Trade Winds Are Blowing — But Not in Chicago

Monday morning was filled with trade news, rumors, and Twitter arguments. With the NHL Draft taking place at the end of the week and free agency opening up next week, it's no wonder that this is my counterpart Ron Luce's favorite time of the year. 

Let's check on the pulse of the Chicago Blackhawks news and rumor mill and see what's changed and what insiders are thinking. 

Free Agency - Where is Marner headed?

Rumors continue to swirl regarding this year's top free agent, Mitch Marner. Reports indicate that it's either the Dallas Stars or the Vegas Golden Knights. Further backing my assumption that the Blackhawks are a very unlikely destination for Marner. 

With Marner pretty much out of the picture, the other top free agents of the class are Brad Marchand, Aaron Ekblad, Sam Bennett, Nikolaj Ehlers, Brock Boeser, and John Tavares. Ben Pope, in his recent article, indicates that the Blackhawks will inquire about those players, but that's about it. 

Marchand and Bennett will probably stay in Florida. The Blackhawks really don't need Ekblad, who will want a winning team anyway. Ehlers and Boeser are the two players I think Davidson might inquire about, but I don't want them on the Blackhawks because of the term they'll want. Tavares will either somehow stay in Toronto or move on to another winner. 

From the sounds of Pope's article, the Hawks might add a couple of veteran spot-fillers. This team is supposed to be about the kids next season, right? With the recent addition of Andre Burakovsky, I'm sure getting tired of seeing veterans added, taking potential roster spots away from the kids.

Will the Blackhawks make a big trade?

With the free agency class looking bleak as far as impact players go, trades are the way to go. But the Blackhawks don't really have anything worth trading. The third overall pick is intriguing to only one team: the Pittsburgh Penguins. We don't want whatever crusty veteran player they have in their garage, which is Bryan Rust.

What about Jason Robertson? With every day that passes, it seems like he's closer to staying in Dallas unless the Stars add Marner, which makes things interesting. But again, the Blackhawks don't have anything the Stars want. 

JJ Peterka? Sounds like that ship has sailed. The Sabres are interested in a top-4 defenseman, according to Frank Seravalli. Why would Buffalo ship off one of their best players when they need to add talent who can impact now?

The Anaheim Ducks traded Trevor Zegras to the Philadelphia Flyers for a low cost. The Flyers sent Ryan Poehling, a 45th pick this year, and a 4th next year. Was Davidson interested in Zegras? Would Zegras even have been a good fit for this team? 

The Blackhawks have no room for Zegras as a center, but as a talented winger for a low price, he could have been an interesting add. Zegras isn't a great player, but two 60-plus point seasons and at 24 years old, it's worth thinking about.