All Entries Tagged With: "Patrick Sharp"

The road for a Blackhawks trade would seem to lead to Toronto. Although I am hearing no whispers, there does appear to be reason to consider a trade option with the Leafs. As I wrote a short time ago, the Leafs have an abundance of defensemen and are lacking scoring. According to an article in the Toronto Star on Thursday, Leafs general manager Brian Burke also wants to bolster Toronto’s penalty-killing unit.

According to thestar.com, Burke mentioned he received a trade proposal for one of his defensemen Wednesday. He remarked the trade would require the Leafs to take on some salary, but they would receive a forward in return. He is also looking at free-agent possibilities.

By trading Sharp for a young tough defenseman who is not on a long-term deal, Chicago accomplishes a few things. The cap savings for this season could be put to use later on, possibly near the trade deadline. The Hawks could also need the future cap savings from trading Sharp, since he is signed through the 2011-12 season.

My choice from the Leafs would be defenseman Garnet Exelby, whom they recently acquired from the Atlanta Thrashers on July 1. Last year with the Thrashers, Exelby accumulated 120 penalty minutes in just 59 games. He is only signed through the upcoming season for slightly less than $1.4 million.

Maybe Dale Tallon can get Exelby plus a good prospect and a draft pick from Toronto in return for Sharp. If the Hawks do want to make a trade, the Leafs appear to be their best option.

It would be difficult to trade the talented and well-liked Sharp. But this is a transaction both Chicago and Toronto would have to strongly consider.

That’s when they’re going to have to re-sign Group II linchpins Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Duncan Keith.

That’s because — in being forced to give Cam Barker and Kris Versteeg multi-year contracts of nearly $3.1 million per season in order to keep them from being declared unrestricted free agents as a result of management’s negligence — the Blackhawks will not have enough space to remain intact while accommodating Kane, Toews and Keith.

Chicago will have to choose between losing one of those three to an offer sheet, or trading Patrick Sharp, Dave Bolland or Brent Seabrook, none a good option, but necessary because of the general manager’s error.

This is Hawks GM Dale Tallon talking Thursday afternoon: “We’re looking for the right guy, maybe on the back end. We have a lot of assets we can trade.”
This is how I believe the Hawks are going to find that big, physical defenseman they are lacking, via a trade, and Tallon came about as close as he could to confirming it.

The Hawks have a lot of forwards to offer around the league. I wouldn’t be shocked if it was a scorer such as Patrick Sharp or Kris Versteeg that the Hawks at least explore dealing for that “right guy.”
With a serious salary cap issue to deal with after next season, the Hawks can’t keep everyone. Maybe it’s Troy Brouwer they try to move. Dustin Byfuglien might have been a trade candidate before the playoffs, but you need that big body, and if he performs like he did in the postseason, then he is worth his $3 million salary.
Moving a high-priced forward would allow the Hawks to slip either Jack Skille or Kyle Beach into the lineup at lower salary cap hit.