Another major domino has fallen on the trade front in the NHL as the Chicago Blackhawks are dealing blue liner Seth Jones to the Florida Panthers.
Heading back the other way are goaltender Spencer Knight and a 2027 1st round draft pick. As part of the deal, the Blackhawks will retain 25% of Jones’ salary.
The 6’4″ defender was one of the few impact right shot defenceman available heading into the March 7th trade deadline. Currently in the third season of an eight-year, $76M contract ($9.5M AAV), he’s under contract through the end of the 2029-30 campaign.
While Jones never publicly demanded a trade out of Chicago, the local media scrutiny, and his on ice struggles led many to believe that a break up was coming sooner rather than later. The 30 year old former Blue Jacket was a force during his time in Columbus, but failed to live up to the number 1 blue liner billing he was signed to be with the rebuilding Blackhawks.
Many around the league felt as though a change of scenery could do wonders in terms of reinvigorating Jones’ game. And joining a deep Panthers squad which won’t need him to be their number 1 option every night may provide the career reset he desperately needs.
Meanwhile, Chicago adds another 1st rounder to their draft capital, frees up valuable cap space, and brings in a young net minder in need of a change himself.
Spencer Knight was a star in the US National Development Program, before starring at Boston College. His stellar play made him a first round pick, 13th overall, in 2019, but has mostly played a back up role since breaking into the NHL in 2020.
Part of that has to do with Florida having a veteran net minder in Sergei Bobrovsky holding down the fort in front of him. Part has to do with his public battle with OCD and mental health issues. Something the young net minder hasn’t hidden from fans.
However Chicago has a clear need for a number 1 net minder as they continue their rebuild around superstar Connor Bedard. Petr Mrazek, and Arvid Soderblom have been tending the twine in the Windy City of late, but the 23 year old Knight could be long term option the team has been seeking since Corey Crawford left following the 2019-20 campaign.
Photo: Eric Kilby. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.