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Chicago Blackhawks: 3 Florida Panthers free agents to steal

By Vincent Parise

SUNRISE, FL - JANUARY 17: Patric Hornqvist #70 of the Florida Panthers gets into position for a tip in attempt in front of Goaltender Collin Delia #60 of the Chicago Blackhawks at the BB&T Center on January 17, 2021 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)
SUNRISE, FL - JANUARY 17: Patric Hornqvist #70 of the Florida Panthers gets into position for a tip in attempt in front of Goaltender Collin Delia #60 of the Chicago Blackhawks at the BB&T Center on January 17, 2021 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images) /
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Chicago Blackhawks, Alex DeBrincat
(Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images) /

It was tough to watch the Florida Panthers get eliminated by the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games. It was a great series that had some very exciting moments but Tampa Bay was ultimately too strong. Former Chicago Blackhawks coach, Joel Quenneville, was brilliant in 2020-21 and has that team on the rise. It has been fun to see him build them up the way he brought up the Hawks about a decade ago.

Florida has a lot of foundational pieces in place. Studs like Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov lead the way and their depth is amazing. They also have Aaron Ekblad on the back end leading the way there but he had himself a season-ending injury during the regular season. That played a role in them not matching up well with the Lightning because he is so good when he is there. It would be nice to see him return healthy next season.

The biggest key with this team is goaltending. Sergei Bobrovsky is signed to the worst contract in the NHL as he makes 10 million dollars a season to stink. Chris Driedger is very good but we all know Spencer Knight is the future for them. It will be interesting to see how they handle that over the next year or so.

The Chicago Blackhawks might take advantage of some Florida Panthers free agents.

If they are able to tweak the lineup a little bit along with some clean health, Coach Q will have them in a position to go on an even deeper run. There should be a lot of people excited about what that team might be able to over the next few years. With that, they might allow a few free agents to walk over the summer. These are three that the Chicago Blackhawks might consider:

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