20+ goals every season. Neal plays a relatively balanced two-way game. This would be a plus since the Blackhawks struggled defensively last season. With Neal, you get an 11 year veteran with playoff experience who also fills a leadership role anywhere he plays. Neal would complement Toews and Saad on the 1st line. He is 30 years old with some tread still left on the tires. Neal will most likely be asking for something in the $5-7 million AAV range.
Scor Scor Scor Shot Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM S% TOI ATOI Awards 2008-09 21 DAL NHL 77 24 13 37 -11 51 14.0 1222 15:52 Calder-17 2009-10 22 DAL NHL 78 27 28 55 -5 64 13.5 1419 18:12 2010-11 23 TOT NHL 79 22 23 45 7 66 10.4 1382 17:30 2010-11 23 DAL NHL 59 21 18 39 8 60 13.1 1044 17:42 2010-11 23 PIT NHL 20 1 5 6 -1 6 1.9 338 16:54 2011-12 24 PIT NHL 80 40 41 81 6 87 12.2 1531 19:08 AS-1AS-3Hart-22 2012-13 25 PIT NHL 40 21 15 36 5 26 15.4 699 17:28 AS-8AS-16Byng-62 2013-14 26 PIT NHL 59 27 34 61 15 55 11.3 1089 18:27 2014-15 27 NSH NHL 67 23 14 37 12 57 10.4 1212 18:05 2015-16 28 NSH NHL 82 31 27 58 27 65 11.6 1564 19:04 AS-11Selke-23 2016-17 29 NSH NHL 70 23 18 41 -10 35 11.4 1239 17:42 2017-18 30 VEG NHL 71 25 19 44 -11 24 12.4 1219 17:11 Career NHL 703 263 232 495 35 530 12.1 12575 17:53
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
David Perron (LW)
David Perron is a playmaking winger who finished the 2017-18 season with career highs in assists (50) and points (66). Perron does not bring much to the table on the defensive end of the ice as he has a career 2 +/- rating. I believe he would fit well as a 2nd line or 3rd line scorer. Perron is 30 years old and will likely be asking to be compensated handsomely for setting career highs in Las Vegas last season. I would set his price tag between $4.5-6.5 million AAV.
Scor Scor Scor Shot Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM S% TOI ATOI Awards 2007-08 19 STL NHL 62 13 14 27 16 38 19.1 778 12:33 2008-09 20 STL NHL 81 15 35 50 13 50 9.3 1177 14:32 2009-10 21 STL NHL 82 20 27 47 -10 60 12.0 1325 16:09 2010-11 22 STL NHL 10 5 2 7 7 12 17.2 184 18:25 2011-12 23 STL NHL 57 21 21 42 19 28 18.4 1042 18:17 AS-20 2012-13 24 STL NHL 48 10 15 25 0 44 11.9 864 18:00 2013-14 25 EDM NHL 78 28 29 57 -16 90 12.7 1492 19:08 2014-15 26 TOT NHL 81 17 24 41 -25 62 8.7 1404 17:20 2014-15 26 EDM NHL 38 5 14 19 -17 20 6.8 646 17:00 2014-15 26 PIT NHL 43 12 10 22 -8 42 9.8 758 17:37 2015-16 27 TOT NHL 71 12 24 36 -1 62 8.2 1080 15:13 2015-16 27 PIT NHL 43 4 12 16 -13 28 4.2 665 15:28 2015-16 27 ANA NHL 28 8 12 20 12 34 15.7 415 14:49 2016-17 28 STL NHL 82 18 28 46 -2 54 11.9 1418 17:18 2017-18 29 VEG NHL 70 16 50 66 1 50 12.8 1247 17:49 Career NHL 722 175 269 444 2 550 12.0 12011 16:38
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Riley Nash (C)
Riley Nash had a great season last year for the Boston Bruins. He is 29 years old and set career highs in goals (15), assists (26), points (41), and had a 16 +/- rating. He is more of a 3rd line or 4th line player who plays a similar game to former Blackhawk Marcus Kruger. Nash wins faceoffs at a 48.4% clip for his career. I would estimate his asking price to be somewhere in the $2.5-4 million AAV range.
