Blackhawks: Seth Jones to Chicago might come at too high a cost

The Chicago Blackhawks are going to need some help on their blue line, but trading for Seth Jones might come at too high a cost.

One benefit of having a lot of prospects and assets like draft picks is that you can use them to trade for star players, but for the Blackhawks still really in rebuilding mode, does it make the most sense to give up a lot for one player in return?

I do not know, I keep going back on forth on this. Yes, I like Seth Jones and think he is a great player. But for one year remaining on his contract and considering he enters free agency next summer, I think I would rather wait for then and just keep pushing forward for one more season with this group.

Why not wait for next summer? Sure some team might trade for Jones at the deadline, but for now, there really is no incentive to get a deal done. Columbus feels like they hold all the cards in a deal for one of their stars that is saying they are going to go to free agency next summer. I know they have lost a handful of stars and are not going to let that happen again, but that still doesn’t mean they hold the cards here.

So what does a Seth Jones trade start with?

Originally a trade for Jones was starting with either DeBrincat or Dach, but now it seems like it is going in a different direction, with a collection of picks and prospects going to Columbus for Jones from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Now, obviously, Chicago was not going to trade DeBrincat or Dach, and I hope Hagel is not including in all those prospects either. While this team does have a nice collection of guys that are young and can play I do hope they do not give up too much for Jones in a deal unless it is a sign and trade move. Unless there is an extension on the board then making a move just doesn’t make sense.

So if a deal for Seth Jones included: Boqvist, Beaudin, Kurashev, a first-round pick, and another guy like either Suter or Strome would fans be onboard? Honestly, I do not think so. I am in favor of trading some of the young players the Blackhawks have. The team has a lot of young assets around the same age and not everyone is going to make it into the league with limited spots, but that in my mind meant trading for different assets or looking at a different position, not giving up the majority of the top guys for a defenseman.

Seth Jones can be a difference-maker on this team. I know some people are not as high on him as others, but remember the Columbus-Tampa Bay series a few seasons ago? Jones was something special during that series and is a great leading defenseman.

If he joined the Hawks and then all of a sudden the blue line has guys like both Jones brothers, Murphy, de Haan, Stillman, Kalynuk, and another one of the team’s younger defensive prospects, then this blue line might not be that bad.

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The Blackhawks are not done making moves, before the season, the next few weeks are always exciting and I cannot wait to see which direction the Blackhawks go!