The Chicago Blackhawks Will Always be the Winner in the Alex DeBrincat Trade With Ottawa for these Four Reasons

General manager Kyle Davidson made a surprise trade in the summer of 2022 when he sent star forward Alex DeBrincat to the Ottawa Senators.

At the time, Davidson got pennies on the dollar for a forward with two 40-goal seasons and excellent chemistry with Patrick Kane. A first- and second-round pick and a 2024 third-round selection did not seem nearly enough of a return for an emerging superstar player. Especially a player who had yet to turn 25 at the time of the deal.

You would think Davidson wanted a player about to enter his prime performance years around for a rebuild.

Davidson had his reasons for making the trade. DeBrincat was in the last year of his deal and there was no guarantee Alex would sign long-term. In addition, the Blackhawks lacked a first-round choice in the 2022 draft after the Seth Jones deal in 2021. The rebuild would have been delayed significantly without a first-round choice.

Kyle from Chicago also was not afraid to move a young, emerging star player to obtain the necessary assets for an extensive rebuild. He traded Brandon Hagel before the deadline that year to pick up a ton of draft assets, so moving DeBrincat was not out of character.

It still was not a great return for a talented forward who scored 160 goals for the Hawks and was capable of complimenting Kane's immense offensive gifts. The Hawks could sure use DeBrincat right now with how awful the offense is.

Then again, in hindsight, the Chicago Blackhawks will always be the winner of this deal for these four reasons.