3 seemingly unreasonable offseason moves that would make complete sense for the Blackhawks

Signing a player or two looking for a ‘career renaissance’

Going down the current list of unrestricted free agents, there are many players in need of a ‘career renaissance’ whom Davidson could sign as ‘rentals.’ John Klingberg is one player who jumps out, as he is someone who can still play but would need a team to take a flier on him. 

Few are better equipped to do this than one that is ‘rebuilding’ and could easily fit him in on a smaller deal. Klingberg played in just 14 games last year and accumulated five assists, but for most of the time he’s been in the league, Klingberg has been an outstanding two-way player. 

He’s just one of many examples, but you get the point of what I’m saying. Overall, you may find this section and the above section contradictory, but the main difference is that there would be no incentive to keep a player signing on and looking for a ‘career renaissance.’ Instead, the Blackhawks can sign such a player and trade them at a later date, likely between January and March. 

Other players in this mold include just about every unrestricted free agent from the San Jose Sharks, Tyson Barrie, Anthony Beauvillier (probably wouldn’t come back to Chicago), and Dominik Kubalik. 

The early downside of making such a move could involve such players getting in the way of a prospect. But the overall upside is that the Blackhawks would get trade value, and there would be no incentive for them to keep such players. It would be a win-win-win situation for the free agent, the Hawks, and any team trading for such a player.