3 players you had no idea left the Chicago Blackhawks in free agency

The Chicago Blackhawks had two major storylines take all of the collective focus this offseason. For one, they traded a massive package then offered an insane contract for Bowen Byram. The young defenseman is now the top guy in the Windy City, and he’ll come into the season with a ton of expectations for a roster that is still ultimately flawed.

On top of that, the Connor Bedard situation got incredibly complicated by a serious shoulder injury that caused an unexpected surgery. We now know Bedard is going to miss the start of the season, but he’s also without a contract. After the Leo Carlsson offer sheet, many thought that Bedard could follow suit, but that doesn’t appear to be a concern. 

With all that’s happening, nobody would blame a Blackhawks fan for missing some of the players who said goodbye. Here are three that found new homes this offseason.

1. Sam Lafferty
Signed with the Florida Panthers

Sam Lafferty is the one NHL player that might surprise some people that he booked a ticket to sunny South Florida. The 31 year old signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Florida Panthers. It’s rare that a player with almost 400 career NHL games would sign a two-way contract, especially someone who played 29 games in the big leagues last season. Lafferty struggled with the Blackhawks, putting up just two points last season.

Lafferty came to the Hawks in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks that also included Ilya Mikheyev (who left for the Lightning this offseason), but it was just for Lafferty’s rights. He ended up signing with the Buffalo Sabres before coming to the Blackhawks a year later.

2. Olivier Rodrigue
Signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning

Olivier Rodrigue was once a very highly regarded goaltending prospect, going in the second round of the 2018 NHL Draft. He signed with the Blackhawks in February to add goaltending depth to the team after spending the previous part of his career with the Edmonton Oilers. He never ended up playing for the Blackhawks despite the two-way contract. He got into 10 games for the Rockford Icehogs, but he failed to break .900 on the save percentage.

The Tampa Bay Lightning signed him to a contract this offseason to play for the Syracuse Crunch. He signed alongside Mads Sogaard to a two-way contract. 

3. Ryan Mast
Signed with the Wilkes-Barre Penguins

Obviously not a huge move, but Ryan Mast was a player who had some upside with the Icehogs. He had 14 assists as a defenseman last season in 46 games. This is nothing to go home about, but coming from a 23-year-old player, many expected him to at least receive a qualifying offer.

Mast left the Blackhawks’ organization and signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins’ AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre, PA. 

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