The Chicago Blackhawks already traded Connor Murphy. These five could follow him out the door.
The Chicago Blackhawks made their first trade of the deadline season. They sent Connor Murphy to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a second-round pick in 2028. Chicago also retained 50% of Murphy’s cap hit, which likely played a key role in getting a good draft pick out of the Oilers.
Now, the Hawks have an extra asset to use in the future, however they choose, and the Oilers landed a solid penalty-killing defensive defenseman. Now that General Manager Kyle Davidson made one move, more are expected in the coming days.
There are five more Blackhawks players who are considered to be candidates as Friday’s trade deadline approaches. These players could follow Nick Foligno out the door:
Jason Dickinson
Jason Dickinson is the forward most likely to move. He is a veteran center who wins face-offs, defends well, and scores timely goals. Although nobody would ever mistake Dickinson for an offensive player over being a defensive-minded guy, he has shown the ability to chip in at a high-end third-line level.
Dickinson also brings a fair amount of leadership qualities to a locker room. He is not afraid to stick up for teammates, play tough, and speak to the media when the time calls.
There are plenty of playoff teams with a two-headed monster down the middle that would love to fill in the third-line center spot. If he needed to play on the fourth line, a team would really be flexing its muscles.
Nick Foligno
Over the weekend, Nick Foligno said that the Blackhawks needed depth scoring to help out Connor Bedard. He came out in the next game and scored a goal, which played a big role in the Hawks getting the win.
That is the act of a good hockey captain. Although he is a bottom-six forward at this stage of his career, Foligno has qualities that make him a valuable teammate both on and off the ice.
Foligno has been a captain in two NHL markets. Although he won’t be a captain wherever he goes, he will join the leadership group right away because he’s that type of person. Contenders need guys like that beyond the guys wearing letters on their sweaters.
Matt Grzelcyk
Matt Grzelcyk could be traded because he’s a pending unrestricted free agent. He could also not be because of the fact that teams might not give up much to get him. A third-pair offensive defenseman isn’t going to be worth high-end draft capital when better players are out there.
There are always guys like Grzelcyk, however, who move for little to nothing at the deadline. A playoff-bound team may see Grzelcyk as someone worth having around in case their number one offensive guy gets hurt.
If Grzelcyk does stay in Chicago beyond the deadline, he will be the oldest of the defensemen by far. With Connor Murphy gone, it’s an even younger bunch based on average age.
Ilya Mikheyev
Ilya Mikheyev is the player on the Blackhawks who is in trade rumors, but should probably just be extended. Having one solid veteran forward who can kill penalties, be hard to play against, and make smart hockey decisions can be hard to find.
In addition to being one of the best penalty killers in the league, Mikheyev is good for 15-20 goals a season. All of them will be at even strength, too, because he barely gets power-play ice time. He knows his role, and he executes it flawlessly.
Kevin Korchinski
Kevin Korchinski wasn’t truly on anyone’s radar until Elliotte Friedman mentioned his name on his podcast. Elliotte doesn’t mention names for no reason. You can assume that Korchinski is at least on the block.
Unlike the other players on this list, Korchinski is not a pending free agent. He is a younger player who is still considered a prospect to some. His problem is that he’s been incredible in the AHL but lackluster in all of his NHL stints.
The things that Korchinski does well, Sam Rinzel and Artyom Levshunov also do well, if not better. Rinzel and Levshunov are also better defensively, which sets Korchinski behind.
Another team may take a chance on a former 7th overall pick with all of the talent in the world, especially a defenseman. It is unclear what a trade involving Korchinski may look like, but his name is among the few who could be on the move from this team. A change of scenery could be good for all involved parties.
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