The Chicago Blackhawks are in a spot they expected to leave behind by now, and that’s what makes their situation so interesting for the Vancouver Canucks. At 4-13-1, Chicago has the second-worst record in the NHL, and the team that was supposed to be climbing out of its rebuild is instead staring at a mess.
Vancouver, by contrast, was built with the idea that this season could go sideways. Chicago was not.
Saturday’s 9-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes seemed to push things into a new phase. After that beatdown, the Blackhawks held a players-only meeting and GM Kyle Davidson met the media, both moves aimed at stopping the slide.
For now, the organization says it has no plans to move on from Davidson, who signed a multi-year extension in April, or coach Jeff Blashill. Still, some kind of change feels inevitable.
That’s where Vancouver comes in. If Chicago wants to try to fix this without making a coaching or front-office change, a trade starts to look like the most realistic path.
The Blackhawks are thin on veteran depth, especially up front, and they also have just over $2 million in cap space. That limits what they can do, but Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman has reported that Chicago has multiple first- and second-round picks “in play” if it decides to swing a deal.
That setup makes the Canucks one of the more obvious teams to watch. Vancouver has low-cap veterans who could help a desperate club, and Chicago looks like a team that needs exactly that kind of addition.
Jake DeBrusk is the obvious name if a team is hunting offense, especially with Chicago sitting as the league’s lowest-scoring team with 39 goals through 18 games. But his $5.5 million cap hit makes him a tough fit for the Blackhawks right now.
A cap swap could theoretically be worked out, with Chicago sending back a pick or prospect and an unwanted contract such as Teuvo Teravainen, but DeBrusk would also have to waive his no-movement clause to join a team that is almost as bad as Vancouver. That feels unlikely.
A more realistic target is Drew O’Connor. His $2.5 million cap hit is much easier for Chicago to handle, and he’s the kind of player the Blackhawks could fit in with a single roster move.
O’Connor has only two goals and five points through 19 games this season, but he has started to pick things up lately, and he scored 17 goals as recently as last year. He also brings speed, effort, the ability to play all three forward spots, and penalty-killing value.
O’Connor has a no-trade clause, but it only covers 12 teams. Chicago might appeal to him because of the chance to land on the top line, possibly with Connor Bedard, in a contract year.
Linus Karlsson is another name that fits the kind of player Chicago might want. The Canucks would be reluctant to move him, but he checks a lot of boxes: low cap hit, high effort, and useful forward depth.
He has been better than O’Connor so far, with four goals and ten points through 19 games, and he doesn’t have trade protection. Because he’s younger, more productive, and signed for an extra year, the price would be higher.
Other possibilities exist, too. Paul Cotter, Brendan Gallagher with salary retention, or even Marco Rossi if money were going back the other way could all enter the picture. But O’Connor and Karlsson look like the two names most likely to draw real interest from Chicago.
If the Blackhawks do come calling, the return would almost certainly be future-focused. And on that front, they have plenty to offer.
Their prospect pool is heavy with highly drafted under-23 players who have not all developed as hoped. Names that could interest Vancouver include Marek Vanacker, Sacha Boisvert, Ryan Greene, Kevin Korchinski, and Oliver Moore.
Chicago also has unsigned prospects such as Xavier Villeneuve and Ryan Roobroeck.
The draft capital is there, too. The Blackhawks could have as many as three first-round picks in the upcoming draft with their own, Florida’s, and Edmonton’s, though the Edmonton pick is conditional. The players discussed here probably wouldn’t fetch a first-rounder on their own unless salary dumping becomes part of the deal, but Chicago also has two second-round picks in each of the next two drafts and two thirds in 2027.
And if Filip Hronek were willing to waive to open trade talks around him, that would change the whole conversation and likely bring at least one first-round pick into play.
For now, the key point is simple: there’s room for a deal here. Chicago needs help, and Vancouver has pieces that could fit the bill.
The Blackhawks are the more desperate side, which gives the Canucks leverage if talks ever get serious. Where that leads is the real question.
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