3 areas of growth the Blackhawks MUST prioritize as the trade deadline nears

Here’s a misconception: Teams never really ‘sell’ near or at the trade deadline. If that were the case, you’d be seeing the ‘sellers’ trade players for cash, and that only happens in a few circumstances, something we might also call future considerations. 

But that’s often only the case when they’re trying to get a player out the door that they’re willing to just make them another team’s problem. This isn’t the case with valuable players going elsewhere, even if the compensation isn’t large. 

Suppose the Blackhawks traded Ryan Donato near or at the deadline. Is another team going to pay them cash or future considerations? Of course not. Instead, the Hawks will get something in return, preferably a prospect or two with potential. 

Or, maybe a niche player who can slide into a role and make the team better. That’s what I want to talk to you about today.

1 - Someone willing to shoot the puck often

Want to know why the Blackhawks can’t score and that they’re 31st in the league out of 32 teams? They’re getting between 24 and 25 shots on goal per game, and that’s it. Yeah, it’s kind of tough to score regularly when you can’t even give yourself many opportunities. 

And when you look at the Blackhawks in terms of shooting percentage, they’re nearly there with the rest of the NHL. At 5-on-5, the Hawks are slightly above the league average at 8.1. In all situations, the league average sits at 10.5, and the Hawks are right on par. 

So, it would be great if they could ‘sell’ a player of value elsewhere and get a winger who possesses an accurate shot in return. That could help ease those scoring woes for the rest of this season and into 2025-26.

2 - Someone able to drive the puck

Another culprit behind the Blackhawks lack of scoring stems from their failure to create opportunities. Chicago’s garnered just 305 high-danger chances heading into Wednesday, and it’s well under the league average of 387. 

Even worse is the fact that their high-danger chances for percentage is an abysmal 40.6. But to create more high-danger chances and scoring chances overall in the offensive zone, someone needs to be a reliable force in getting the puck from the defensive zone, into the neutral zone, and finally, into the offensive zone. 

It’s also worth pointing out that the Hawks have a Corsi For of just 44.8 percent, one of the worst marks in the league. So finding a puck driver is pivotal if the Hawks want this rebuild to catapult to the next level. 

3 - Someone who can faceoffs in the defensive zone

Right now, Nick Foligno is the only player who regularly takes faceoffs and wins over 50 percent of them. Nobody else is faring any higher than 49.0, and if the Hawks want to get out of their own zone every now and again, winning puck possession off the faceoff is a good place to begin. 

Finding a player like this won’t come at a steep price, and they could easily go to the Hawks via a trade involving a potential ‘sell’ of someone like Ryan Donato (just throwing a name out there). No, a player like this won’t do the team much in the points column, at least directly. But they’ll surely help the Hawks acquire some much-needed points by initiating sequences.