The Lightning have to free up cap space and there's opportunity on a young team like the Blackhawks.
It's tough to predict which free agents or players the Chicago Blackhawks are going to bring in this summer, but the team is going to add. General manager Kyle Davidson has made it clear the Blackhawks have to be better, and I believe they are going to be.
Chicago has a ton of cap space to work with and even though I don't think they will use it all up on additions this offseason, a good chunk will be utilized to improve.
While the Blackhawks have so much room to add, the Tampa Bay Lightning are in a very different position. The team is at risk of losing Steven Stamkos in free agency if he doesn't want to take a big discount to continue playing there. The Lightning have just over $5 million in cap space available and that shouldn't be enough to sign their 40-goal, point-per-game captain.
Bringing back Ryan McDonagh really put a stranglehold on the cap space available to Tampa Bay and the most logical player that could be moved is Tanner Jeannot. The 27-year-old just hasn't really fit in on the team since the Nashville Predators traded him there at the 2023 trade deadline. He has one year left on his deal at $2.665 million. This would make any offseason troubles for the Lightning more manageable having this cap hit off of the books.
Jeannot is a very physical player and just two years ago scored 24 goals and 41 points for the Predators. He has since scored just six goals and 18 points the following season split between Nashville and Tampa Bay, then most recently seven goals and 14 points in 55 games in 2023-24.
I believe that Jeannot is somewhere in between those two type of seasons. He is a third line player at best and would bring a lot more grit to the Blackhawks next season, plus he likely won't cost very much at all since the Lightning are likely looking to move him and free up any space they can.
Nick Kypreos said that if the Lightning move Jeannot, he expects a young team like Chicago or San Jose to be heavily in the mix. This makes sense as there is a possibility of a larger role and easily enough cap space to make anything work on a team like the Blackhawks. On a contender, he mentions that a fourth line role will likely be the only thing that is open.
Jeannot has recorded over 200 hits in all three seasons he's played in the NHL and really mixes things up. The Blackhawks are no strangers to physical play with the likes of Nick Foligno leading the way this season. Jeannot would be a solid piece to have without much expectations to produce offensively. If he does play alright, he can be a trade piece at the deadline if the Blackhawks are out of the race.
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