NEW YORK — As of Tuesday, there are 86 days until the NHL trade deadline. It might even feel longer than that for the Blackhawks.
The speculation around Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews’ futures began in the offseason and has only continued through the season. That isn’t about to cease, either, unless the Blackhawks really turn their season around. If their current trend continues, they’ll be firmly out of playoff contention sooner than later. You would think that would impact Kane and Toews’ thought process.
From Kane and Toews to everything else, this is what I’ve been hearing about the Blackhawks as of late.
• You don’t want to read into everything, but it sure seems like Kane is giving more and more thought to his future. He mentioned Friday that he’ll likely speak with his agent, Pat Brisson, and Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson soon. Kane said after Saturday’s game that making a run at Stan Mikita’s Blackhawks points record wouldn’t weigh into his decision.
• The Blackhawks are open to trading Kane and Toews, but it doesn’t sound like their front office is convinced Kane and Toews will actually ask to be traded. It’s one thing to put a lot of thought into being moved, it’s another to ask to execute it. Time will tell, but the Blackhawks are prepared for Kane and Toews to ride out this season in Chicago. The Blackhawks aren’t going to pressure them into leaving.
• There is a belief within the organization that Kane is more likely to leave than Toews. Kane will be Kane wherever he goes. Toews’ identity within the Blackhawks goes beyond just what he does on the ice. He takes his role as team captain seriously, and that changes if he goes somewhere else.
• Brisson went through a similar situation just last season with Claude Giroux as he was deciding on whether to leave the Philadelphia Flyers after a long career there. Brisson might have learned a thing or two to pass on to Kane and Toews now.
• A Western Conference executive thought Kane and Toews would take their time to decide where they’d end up. It’s not just about going anywhere.
“They’ll want to see who’s legit to win the Cup,” said the executive, who gave their opinion about another team’s players under the condition of anonymity. “It’s still early to see who’s in the mix. You can say Colorado now, but who knows if they have some injuries that affect that. The Rangers could miss the playoffs. I don’t think those guys want to just go make the playoffs.”
• One interesting aspect of Kane and Toews’ futures is their contract situations beyond this season. The Western Conference executive thought Kane could get somewhere in the ballpark of his current $10.5 million cap hit on a short-term deal. The executive thought Toews would have to take a large salary cut.
“I would think it’d be in the $2 million range with incentives,” the executive said. “It’s not going to be salary based. It’ll be bonuses and making the playoffs. I love the player. He’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer and a legend in Chicago, but it’s just about where he’s at.”
• The Blackhawks would love to get high draft picks, maybe even first-rounders, in exchange for Max Domi and Andreas Athanasiou, but it doesn’t seem likely now. The market isn’t there, at least yet. The Western Conference executive thought Domi and Athanasiou could fetch third- or fourth-rounders.
“It really depends,” the executive said. “Teams could get desperate. Everyone else might have too much of an asking price. Domi probably has higher value than Athanasiou.”
• Kane, Toews, Domi and Athanasiou are probably the most likely players to be dealt by the Blackhawks. Other possibilities include Jack Johnson and Jujhar Khaira because they’re on expiring contracts. Connor Murphy was mentioned by a few scouts prior to the season, but with three years left on his contract after this one, that seems unlikely.
“It’s easy to say,…
Read More: Blackhawks rebuild: What I’m hearing about Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews trades