“In Play” was the title of an email I received from a reliable source close to the Hawks this morning.
The names attached to it were Corey Crawford, Teuvo Teravainen and Andrew Shaw.
It’s not that the Hawks have decided that any or all of these players are bad, or on the decline, but rather simply a matter of the salary cap (and what it might or might not adjust to), roster holes they need to fill to get back into Cup contention, and existing salary commitments with NTCs or NMCs attached to them.
It also doesn’t mean that all of these players will be traded, or that other players won’t.
That said, the calculus remains what I laid out here over the last few blogs: the Hawks need to lose some salary cap commitment, but it may take more than buying out the last year of Bryan Bickell’s deal—and they may need to try to obtain value in return for a player (or players) whose demands on their next contract might be too rich for their blood.
CRAWFORD
I heard from a top (and different) source in February 2015 that the Hawks had reached out to the Oilers and Sabres on preliminary, very hush-hush conversations about Crawford. The idea was not to deal Crawford then, but rather to begin to gauge or gin up interest in him for last summer or this summer. This was before the Oil acquired Cam Talbott and the Sabres, Robin Lehner.
Last summer, I heard the Jets were ready to pull the trigger on an Ondrej Pavelec-plus deal for Crawford.
Again, the Hawks only had those discussions as a potential last resort if they could not move Patrick Sharp.
Teams I would watch with regard to Crawford: Buffalo, Winnipeg, Philadelphia, Toronto, Arizona, the Islanders and Ottawa.
Crawford has a limited NMC and I believe must submit a list of 8-10 teams he would accept a deal to if asked. I also would not rule out a lesser-paid veteran goalie coming back in a Crawford deal—such as Jaroslav Halak, Craig Anderson or Pavelec.
TERAVAINEN
Some bloom has likely come off Teravainen’s rose after a slightly disappointing sophomore season and playoffs. But my gut sense is there are enough GMs out there willing to gamble on TT’s obvious skill and hockey sense. The issue with TT, whether in Chicago or elsewhere is where he plays—center or right wing—who he plays with and in what role. Of the 29 teams other than Chicago, there are likely a handful or more who feel they have the right situation for TT to flourish.
So why deal him?
It’s real simple. TT has not established himself as a top 6 player in Chicago, where you have 2-3 more effective centers, can pencil in Patrick Kane at one RW and Marian Hossa remains a more effective two-way RW, even during an off season last year. Yet, there will be a market for TT this summer, and as a cost-controlled young player with “upside,” he could bring a handsome return—possibly the second pairing defenseman the Hawks need.
Teams I would watch: too many to mention.
SHAW
What I am hearing is that Shaw’s demands will be greater than those of Marcus Kruger last summer—by terms of the CBA, he must be paid at least $2 million per, $500K more than Kruger was, regardless—and he might not do a one-year, bargain bridge deal to let the Hawks sort things out.
If you’re Shaw, whose injury history and style of play might not point to a long NHL career, you can’t be blamed for wanting to get paid ASAP.
If you’re the Hawks, facing a real “kettle of fish” in the next couple of summers with Shaw, TT and especially Artemi Panarin needing new deals, you might not feel you can commit bigger dollars to Shaw—as much as you like him.
So this would involve likely dealing Shaw’s RFA rights in a month or so.
Likely destinations? Again, any club with a little cap room looking to get a lot nastier with some skill and versatility.
I will update these rumors as I hear it.
Should be an interesting summer.
JJ
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • 
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