3 Bad Contracts the Chicago Blackhawks Could Take On at the Deadline To Get More Draft Picks

Nate Schmidt

The Winnipeg Jets do not have a lot of terrible contracts on their books. At the same time, the Jets do not have a lot of cap space.

Schmidt is taking up $5.95 million in cap space and that is a lot for a defenseman with just eight assists on the season. He is averaging 16:52 minutes of ice time.

He is a left-handed defenseman who can play on both sides of the ice. The Jets could move Schmidt to the Hawks much like the Senators did with Zaitsev and then use the available cap space to add a better player.

In terms of draft assets, the Jets do not own the rights to their first- and second-round picks this year. They do have Montreal's second-round pick and the Jets have all their picks for the rest of the 2024 draft. They also own the rights to all their picks for the 2025 and 2026 drafts except a fourth-round choice next year.

Although Schmidt has a no-trade clause so he would have to approve the deal.

Evgeny Kuznetsov

The chances of this happening in season are slim considering Kuznetsov is in the NHLPA Assistance Program. He has had plenty of struggles off the ice.

The Washington Capitals are reportedly wanting to get his $7.8 million cap hit off their books.

The problem is Kuznetsov is tending to personal issues, so he will probably not be traded until the summer after he completes treatment for the issues he is tackling.

He also has a modified no-trade clause, so the Hawks would need to be not on the list of teams he cannot be traded to for a deal to work.

The Capitals have all their draft picks this year except their second and seventh-round selections. They have two third-round choices this year and three second-round choices in 2025.