The Chicago Blackhawks were linked to a handful of familiar names heading towards the NHL trade deadline Wednesday afternoon. Ryan Kesler, Martin Brodeur, and David Legwand were all attached to trade talks involving the Hawks. In the spirit of not rocking the boat, general manager Stan Bowman made trades that made minimal ripples to the roster.
Draft picks, Peter Regin, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Mathieu Brisebois, and David Rundblad join the team. Gone are Brandon Pirri and more draft picks.
Brandon Pirri is the familiar name to Chicago Blackhawks fans. The one-time second center solution is now with hundreds of former Hawks in Florida. Coach Joel Quenneville didn’t like Pirri’s (lack of) two-way game, and Bowman got what he could for him. The trade looks better by the day, as well-known players such as Ales Hemsky and Marcel Goc fetched the same third and fifth round pick bounties. Marian Gaborik, who averages .4 goals per game in his career, brought his former team in Columbus the same draft choice and one player. That player, Matt Frattin, is no lock for consistency.
Peter Regin stands the best chance of making an impact with the Chicago Blackhawks now. He has spent time on the second and fourth lines in the handful of games with the team, and has improved nightly. He is a big center that has failed to figure out how use his size to his advantage. Chicago offers Regin the chance to figure that out with proven scorers and winners around him. He has been on some horrid teams with Ottawa and with the New York Islanders.
Pierre-Marc Bouchard was one of Minnesota’s consistent scorers from 2002-2013. He scored 12+ goals and 45+ points each season between 2004 and 2009. Injuries have derailed his career since 2009. PMB lost his entire 2009-10 season to injury. He will be playing in Rockford for the foreseeable future and will be called upon if the Blackhawks were to lose a center to something he has been plagued by…injuries.
David Rundblad is a puck-moving offensive defenseman who didn’t fit with the Phoenix Coyotes. Phoenix hates to skate, so Rundblad never had a chance to thrive. Rundblad was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the first round of the NHL entry draft in 2009. Since then, he has been traded to Ottawa and Phoenix. Rundblad’s first point came on an assist of a goal scored by Peter Regin. Rundblad has played on good teams in international play. The 23-year old was on two World Junior Championship teams for Sweden in 2009-10, and was the alternate captain in 2010. He will be on the big league roster, but his inclusion nightly is no guarantee, oddly enough.
As nice as it is to see big name players added to a team like the Chicago Blackhawks heading into the toughest stretch towards the Stanley Cup playoffs. Rocking the boat and subtracting a piece would hurt the reigning champs more than help.
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