Blackhawks Deal Veteran Marc-Andre Fleury To Wild For Draft Picks

CHICAGO — When Kyle Davidson took over as the new general manager of the Chicago Blackhawks, he warned of a coming rebuild that, over time, is designed to turn the one-time perennial Stanley Cup contender back into a competitive team.

As the NHL’s trade deadline approached on Monday, the Hawks dealt another veteran player away and traded goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury to the Minnesota Wild, the team confirmed on Monday.

Fleury, who joined the Hawks before the season after being acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights, expressed interest in coming to Chicago rather than opting for retirement. The former Stanley Cup champion was popular with both fans and his teammates but provided Davidson with the opportunity to continue to build the roster for the future.

“This trade immediately puts us in a better position at the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, giving us a pick that will land early in the draft,” Davidson said in a statement released by the team. “In a short time with the Blackhawks, Marc-Andre made quite an impression on our fanbase and in our locker room. We appreciate his willingness to work with us on finding a deal that worked for everyone.”

The Hawks will receive a second-round draft pick from Minnesota. The pick could become a first-rounder should the Wild advance to the Western Conference finals and if Fleury records at least four or more wins in net over the first two rounds of the playoffs.

The trade comes after Davidson traded away Brandon Hagel to Tampa Bay along with two fourth-round picks in exchange for two first-round picks and prospects, Taylor Raddysh and Boris Katchouk.

Later on Monday, the Hawks announced they had traded forward Ryan Carpenter to Calgary for a fifth-round draft pick. While Hagel and Fleury were the biggest names to be moved, Davidson said that the Hawks entertained several other offers in recent days, but said that trading two players that brought the most draft capital made the most sense as the Hawks look to build their roster around young talent.

“I’m really happy with how it went,” Davidson told reporters after the deadline had passed. “You don’t know how these things are going to play out. You have all these plans, but the fact is that you need other teams to play along in some respect and to value your players at the same level that you do.

He added: “You always wish you could do a little bit more. But that’s also with the understanding that you can’t force anything. You can’t make something materialize that you want. There has to be some give and take with other teams, and that just wasn’t present. I’m really happy with the things we did accomplish here the last several days.”