Scor Scor Scor Shot Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM S% TOI ATOI FO% 2011-12 22 CAR NHL 5 0 1 1 1 2 0.0 53 10:34 31.4 2012-13 23 CAR NHL 32 4 5 9 -4 8 11.1 410 12:48 44.3 2013-14 24 CAR NHL 73 10 14 24 0 29 11.6 925 12:40 45.9 2014-15 25 CAR NHL 68 8 17 25 -10 12 8.5 1109 16:19 50.9 2015-16 26 CAR NHL 64 9 13 22 -5 18 11.8 829 12:57 49.5 2016-17 27 BOS NHL 81 7 10 17 -1 14 5.6 1118 13:48 49.1 2017-18 28 BOS NHL 76 15 26 41 16 18 13.3 1171 15:25 48.4 Career NHL 399 53 86 139 -3 101 10.0 5615 14:04 48.4
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Jay Beagle (C)
Jay Beagle is 32 years old and a 3rd or 4th line center who consistently wins faceoffs. Beagle plays a solid two-way game. He is not necessarily flashy or sexy, but he would shore up the team’s defensive shortcomings and mentor the younger players. I estimate his value around $2.5-3.5 million AAV.
Scor Scor Scor Shot Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM S% TOI ATOI FO% Awards 2008-09 23 WSH NHL 3 0 0 0 -3 2 0.0 23 7:36 38.5 2009-10 24 WSH NHL 7 1 1 2 -1 2 10.0 65 9:16 54.8 2010-11 25 WSH NHL 31 2 1 3 -2 8 7.4 326 10:30 55.2 2011-12 26 WSH NHL 41 4 1 5 -2 23 8.2 486 11:51 57.7 2012-13 27 WSH NHL 48 2 6 8 -1 14 3.6 581 12:06 56.1 2013-14 28 WSH NHL 62 4 5 9 -9 28 6.7 697 11:15 51.7 2014-15 29 WSH NHL 62 10 10 20 6 20 11.9 794 12:49 56.5 2015-16 30 WSH NHL 57 8 9 17 0 24 10.8 799 14:01 58.1 2016-17 31 WSH NHL 81 13 17 30 20 22 13.0 1104 13:38 56.4 Selke-24 2017-18 32 WSH NHL 79 7 15 22 3 16 10.8 983 12:27 58.5 Career NHL 471 51 65 116 11 159 9.6 5858 12:26 56.4
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Top Defensive UFA Free Agent Targets For Blackhawks
There are not too many top options available via free agency this year, but here are some of my favorite options for the Blackhawks. Any of these guys would be a welcome addition to the team.
Calvin de Haan
Calvin de Haan is a steady Top 4 defenseman that the Blackhawks desperately need. De Haan is 27 years old. He plays a physical game and he is not afraid to block a shot. De Haan is coming off of a shoulder injury which could play into the Blackhawks’ hands as he will likely come with a discounted price tag. I am estimating his value to be around $4-6 million AAV.
Scor Scor Scor Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM TOI ATOI HIT BLK TK GV 2011-12 20 NYI NHL 1 0 0 0 1 0 13 13:01 2 0 0 0 2013-14 22 NYI NHL 51 3 13 16 -7 30 1072 21:01 114 104 30 34 2014-15 23 NYI NHL 65 1 11 12 3 24 1236 19:01 140 130 19 44 2015-16 24 NYI NHL 72 2 14 16 3 20 1486 20:38 128 198 19 57 2016-17 25 NYI NHL 82 5 20 25 15 36 1628 19:51 139 190 24 53 2017-18 26 NYI NHL 33 1 11 12 11 8 619 18:45 45 65 14 24 Career NHL 304 12 69 81 26 118 6053 19:55 568 687 106 212
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Ian Cole
Ian Cole is 29 years old and a man’s man on defense. He is as steady as they come and also has playoff experience. Cole plays a physical game and will protect his goalie at all costs. The best thing is that he will not cost the Blackhawks an arm and a leg. I estimate his value to be in the $2.5-4 million AAV range.
