Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson continues to express more eagerness to make trades.
If a high-end player becomes available, Davidson has asserted he will try to acquire him.
Over the next several months, that stance will be put to the test. If no high-end players move around the NHL this summer, it will be simply unfortunate for the Hawks, not reprehensible.
But if any high-end players do move, the Hawks need to do absolutely everything within their power to ensure they’re the team to which that player moves.
Davidson has consistently followed through on his words so far in his GM tenure, to his credit. He declared he would undergo a lengthy rebuild, accumulating as many high draft picks as possible and building through youth without rushing the process, and there’s no question he has done exactly that, whether or not fans like it.
Now it’s time for him to not only follow through on his words once again but also swing for fences beyond the relatively low expectations he has set.
“We are always trying to explore options to improve, and we have, and it hasn’t occurred,” Davidson said April 16. “I think we’re far more active in our attempts than people may think, but…it has to make sense, and it can’t compromise the makeup of our group — or the core of our group — that we’ve got here.
“We’re definitely going to explore what’s out there. I don’t think I’m shy to try things. Just nothing has arisen in the last little while to make that happen. But we’re going to look at what we can do to add to the roster, of course. We’ve got a lot of assets, should we find something that is available to us that we want in the trade market.”
Davidson has repeatedly blamed lack of availability for the lack of activity. He’s correct that the past few summers have been less fruitful, due to the skyrocketing NHL salary cap giving teams almost unlimited flexibility to re-sign important players before they reach market.
In terms of the total quantity of notable available players, this coming summer seems equally bleak. Sabres forward Alex Tuch and Ducks defenseman John Carlson are two of relatively few notable free agents who should interest the Hawks.
But there are a number of team-specific scenarios that could, if they play out, seriously shake the league.
What if Stars GM Jim Nill determines he doesn’t have enough cap space to re-sign restricted free-agent Jason Robertson? Or what if the Stars’ dearth of five-on-five goals during their first-round loss to the Wild convinces Nill he can’t win a Stanley Cup with this current core?
What if new Blues GM Alexander Steen shares exiting GM Doug Armstrong’s belief that the Blues need to retool? Armstrong already dangled Robert Thomas at the deadline, and Jordan Kyrou could also join that conversation.
What if Senators GM Steve Staios responds dramatically to captain Brady Tkachuk’s tumultuous season and poor playoff performance and listens to offers on him? Staios shut down that topic during Senators exit interviews, but Tkachuk called the increasing trade rumors a legitimate “distraction.”
What if Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff, after listening to centerpiece goalie Connor Hellebuyck’s despondent exit interview, decide to shake up the league’s most disappointing team from this past season?
How will leadership changes within the Maple Leafs, Devils, Kraken, Canucks and Predators affect those franchises’ directions? The Rangers and Penguins, despite very different results this season, also fall in the same bucket as the Predators as teams with aging rosters staring down difficult decisions.
This is the most unstable the league has been in a few years, although that’s largely because the past few years have been remarkably stagnant in terms of the league hierarchy. The young Canadiens, Ducks, Flyers and Sharks’ rises this year indicate that stagnation is loosening.
One big question is what controversial new Leafs GM John Chayka will do, particularly after receiving the gift of winning the draft lottery.
Can he earn the reportedly shaky trust of superstar Auston Matthews? Will he follow in predecessor Brad Treliving’s steps and resume shopping young power forward Matthew Knies?
Davidson owes it to Hawks fans to inquire about any and all difference-making players who come within a mile of the trade market. The Hawks need to try to join the Canadiens-Ducks-Flyers-Sharks group next season.
No stone should be left unturned — not with the enormous pool of assets the Hawks have to offer, a pool which should now include this year’s No. 4 overall pick.
And difference-making forwards shouldn’t be the only stones turned over, either. The Hawks learned down the stretch this season that a defense composed entirely of players under age 25 might not be a recipe for success.
“There’s people that I have to get to know and get to understand what direction they’re going with their clubs, but that’s a pretty quick process,” Davidson said May 5.
“Based on a lot of the press conferences by both new and sitting managers, it feels like everyone’s looking to add. Those are interesting waters to navigate when everyone’s trying to do the same thing.”
That’s true, and that’s one of several reasons why there’s a looming sense of dread — despite all of this potential chaos — that actually very few opportunities will arise for the Hawks to make a splash.
Even the Knies possibility, which always seemed most realistic and doable, feels less so now after the Leafs’ lottery win. It would’ve been more logical for them to deal him — and they would’ve been more attracted to the No. 4 pick — had they lost their protected first-round pick to the Bruins.
The Robertson possibility, on the other hand, might be gaining steam, since the Stars are reportedly reluctant to pay him more than Mikko Rantanen’s $12 million cap hit. But would Nill even entertain trading Robertson within the Central Division?
Enough time has passed that the Hawks can now dangle young NHL players like Oliver Moore, Ryan Greene, Nick Lardis and Sam Rinzel in negotiations, rather than solely picks and prospects. That could make their offers more enticing to teams not willing to entertain full-scale rebuilds, which it seems no teams currently are.
And it’s worth noting the rest of the league’s stubborn refusal to rebuild, if it holds, should eventually benefit the Hawks, since the age curve eventually comes for everyone. Nobody else is even attempting to build a young core that could rival the Hawks’ or Sharks’ come, say, 2030.
But that stubbornness could also inhibit the Hawks’ chances to jumpstart or accelerate their ascension past its natural speed right now in 2026.
Only time will tell how many chances do arise and how realistic they are. The Hawks can’t let any slip by them.
NOTE: The Hawks officially signed Russian prospect Roman Kantserov to a three-year NHL entry-level contract Thursday. It carries a $1.075 million salary-cap hit.