With the current market for a rental defenseman appearing to be a second-round pick, the Blackhawks need to find a suitor for the 27-year-old Gustafsson.
The NHL trade deadline is just four days away, and the Chicago Blackhawks and General Manager Stan Bowman have been surprisingly quiet to this point. A streaky last month of play has made it tough for the Hawks to decide whether to be buyers or sellers, but after losing seven of their past eight contests, the front office should be ready to sell.
A handful of defensemen have been traded in the past couple of days, and the majority of them have fetched a second-round draft pick in return. That’s good news for the Blackhawks, as there was worry that the market for defenseman Erik Gustafsson wouldn’t even be a third-rounder.
Of course, the Blackhawks likely would have received a first-round pick if they moved Gustafsson at the trade deadline last season, but a second-rounder isn’t horrible. If there’s a team willing to swap a 2020 second-round pick for Gustafsson, Bowman NEEDS to pull the trigger. The Hawks are currently without a second-round pick in the upcoming draft after Bowman traded it along with two additional picks to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Andrew Shaw.
After recording 60 points (17G, 43A) in 79 games during his break-out campaign last season, Gustafsson has only six goals and 20 assists through 59 games this year. With his contract set to expire in the summer and Dominik Kubalik, Robin Lehner, AND Dylan Strome all needing new deals as well, the Hawks just don’t have enough money to bring back the Swedish blueliner.
Also, the Blackhawks still have a bit of a logjam on the backend within the organization. With Ian Mitchell and possibly a couple of other defensemen looking to make the jump to the NHL in 2020-21, there isn’t enough room for Gustafsson going forward.
Gustafsson’s contract shouldn’t be an issue in trade talks, as his current deal carries a minimal $1.2 million cap hit. The Blackhawks more than likely would not have to retain any salary if Gustafsson does get moved.
According to Craig Custance of The Athletic, at least four teams have shown interest in Gustafsson. The Vegas Golden Knights are one of those teams, but they just added Alec Martinez from the Los Angeles Kings to their blue line in exchange for two second-round picks. The odds of Vegas parting ways with another second-rounder seems unlikely.
Time is ticking for Bowman and the Blackhawks to get something done, and remaining stagnant would be a huge mistake. Even if Gustafsson doesn’t draw a second-round pick in return, a third-rounder is better than losing him for nothing in the offseason. It’s time for Bowman to realize that this season is likely lost and start thinking about the future.
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