Cap Crunch: Five Blackhawks Who Might Be On the Move

Jim Neveau, Blackhawks Correspondent

When Marian Hossa signed a monster 12 year contract over the off-season, hockey pundits from across the blogosphere assailed the signing as the signal of doom on the horizon. After all, the Hawks had three absolutely huge restricted free agents after the 2009-10 season: Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, and Jonathan Toews.

The albatross of a contract, coupled with deals signed by Brian Campbell and Cristobal Huet a season before, was looked at as a death knell of sorts, because there was absolutely no way, the pundits theorized, that the Hawks would be able to retain the services of all three big RFA’s. The cap space would simply be too much to overcome.

Well, Stan Bowman has let it be known that his course for the future runs through those three players, because all three of them will be signing new contracts in the near future. Toews and Kane are looking at five or six year deals at about $6 million per, and Keith is looking at a massive contract of around 13 years, $72 million.

According to Tim Sassone of the Daily Herald, the Hawks, if they sign the three players to cap hits of about $6 million each, would have 15 players under contract next year for a total of about $60.4 million. For the record, the NHL cap at the moment is $56.8 million. This figure is not expected to go up, and may even go down slightly next season.

Needless to say, this puts the Hawks in a bit of a pickle. They would already be $3.6 million over the cap for next season (assuming it stays put), and that’s without re-signing a slew of free agents, including John Madden, Andrew Ladd, Ben Eager, Colin Fraser, Niklas Hjalmarsson, and Antti Niemi, to name some of the players.

Obviously, the Hawks are going to need to move some salaries to maintain a competitive team on the ice next season, but the question becomes who? Which of these players, some of whom play integral roles on the squad, are going to fall victim to the executioner’s axe this off-season?

Here is a ranking of players who are likely to be moved, with the #5 spot belonging to the least likely amongst potential movers, and #1 being a nearly sure thing.

Author’s Note: Contracts are listed for years remaining after this season

Could Big Buff be walkin' out of town? (photo property of Pam Rodriguez)

#5: Brian Campbell (5 years, $35.70 million remaining)

Words cannot express how difficult it could be to move Campbell’s contract. His reputation as an all-offense/no defense blue liner precedes him, and makes teams uneasy about taking on the money required to acquire him.

On the same token, however, if a team is in desperate need of a puck-moving defenseman who can quarterback a power play with the best of them when his head is right, then a deal could possibly get done.

Teams mentioned as possible suitors for Campbell have included the Senators and the Thrashers, but neither of these teams is foaming at the mouth for a piece of “Soupy”. Blackhawks fans can take heart in the Rangers unloading Scott Gomez and his albatross contract to Montreal, however: it at least means that moving Campbell is POSSIBLE, even if it’s remotely so.

#4: Cam Barker (2 years, $6.3 million remaining)

Speaking of puck-moving defensemen who aren’t exactly known for living up to the “defense” part of their positional moniker, Barker is another one of those on this Hawks team.

The advantage of Barker, however, is his age, as well as his propensity for scoring goals from the line. He may not be the most gifted D-man on that side of the puck, but he certainly isn’t as horrific as Campbell can be, and he has been known to even make good plays on occasion.

The two years left on the deal could be an appetizing solution for a team in desperate need of a power play quarterback on the blue line, or even a squad looking for a D-man who can move the puck even strength, with a wicked slap shot to boot.

#3: Dustin Byfuglien (1 year, $3 million remaining)

Big Buff has come into his own this season, scoring seven goals and establishing himself as a near-lock for the US Olympic team this coming winter in Vancouver.

He has worked very hard on becoming a more two-way player, not only able to dole out punishment in the form of devastating body checks, but also handle the puck with enough finesse that he can feather a wrister at times that looks almost, well, Kane-ish.

Granted, he still has a bit of “cement-hands syndrome” at times, but at his age, and with his physical make-up and offensive prowess, Byfuglien could be a very coveted commodity for a team in need of some size and forward ability.

#2: Kris Versteeg (2 years, $6.16 million remaining)

Another player who has continued to impress this season is Mr. Versteeg. He brings a dynamic game to the ice, able to skate around and make big plays, including a propensity for netting short-handed goals in key situations (he led the league last year in shorties for rookies with four such tallies).

With Kane and Hossa already in the fold for the foreseeable future, the Hawks may feel that they can get rid of Versteeg without losing too much on the offensive side of the puck.

#1: Patrick Sharp (2 years, $8.3 million remaining)

Every once in a while, a trade simply works out spectacularly for a team. The acquisition of Sharp from the Flyers was one of those deals. Acquired for Matt Ellison (now in the KHL) and a third round pick in the 2006 draft, Sharp has had an outstanding career so far in Chicago, notching 97 goals in his  time with the squad, including 36 in the 07-08 season.

With this kind of offensive prowess, and also his leadership qualities that have endeared him to teammates in the Windy City, Sharp will likely be the player most teams are looking at if the Hawks come a-callin’ about saving cap space in the future.

With an average salary of a little over $4 million, Sharpie could very well be on his way out the door in Chicago, and his loss would be a little harder to absorb.

Yes, the Hawks have a fantastic LW in waiting in the person of Kyle Beach (18 goals, 7 assists, and 63 PIM in 18 games with the Spokane Chiefs of the WHL this season), but a player of Sharp’s caliber would be missed dearly.

Jim Neveau is a sports blogger and aspiring journalist who has had work featured on various sites, including foxsports.com. He also writes for a Blackhawks blog entitled paintitblackhawks.com. You can email him questions or comments at jamesneveau@hotmail.com. I Hope you enjoyed this post. As always, leaving a comment below is both appreciated and encouraged. Thanks!

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