Blackhawks: Brett Connolly gave the team something to consider

The Chicago Blackhawks made a lot of trades this past season, one of the best was a deal with the Florida Panthers that brought a handful of players to the team. The biggest piece of the trade was Henrik Borgstrom, who recently signed a contract with the team, but there was more to it than that.

Riley Stillman could be a future part of the team’s core, and it really seems like every piece in the Florida trade can be a contributor on the roster as Brett Connolly was a nice addition to the team’s bottom six.

Brett Connolly is signed through the 2022-23 season at 3.5 million a year according to CapFriendly. This contract was originally supposed to be some of the dead money the team had to take on in order to get Borgstrom and Stillman. However, Connolly is a former Stanley Cup Champion looking for a chance with a new team.

The 29-year-old is just a year removed from putting up over 30 points a season and being a great contributor in the bottom six, something he can get another opportunity to do with the Blackhawks.

While the Blackhawks might have presumed they were going to bury the Connolly contract, now he might be someone the team uses.

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In his ten games with the team, Connolly had a goal and an assist. He was also contributing pretty consistently to the team with 19 hits and is just one of a few players with a positive Corsi number above 50 percent.

The team’s lineup for next season is wide open, and Connolly definitely is going to be in the mix on the roster. Personally, I wouldn’t mind seeing him on the third line next season depending on what roster changes the team makes this off-season. It would probably be assumed though that if any player is going to spend time scratched it would be Connolly.

Connolly is 29 and not really a piece in the group of young promising forwards. While he is a nice player to have around to get some scrappy goals throughout the season and the playoffs, his contract might be up by the time this team is actually in the playoffs again.