One pending free agent the Blackhawks can steal from their Central Division rivals this summer

Before we dive into which names would make for great fits for the Chicago Blackhawks next season, I want to be upfront with something: General manager Kyle Davidson probably won’t bring in a ton of unrestricted free agents, but as with any season, you will see new faces calling the United Center home. 

In this exercise, those Davidson may consider bringing in could be ultra-familiar faces, as they all currently play for a Central Division rival. And every year, it’s not uncommon to see someone playing for one team before they sign with another that is geographically close to their former home. This is even, at times, done via trade, and that was the case with one name in today’s slideshow. 

The following players are those Blackhawks fans will be familiar with, even if they aren’t all-stars or even considered to be that good for their current teams. But they have played well enough to at least land on Davidson’s radar this offseason. So, who should he seriously consider bringing to the Windy City from franchises within his own division? 

Liam O’Brien, Forward/Arizona Coyotes

A team like the Chicago Blackhawks can use one more edgier player on their checking lines next season, and Liam O’Brien is one of two who would fit that criteria. Ideally, the forward listed in the next slide would make for a good fit with the Blackhawks, but if they couldn’t snag him, O’Brien would make for a good, one-year consolation. 

While Chicago is a physical hockey team with 22.9 hits per game, they still rank roughly in the middle of the league overall. They still won’t compete for a playoff spot next season, so high-energy “glue players” will be paramount for keeping them in games. And someone like O’Brien fits that mold. 

This season, he played that role in Arizona, and that has been the case over the previous three seasons. During his tenure in the desert, O’Brien has 543 hits in 162 outings, good for 3.35 per game. He’s also currently leading the league with 153 penalty minutes, signaling he’s unafraid to stand up for younger teammates. 

Chicago has some physical players already like Nick Foligno, Reese Johnson, Jason Dickinson, and Mackenzie Entwistle, but Foligno and Dickinson have logged top-six minutes. That said, the Hawks need one more physical lower-liner, and O’Brien would be great if the next player on this list is not available. 

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Brandon Duhaime, Forward/Colorado Avalanche

Brandon Duhaime wouldn’t add much intrigue on the scoring front, but he doesn’t need to record goals or even helpers to make his presence felt in Chicago or wherever he ends up playing. This season, it’s been in Minnesota and, more recently, with the Colorado Avalanche, where he’s continued his role as a lower-liner with the hopes of adding a Stanley Cup to his list of accomplishments. 

Still just 26, Duhaime would also fit well into the Blackhawks lineup, and he’s one of a few players on this list Kyle Davidson could justify keeping around for more than a season or two. 

Hardly anyone in the league would add such an edge to the team, and he could even take on a role similar to what we have seen from Cal Clutterbuck of the New York Islanders - a player who is completely fine with providing a spark for his team while logging between 10 and 12 minutes of ice time. 

Despite his role as a defense-first forward willing to finish checks on opponents, don’t think Duhaime wouldn’t be a puck mover. While Colorado is deep among their forward lines, Duhaime is showing some of his ability offensively with a 52.6 Corsi For at 5-on-5 despite only 41.5 percent of his starts coming in the offensive zone. 

Scott Wedgewood, Goaltender/Dallas Stars

We all know somebody needs to replace Arvid Soderblom next year, and even with a weaker goaltending class in free agency, there isn’t a single netminder out there who wouldn’t be an upgrade. Scott Wedgewood is another one who could be looking to continue his career in a new city next season if he doesn’t stay with the Dallas Stars, and he could help bring a winning mentality that has made them so tough to beat this year. 

Wedgewood wouldn’t beat out Petr Mrazek for the starting goaltender job, but he’s a proven 1B who has enjoyed two solid full seasons with the Stars, and portions of another. Last year, he thrived with a 2.72 GAA, a 0.915 save percentage, and a 0.722 quality starts percentage with a shutout. While his numbers haven’t been as good this year, he’s been far better overall than during the earliest days of his career. 

Signing Wedgewood would also give the Blackhawks goaltenders already in the system a chance to keep honing their respective games, so a one-year deal would suffice in this scenario. In the following year, someone like Jaxson Stauber will be more than ready to join full-time, so signing someone like Wedgewood makes a lot of sense. 

Alex Goligoski, Defenseman/Minnesota Wild

There weren’t many valuable names heading into unrestricted free agency in Minnesota, but Alex Goligoski, despite his age, factors in as a good, cost-effective fit. He wouldn’t be in Chicago any longer than one year, but the leadership he would provide to a rebuilding club going into what would be his 18th season makes him worth considering. 

Goligoski has spent time with four different clubs, each at varying stages of building, and he even won a Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins during his early days in the league. He’s seen rebuilds during his time with the Arizona Coyotes, and recently, he’s been helping the Wild try to return to the playoffs, even if things look bleak at this point. 

At this stage in his career, Goligoski would fill the bottom pairing and keep the Blackhawks overall level of physicality up. Should Kyle Davidson surprise us and bring in one of the NHL’s longest-tenured players, don’t expect him to fill the stat sheet with points. But even as recently as 2022-23, he’s still been a proven puck mover at 5-on-5, and he can also quarterback power plays when needed. 

The odds of him coming to Chicago would be beyond slim, but leadership, the ability to play in all three zones, and added depth at a low price would make it worth bringing him in. 

Alex Carrier, Defenseman/Nashville Predators

Alex Carrier is a pending unrestricted free agent for the mighty Nashville Predators, and there is a good chance he returns to one of the league’s more surprising teams. But if he tests the market this summer, the Blackhawks could take a blueliner heading into the prime of his career off of one of their biggest rivals. 

After making sporadic appearances since 2016-17, Carrier burst onto the scene in 2021-22, winning a top spot on the All-Rookie Team and finishing in 10th place for the Calder Trophy. When given top-four minutes, the 27-year-old will finish checks, skate into opposing scoring lanes, and break up would-be plays. 

While his scoring won’t wow anyone, he’s still good at helping to move the puck down the ice and closer to the crease when in the offensive zone. When on the ice at 5-on-5, his ability to pitch in offensively this season has led to 44 goals, a 9.1 on-ice shooting percentage, and for the first time in his career among playing in a full season, a Corsi For over 50 percent as of March 31st. 

If Nashville isn’t willing to give him a pay raise, the Blackhawks need to take a serious look at a player who will only be heading into his fourth full season next year. 

Sean Monahan, Forward/Winnipeg Jets

If the Winnipeg Jets get back on track and peak in the playoffs, Sean Monahan will have played a role. He’s been nothing short of a success with the Jets this season following a trade earlier this year from the Montreal Canadiens. 

Since joining the Jets, Monahan has 18 points in 26 games, 10 goals, and a shooting percentage of 19.6. Monahan has been winning faceoffs consistently, and he’s also logged, on average, nearly three takeaways for every five games he’s played in, good for 0.57 per game. 

He would give the Blackhawks a hand in all three zones and on special teams, and he’s also showing signs as a prime puck mover - 54.1 percent Corsi For at 5-on-5 with Winnipeg. For context, his career Corsi For sits at 49.7, but there is clearly more offense here than we have seen across most of his 11 seasons in the league - sans his 82-point and 34-goal outbreak in 2018-19. 

Monahan wouldn’t come cheap, but the Blackhawks have enough space to ink him to a lucrative deal to lure him to the Windy City. It may be tough to bring Monahan in since the Blackhawks aren’t close to competing, but a player in the thick of his prime would provide an excellent example for this rebuilding organization. 

(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)