Instant Reaction: Blackhawks Trade Sikura To Vegas For Brandon Pirri

The Chicago Blackhawks have officially kicked off their offseason with a Stan Bowman reunion trade. Brandon Pirri is coming back to the Blackhawks in a trade that sends Dylan Sikura to the Vegas Golden Knights.

Dylan Sikura was just not working out with the Blackhawks. Although he came to the team with a lot of high hopes around him, it just ended up not working out with Sikura not proving he belongs with the team. Sikura now gets a fresh start with a new team, and the Blackhawks get to bring back an old teammate.

Brandon Pirri was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round of the 2009 NHL draft. After just 35 games with the Blackhawks, Sikura was traded to the Florida Panthers during the 2013-14 season.

He has spent time with the Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks, New York Rangers, and Vegas Golden Knights over the course of his 10 year NHL career, which now is circling back to the Blackhawks. At the age of 29, Pirri is a solid bottom-six forward that can make the Blackhawks a better team.

More from Blackhawk Up

• Blackhawks: Three Noticeable Improvements in Comeback Win vs Blues
• Blackhawks: Key Takeaways from 3-2 win over the Blues
• Blackhawks: Grading Connor Murphy and a position comparison
• Blackhawks: Shuffling the lines to try and spark offense at 5 on 5
• These Lineup Changes could Solve the Blackhawks’ Scoring Problem

Pirri is signed through the end of next season and only has a cap hit of $775,000. This deal was not about the money, rather getting two players fresh starts with new teams, but it is worth noting that this is not going to hurt the team financially.

Brandon Pirri is going to get a shot at making the team’s roster when the season starts up again. Honestly, I think this is a great trade for the team. Dylan Sikura was not working out with the ‘Hawks, and Pirri offers the team a cheap contract that can work in the bottom six.

In 2018-19 Sikura put up 12 goals and 6 assists in 31 games with the Golden Knights. I know this past year was not as great, but he has shown in the past that he is a capable forward. I am sure this is a full-circle moment for Pirri going back to the team that drafted him back in 2009.

We will have to wait and see whether or not Pirri is going to be on the ‘Hawks roster on opening night. However one thing is for sure, Pirri is going to be playing with a sense of urgency to make the ‘Hawks roster right off the bat!