3 pending free agent centers the Blackhawks should avoid in NHL free agency

Alexander Wennberg, New York Rangers

The Chicago Blackhawks could use a strong defensive forward, but someone like Alexander Wennberg is heading into his age-30 season, and he wouldn’t provide much valuable help to the team on the middle-six. Wennberg has also logged top-six minutes in the past, and there is a chance he could figure to return to the top-six in a place like Chicago, but is he really any better than what they already have?

Sure, Wennberg’s overall numbers may supersede those of Tyler Johnson, Ryan Donato, and Colin Blackwell, but he also played for a Seattle Kraken team that finished with 29 more points than the Blackhawks before he was traded to a team that won the Presidents’ Trophy. Not to mention, that same group is also the hottest in the NHL. 

If Kyle Davidson signed Wennberg, doing so wouldn’t be a bad idea, as with any free agent forward on this list. But it’s all about the value he would get for a player who, despite putting up a good defensive game and one who is capable of top-six minutes, Wennberg wouldn’t make a bad team much better. Especially if he signed a stopgap deal, which probably isn’t happening. 

It’s a situation where the Blackhawks would get enough value for the time being if they brought back Tyler Johnson and Colin Blackwell on cheaper deals and rolled with them for another season or two.