Chicago Blackhawks: Trade packages for Duncan Keith

4. Washington Capitals

After many years of frustration in the last decade, the Washington Capitals finally won the Stanley Cup for the first time in franchise history. With the likes of Alex Ovechkin, Niklas Backstrom and Evgeny Kuznetsov leading them at the forward position, not many teams in the league can compete with that kind of firepower.

With an elite goalie in Braden Holtby to complement all the firepower, they will look to repeat as Stanley Cup champions in 2019. They have what it takes to do it, but they might look to add a piece. If they were to add something, it would likely be a defenseman.

They have a decent defense led by allstar John Carlson. But like any contender, adding a piece at that position would be extremely beneficial to everyone. The Washington Capitals would be a perfect fit for Keith. He would fit right in on either the second or third pair. This would be a perfect trade for both teams to make. Chicago would probably do it because they’d be able to receive some value from the Capitals who are in it to win it for this year and likely the next few. It would be good for Washington because they would be adding a former Norris Trophy winning defenseman to their core and that could put them over the edge.

Washington is up against the salary cap, so a roster player would likely have to be a part of the trade. No better option than forward Andre Burakovsky. He has struggled this season and has seemed to not fit in since the Capitals hired a new coach. He was turning into a nice player under former coach Barry Trotz, but he hasn’t found much success this season with new coach Todd Reirden.

The Blackhawks have been known to revive the careers of some young players who need a fresh start. And a switch of teams and moving from the bottom six to the top six would probably do wonders for the young forward. Playing in the Blackhawks top six also means you will play with some very good players.

The Capitals have their first round pick this season. They like many teams on this list hope that it ends up being the 31st overall pick, meaning they won it all. That also means they may be willing to deal it away if the price was right.

A combination of Burakovsky and the first with a lower level prospect could be enough for Washington to add Keith to the mix and go on another run to repeating as Stanley Cup Champions.