Scor Scor Scor Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM TOI ATOI HIT BLK TK GV 2010-11 21 STL NHL 26 1 3 4 6 35 458 17:36 36 37 5 14 2011-12 22 STL NHL 26 1 5 6 7 22 414 15:55 16 27 5 8 2012-13 23 STL NHL 15 0 1 1 -4 10 266 17:45 6 22 1 5 2013-14 24 STL NHL 46 3 8 11 15 31 694 15:05 24 68 9 9 2014-15 25 TOT NHL 74 5 12 17 14 51 1183 15:59 73 99 12 23 2014-15 25 STL NHL 54 4 5 9 16 44 813 15:03 42 63 7 19 2014-15 25 PIT NHL 20 1 7 8 -2 7 370 18:29 31 36 5 4 2015-16 26 PIT NHL 70 0 12 12 -3 59 1207 17:14 122 122 8 32 2016-17 27 PIT NHL 81 5 21 26 26 72 1605 19:49 164 194 32 50 2017-18 28 TOT NHL 67 5 15 20 14 76 1191 17:47 95 116 21 27 2017-18 28 PIT NHL 47 3 10 13 3 52 828 17:37 69 91 10 20 2017-18 28 CBJ NHL 20 2 5 7 11 24 363 18:08 26 25 11 7 Career NHL 405 20 77 97 75 356 7017 17:20 536 685 93 168
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
John Moore
John Moore is more of a stay-at-home defensive defenseman and has stepped up his game offensively over the past 3 seasons. The Blackhawks are definitely in the market for a guy like that. Moore would be a Top 6 defenseman for the Blackhawks. He is currently 27 years old and will be looking for a bit of a pay raise. I am estimating his value to be between $2.5-3.5 million AAV.
Scor Scor Scor Shot Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM S% TOI ATOI HIT BLK TK GV 2010-11 20 CBJ NHL 2 0 0 0 0 0 23 11:29 1 2 0 0 2011-12 21 CBJ NHL 67 2 5 7 -23 8 3.1 1060 15:49 47 70 4 13 2012-13 22 TOT NHL 30 1 6 7 4 7 3.4 400 13:20 38 32 3 4 2012-13 22 CBJ NHL 17 0 1 1 -5 2 0.0 247 14:31 18 14 1 2 2012-13 22 NYR NHL 13 1 5 6 9 5 6.7 153 11:46 20 18 2 2 2013-14 23 NYR NHL 74 4 11 15 7 25 3.5 1134 15:20 59 57 4 27 2014-15 24 TOT NHL 57 2 9 11 -4 30 2.6 929 16:18 77 52 7 23 2014-15 24 NYR NHL 38 1 5 6 7 19 1.8 574 15:06 51 34 2 18 2014-15 24 ARI NHL 19 1 4 5 -11 11 4.8 356 18:43 26 18 5 5 2015-16 25 NJD NHL 73 4 15 19 -12 28 3.8 1448 19:50 93 83 23 42 2016-17 26 NJD NHL 63 12 10 22 -7 39 11.8 1196 18:59 68 61 7 41 2017-18 27 NJD NHL 81 7 11 18 3 47 5.0 1621 20:01 135 105 17 48 Career NHL 447 32 67 99 -32 184 5.0 7811 17:28 518 462 65 198
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Thomas Hickey
Thomas Hickey is 29 years old and is a solid two-way defenseman. Hickey is usually good for about 20 points per season and can also help the goalie out with his shot blocking ability. Hickey would be best suited for either the 2nd or 3rd line of defense. I would expect his pay rate to be in the $3.5-$5 AAV range.
Scor Scor Scor Shot Ice Ice Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS +/- PIM S% TOI ATOI HIT BLK TK GV 2012-13 23 NYI NHL 39 1 3 4 9 8 2.5 658 16:52 27 47 13 17 2013-14 24 NYI NHL 82 4 18 22 5 34 4.2 1547 18:52 72 132 34 57 2014-15 25 NYI NHL 81 2 20 22 -12 26 2.4 1533 18:56 117 136 39 55 2015-16 26 NYI NHL 62 6 12 18 9 30 10.9 1079 17:24 65 90 18 41 2016-17 27 NYI NHL 76 4 16 20 -1 35 4.6 1331 17:31 89 103 16 43 2017-18 28 NYI NHL 69 5 20 25 20 24 5.7 1247 18:04 76 110 14 60 Career NHL 409 22 89 111 30 157 4.9 7395 18:05 446 618 134 273
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
NHL Free Agency officially opens up on Sunday, July 1st at 11 AM CST. Let’s see if StanBo & Co. can make a meaningful signing or two.
