WING AT ALL COSTS?
Hawks need one, but GM Bowman more likely to make lower- profile addition
A little less than three weeks ago, Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said it was difficult to get a feel for who might be available at the trade deadline Feb. 29 because of how many teams were on the playoff bubble.
“The biggest thing is, you’re not quite sure what’s available around the league,” Bowman said. “At this point, there’s a lot of clustering in the standings. And in order for trades to happen, you have to have teams that are willing to look toward next year.”
Two weeks away from the deadline, not a whole lot has changed. Are the Hurricanes willing to part with pending unrestricted free agents Eric Staal and Kris Versteeg when they’re only three points out of an Eastern Conference wild- card spot? Are the Coyotes looking to move talented winger Mikkel Boedker while in a three- way tie for ninth place, only five points out? Have the Jets finally given up on a lost season, and do they have no choice but to move Andrew Ladd after signing Dustin Byfuglien to a five- year, $ 38 million contract?
These are the questions other teams must answer heading into the deadline. As for the Hawks, they face different questions: What do they need? What can they afford? And what are they willing to give up?
As constituted, the Hawks have the talent and experience to win their second consecutive Stanley Cup and their fourth in seven years. This isn’t even a question.
But the Hawks are far from a perfect team. They lack depth up front, have three rookies and two aging veterans in the mix on the blue line and have only one top- tier left wing, Artemi Panarin.
The Hawks need a top- six left winger to play alongside Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa ( assuming Hossa comes back relatively soon from the apparent left leg injury he suffered Saturday). Seeing how lost the Hawks’ offense looked without Panarin for two games this week underscored just how shallow they really are. How they play in Hossa’s absence for the next few games will be telling, too.
And given Erik Gustafsson’s suddenly inconsistent play ( coach Joel Quenneville scratched him Saturday, an alarming sign), the Hawks also could use a veteran No. 4 defenseman. But even with a little more than $ 2 million in cap space, they probably can’t have both.
The smart move would be to get a winger. Seemingly half the league is in the market for a defenseman, and the price could be too high for the Hawks to compete for the Canucks’ Dan Hamhuis, the Oilers’ Justin Schultz or the Flames’ Kris Russell.
But there are wingers to be had. Ladd is particularly tantalizing given his Hawks history, but his $ 4.4 million cap hit complicates matters. Would Bowman be willing to part with pending unrestricted free agent Andrew Shaw to make it work? Would he ( foolishly) give up 21- year- old Teuvo Teravainen if the Jets would take Bryan Bickell’s contract off their hands?
The Lightning would want at least one high- end young player back for disgruntled 20- year- old Jonathan Drouin. The Coyotes might want a bounty for Boedker. The Flames might ask for too much for Jiri Hudler, who’s 32. Besides, Bowman tends to make savvy lower- profile additions, such as Michal Handzus in 2013 and Andrew Desjardins last year.
The Antoine Vermette trade last year was an exception, necessitated and facilitated by the cap space freed up when Patrick Kane broke his clavicle. So maybe an undertheradar veteran such as Versteeg or the Maple Leafs’ P. A. Parenteau can be had on the cheap. Or maybe Bowman stands pat and hopes Marcus Kruger’s pending postseason return makes the difference.
NOTE: The Hawks recalled center Vinnie Hinostroza on Sunday and put Marian Hossa on injured reserve ( not long- term IR), meaning he’ll miss at least seven days. Hinostroza leads the Rockford IceHogs with 10 goals and 17 assists in 41 games.