The Chicago Blackhawks enter March with a 17-35-7 record. At the bottom of the Central Division, there is no question the Blackhawks are set to be sellers at the trade deadline on March 7.
Chicago needs to add youthful talent in the draft as they continue building around second-year center Connor Bedard.
There has been plenty of smoke surrounding veteran defenseman Seth Jones. At 30, the former No. 4 overall pick by the Nashville Predators in 2013 seems like an obvious piece to move for Chicago.
Per Scott Powers of The Athletic, the Blackhawks are exploring creative ways to try and trade Jones before the deadline. One of the issues with trading Jones is the contract, which carries a $9.5 million cap hit over the final five years.
Chicago Blackhawks: Money or draft capital?
Powers quoted two league sources explaining the Blackhawks’ options if they want to make a trade. General manager Kyle Davidson will need to decide between money or draft capital.
“Five years is a lot of time, but obviously it sounds like the cap is due to rise significantly, so I’d have to think $2 (million to) $3 million is probably the range,” the source said.
Another thought the source had was using a third team, maybe a team that isn’t likely to be a cap-ceiling team in the coming years, to retain Jones’ cap hit and pay it a few second-round draft picks to do so. The Blackhawks have two second-round picks this year and three more in 2025. They could tap into a couple of those. Considering they might get another second- or third-round pick at this deadline still, the Blackhawks could always package a few picks to get back into the second round if they wanted.
Seth Jones should go to a contender
Jones has been with the Blackhawks since he was traded from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Adam Boqvist. Jones signed an eight-year contract extension worth $76 million in 2021.
Jones earned one of his five career NHL All-Star nominations with Chicago for 2023.
A trade would allow Jones to join a postseason contender while allowing Chicago to get his cap off the books while the team rebuilds.
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