Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson answered without hesitation Saturday when asked if he’s still active in the NHL trade market.
“We’re definitely looking to make some stuff happen,” Davidson said.
He went on to give his usual caveats about how deals need to make sense for both sides — realistically for three sides in many cases, considering how many players hold no-trade clauses nowadays.
But if any selling teams are willing to accept packages of picks and prospects — and other trades around the league have indicated more are willing to than initially expected — the Hawks have plenty of those assets to offer.
The roster’s biggest hole remains a top-six wing, and Davidson knows that — even if he doesn’t view it as a necessity to fill to the extent some fans do. And the market’s biggest fish, Stars star Jason Robertson, remains available, even though it’s unclear where exactly Robertson is willing to sign a long-term contract.
Davidson could also explore adding a right-handed defenseman to fill Louis Crevier’s vacated spot.
“We’re going to see what’s there,” he said. “You’re never really satisfied until either the options run out or you’ve made a move and…satisfied everything. If we rolled this [defensive] group into the season, we’d be fine. But we’re still going to look at what’s available to us.”
Andre out
The 2026 draft class was Davidson’s smallest by a considerable margin, but he’s set for another large class in 2027. He already owns 11 picks in it, including three picks in the first round and seven in the first three rounds.
One of those 2027 picks, a sixth-rounder, just arrived Friday in the much-welcomed Andre Burakovsky trade to the Senators.
“With the emergence of some of your young players, and [with] Roman Kantserov coming over, [I] felt like there was a more difficult road to a meaningful role for Andre,” Davidson explained.
Next up
The deadline for qualifying offers to restricted free agents to retain their rights is Monday afternoon. The Hawks will likely qualify their three notable RFAs: Kevin Korchinski, Ethan Del Mastro and Drew Commesso.
Hawks development camp also begins Monday with 19 prospects in attendance, including four of the five new draft picks — everyone except Alexander Ivanov.
Other notable camp attendees include Sacha Boisvert, AJ Spellacy and Marek Vanacker — three forwards who will be playing pro hockey in Chicago or Rockford next season — as well as 2025 first-round picks Vaclav Nestrasil and Mason West.
The camp will include on-ice sessions Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday — a departure from the entirely off-ice camps of the last two years. Davidson explained they would like to gather information on each player’s skating and other skills during the on-ice sessions to give them more holistic development plans and training advice.
Best quote
Hawks scouting director Mike Doneghey, never shy to tell the truth, offered the best quote of draft weekend when asked about second-round pick Ryan Roobroeck’s comparison of himself to Leon Draisaitl and Mikko Rantanen.
“I’m like Brad Pitt,” Doneghey said to a chorus of laughter.
“I’ve altered the question when I talk to [prospects],” he added. “I say, ‘Who would you buy a ticket to watch play?’ versus ‘Who do you think you play like?'”