The Chicago Blackhawks moved so many young pieces but held onto Patrick Kane. So what’s the plan?
The Chicago Blackhawks appear to be in rebuild mode after moving on from young players like Kirby Dach, Alex DeBrincat, Dylan Strome and Dominik Kubalik. However, the team still held onto Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, leaving some confused what the plan actually is.
Patrick Kane is the most surprising here since that’s the next big piece that they must move at one point to get something back for.
A number of teams have inquired about Patrick Kane in recent days, but they've been told a trade is unlikely at this time.
Kane and #Blackhawks have been in continuous dialogue. He'd like to see how season goes, and it would be an in-season move – if at all.@DailyFaceoff
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 13, 2022
The cards are in the hands of Kane, as he has a full no-move clause. This could go one of two ways: Kane decides to stay for the entire season and the Blackhawks get nothing for him which would be a disaster for their rebuild, or he is moved at the 2022-23 trade deadline to a contender and the return is even better than it would be now.
The first would be very harmful for the Blackhawks as they want every solid prospect/draft pick they can get so it can all culminate and help them come out of a rebuild in four to five years. Kane will definitely help them get exactly what they want and even more if they were to take on a bad contract to make room.
The offseason is the easiest time for teams to make bigger moves to send over high paid players to another team. This way they have the time to manage their contracts and money while not in the midst of the season.
Does dealing Patrick Kane at the deadline make more sense?
The other way, dealing Patrick Kane at the deadline, could actually work in the Blackhawks’ favor, but could also harm them overall. He is definitely waiting to narrow down the teams he would accept a trade to and see who the real contenders are for the Stanley Cup.
Teams may be desperate and have an important player injured so they would be willing to add Kane and pay more to do so. The way it could harm the Blackhawks is they have the skill and productivity of Kane in their lineup for a significant portion of their season helping them win games. The Blackhawks do not want to win games and finish as low as they can in what is considered an elite 2023 NHL draft.
The 3-time Stanley Cup winner controls his destiny and the team’s, but the hope is that he doesn’t hurt the Blackhawks in the end.
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