Now that all the Stanley Cup celebrating has died down to a low rumble, the Blackhawks have no time to waste getting back to hockey business. The Blackhawks will attend the National Hockey League draft in Florida, beginning this Friday night. Stan Bowman, and company, have 7 picks but only 1 in the first 90, thanks to the acquisitions of Antoine Vermette and Kimmo Timonen. The only pick they have, is the compensation pick they received for the loss of Kevin Hayes, last spring.
Based on Stan Bowman's history, one would be left to believe that he is looking to acquire some early picks, while shedding some extra salary. Of course, this would have to come by Friday evening. This is where the Blackhawks currently sit in the draft:
2nd - 54 CHI (Comp)
3rd - 91 CHI
4th - 121 CHI
5th - 151 CHI
6th - 164 CHI
6th - 181 LAK (For Carcillo)
7th - 211 CHI
It is no secret to anyone that the Blackhawks will need to shed some salary to re-sign their prized RFA, with the salary cap announced today to be $71.4 million. The most likely trade-able candidates that Stan Bowman has at his disposal are Patrick Sharp and Bryan Bickell. These two players would clear the most salary and leave the "smallest" holes in the line-up, or least amount of tangible carnage.
Bryan Bickell was a noticeable non factor in the playoffs, which was his only saving grace the last two seasons. You can bring any cheap slobbering gorilla in, if hits are all you're looking for. Hits alone are certainly not worth $4 million a year. It was flaoted today that the Arizona Coyotes might be interested in Bickell. Please, do the Hawks this favor.
Patrick Sharp will be a more difficult loss. Despite the alleged personal issues, he is a popular guy with the team, an alternate Capitan, and fan favorite. As with all businesses, the difficult decisions need to be made. Sharp is 33, and probably on the down slide of his prime, while he has a $5.9 million cap hit. There is just no way he can stay, and this is coming from a Sharpie fan. Most recently, the names of the Florida Panthers, Toronto Maple Leaf, and New York Islanders have been mentioned.
There are several young players that are ready for a crack at the NHL, that would be able to fill in Sharp's third line spot. Of course, you are not going to be able to fill a Patrick Sharp sized hole with just one young player, but if anyone has the talent to spread around, it is the Chicago Blackhawks. Some of the names you might want to get used to seeing are Artemi Panarin, Ryan Hartman, Mark McNeill, Philip Danault, Garrett Ross, or maybe even Kyle Baun. Depending on the role, any of these players could be skating for the Blackhawks this fall.
Some other players that could possibly packaged up and sent away are Kris Versteeg, Antti Raanta, and even Andrew Shaw, if the situation called for it.
As far as filling the roster going forward, and aside from Sharp and Bickell, the Blackhawks return Toews, Kane, Hossa, Versteeg, and Shaw. There are also 4 notable restricted free agents that need to be dealt with. Brandon Saad, Marcus Kruger, Joakim Nordstrom, and David Rundblad are all restricted free agents, which means the Blackhawks have the right to match any deals signed elsewhere. Stan Bowman will do anything necessary to bring Saad back and will probably do his best to re-sign Marcus Kruger. Kruger would be an excellent bottom six center to have back, especially with his defensive skillset. Unless he signs some insane offer sheet, Kruger could be back.
The Blackhawks defence is another situation altogether. They return Keith, Seabrook, Hjalmarsson and van Riemsdyk. Oduya, Rundblad, Cumiskey, Timonen, and Rozsival will probably not be back. Young players like Stephen Johns or maybe even Ville Pokka will be available to fill some skates, but I have to think that there will be a veteran, or two, looking for a last hurrah to fill out the back end.
Goaltending is set for a while with Corey Crawford and #LemontNativeScottDarling signed for at least 2 more seasons, and Antti Raanta signed through this season. I would expect to see a veteran AHL guy to compete with Mac Carruth (RFA), if he is qualified, in Rockford as the backup. Rumors have been swirling that Anders Nilsson wants to come back to the US, but he wants to be in the NHL.