Chicago Blackhawks Trade Richard Panik to Coyotes for Anthony Duclair

The Chicago Blackhawks sent forwards Richard Panik and Laurent Dauphin to the Arizona Coyotes for winger Anthony Duclair and defenseman Adam Clendening.

Richard Panik’s first period goal last night against the Ottawa Senators, his first since October, will be his last with the Chicago Blackhawks (at least, for now). Panik, along with winger Laurent Dauphin (who was acquired from the Coyotes this summer in the Niklas Hjalmarsson trade) have been traded to the Arizona Coyotes for left winger Anthony Duclair and the return of defenseman Adam Clendening.

Panik ended up playing 149 games with the Blackhawks after being acquired during the 2015-16 season in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs for Jeremy Morin. Panik scored 34 goals and added 34 assists in his time in Chicago.

Along with Panik goes his $2.8 million a year contract that is good until the end of the 2018-19 season. The Blackhawks retain none of Panik’s salary, freeing up a little more room for Stan Bowman for the rest of the season. Duclair’s contract is $1.2 million AAV and expires at the end of this season when he will become a restricted free agent.

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Duclair comes to the Blackhawks with nine goals and six assists in 33 games this year with the Coyotes. His strongest season came two years ago when he scored 20 goals and added 24 assists in 81 games of the Coyotes 2015-16 season.

While his numbers don’t jump right off the page, many scouts and experts believe Duclair is a strong offensive player that struggled to produce with Arizona, but could break out elsewhere. Sportsnet’s Jonathan Willis has even said he is one of the NHL’s hidden gems.

This trade seems, at first glance, to be a very strong move by Stan Bowman. Duclair has show he has a good deal of talent and a change of scenery could be a great kick start to getting his career back on track. Meanwhile, Panik has been a bit of a disappointment for the ‘Hawks this season and his departure frees up a little extra money for the team to work with the rest of the season.

With extra money cleared up along with the Marian Hossa LTIR money, this may not be the last trade we see Stan Bowman pull off before the trade deadline in late February.