On each of new Blackhawks defenseman Bowen Byram’s first two NHL teams, the youngster was stuck behind a superstar defenseman who blocked him from becoming a No. 1 defenseman himself.
With the Avalanche, it was Cale Makar. With the Sabres, it was Rasmus Dahlin.
On the Hawks, Byram will have no such hindrance and is, in fact, expected to develop into a No. 1 defenseman. Hawks general manager Kyle Davidson wouldn’t have traded the fourth overall pick for Byram on Tuesday if he didn’t foresee that as a likelihood.
Byram knows that, too.
“I’m just scratching the surface of what I can do,” Byram said Wednesday. “I’m confident in myself, and I’m really excited for this opportunity, because it’s going to be a chance for me to blossom into the player I think I can be.”
Asked about Makar and Dahlin, he added that he’s also gleaned numerous lessons from other strong defensemen like Devon Toews, Josh Manson, Owen Power and Mattias Samuelsson.
It’s hasn’t necessarily been a bad thing that he’s been surrounded by so much established talent, especially since that won’t be the case at all on the Hawks. But now those support systems are gone — and so are the shackles on his ice time.
“I can’t get too carried away with anything,” Byram said. “I have to come in and prove what I can do. I’m confident in myself. I feel that, after this move, the Blackhawks are confident in me, too. It’s a great feeling to have a team believing in you.”
Davidson very much needs Byram to be right about the potential he possesses. This trade marks a big risk, since it’s not dramatic to say the rebuild’s success now partially hangs on Byram’s success.
The hockey world doesn’t share much of the Hawks’ internal confidence in that paying off. This trade, and Davidson’s management style as a whole, has been mocked by many over the past two days. Davidson plans to hold out for the last laugh.
“We’re going to provide the opportunity to become one of the top defensemen around the league, and we feel 100% wholehearted that he can be that guy and he will be that guy,” Davidson said. “So when you take it like that…there aren’t many pieces around the league that are more valuable.
“The natural progression of his game is going to find that value for us in the transaction.”
Davidson also believes Byram can move into a Dahlin-esque role by sheltering and helping develop young Hawks defensemen like Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel.
Byram did average more than 22 minutes per game during each of his two full seasons with the Sabres, but he never quarterbacked their top power-play unit, and that’s another key role he will take over immediately with the Hawks.
Although some of the heat on Davidson is centered on him not using his most valuable trade chip to acquire a proven winger to play next to Connor Bedard, the Hawks think Byram’s offensive abilities can help Bedard in less obvious but still meaningful ways.
“I break the puck out well, I move the puck well and I think I’ll get the puck into the hands of our forwards quickly and efficiently,” Byram said. “That’s really important: You want your skilled forwards having the puck and creating and attacking.”
Byram and Bedard, as two British Columbia natives, are already friends. Bedard called Byram on Tuesday night — reportedly from a golf course — to share excitement about the trade.
Now the focus turns to Byram’s contract situation, since he’s currently a year away from unrestricted free agency and will become extension-eligible next week.
Byram claimed there haven’t been any contract talks yet but that he “plans on being in Chicago for a long time.” He explained that he grew up a Hawks fan because his dad, Shawn, was a minor-league journeyman who played one game for the Hawks in 1991-92, as well as because he saw the dynasty Hawks beat his hometown Canucks so often as a kid.
He wanted the Hawks to draft him in 2019, but they took Kirby Dach instead — foolishly, in retrospect. Seven years later, things have come full circle to bring Byram to Chicago, which he called “the place I wanted to end up.”
Sabres GM Jarmo Kekalainen told reporters Wednesday in Buffalo that Byram never engaged in contract talks with him this past season because he was focused on becoming a No. 1 defenseman somewhere.
That contract won’t come cheap, though, regardless of Byram’s enthusiasm about his new city. Byram’s agent, Darren Ferris, is a famously tough negotiator. His salary-cap hit will likely top $10 million, a threshold only four other defensemen around the league (Dahlin being one) currently exceed.
“We’ll have to put our money where our mouth is…because we believe in this guy,” Davidson said Wednesday. “We believe he’s a very good player, one that can be elite.”