Chicago Blackhawks: Three defenseman team must consider in free agency
By Ryan Sikes
Who could the Chicago Blackhawks target in free agency to shore up the blue line?
As part of the NHL’s return-to-play plan, the unrestricted free agency period will officially begin on July 1. And according to Spotrac, the Chicago Blackhawks will have approximately $17M in available salary-cap space, second-most in the league.
Breaking down the positional spending, defenseman consist of approximately 24 percent of the Blackhawks total salary cap allocations, highlighted by Duncan Keith‘s $5.5M AAV and Brent Seabrook‘s $6.9M AAV. And yes, the team’s defense during the 2019-2020 season was better than in recent years, but they were still on pace to allow more goals than they scored.
The Blackhawks have done a nice job of drafting young talent on the blue in Adam Boqvist, Nicolas Beaudin, and Lucas Carlsson, but they could use another veteran guy to shore up some of their issues as the young kids continue to develop. So while the primary focus ahead of the Blackhawks is their first-round matchup with the Edmonton Oilers, once the free agency period is open, several attractive names must be considered.
Tyson Barrie – Toronto Maple Leafs
Tyson Barrie will soon turn 29 years of age, and he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs last offseason after the emergence of several young, promising defenseman on the Colorado Avalanche. With the Leafs, Barrie scored five goals with 34 assists for 39 points, primarily playing on the third line.
He’s a big part of Toronto’s power-play unit and scored a goal on 11 chances. Carrying a cap hit of $5.5M last year, he’s likely to garner a three to a four-year deal at a $6M AAV.
T.J. Brodie – Calgary Flames
Brodie recently turned 30 years of age, and he’s spent his entire career thus far with the Flames after being taken in the fourth round of the 2008 NHL Draft. Between the 2013-2014 and 2018-2019 seasons, Brodie tallied at least 30 points. Through 64 games before the shutdown, he scored four goals with 15 assists for 19 points with a +7 rating.
While not really a factor on the power-play, he was ranked as the 27th best defenseman in the league. Brodie is much better than several of the other candidates in free agency and is coming out of a five-year, $23.3M ($4.7M AAV) contract. The Flames have less than $2M available to them, so they’ll be saying goodbye to several key contributors, including Brodie.
Torey Krug – Boston Bruins
The Bruins enter free agency with approximately $4.2M in salary cap space, so they’ll be limited in who they can keep. Aside from Alex Pietrangelo – who the Blackhawks likely don’t stand a chance at signing – Krug is the next best option. He was reportedly close to signing an extension to remain in Boston for the foreseeable future, but a recent string of injuries could have the Bruins thinking otherwise.
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In 61 games this year, Krug scored nine goals with 40 assists for 49 points, including two power-play goals on 26 chances. Regardless if he remains in Boston, Krug is likely to fetch a $6M AAV contract in free agency. The two-time All-Star comes with a ton of playoff experience and would serve as another mentor for the young kids on the Blackhawks roster.