The Ottawa Senators made the first big splash of NHL draft week, acquiring forward Alex DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for their 2022 first-round draft pick (seventh overall), a 2022 second-round draft pick (39th overall) and a third-round selection in 2024.
The deal came down two hours before the draft’s first round was set to begin Thursday night in Montreal.
DeBrincat was rumored to be on the trade block leading into this weekend, and Ottawa was open to moving its first-round pick if it meant improving the Senators right away.
GM Pierre Dorion certainly seems to have done that. As for the Blackhawks’ return …
This trade looks like a home run for Ottawa.
DeBrincat, 24, is a dynamic scorer who has already surpassed the 40-goal mark twice in his first five NHL seasons. He’s averaged nearly a point-per-game for Chicago with 160 goals and 307 points in 368 career games. Granted, DeBrincat has benefitted from playing with Patrick Kane, but that doesn’t take away from his individual skill set that’s jumped off the page since DeBrincat was made a second-round pick by Chicago in 2016.
Ottawa will certainly be counting on him to produce. The Senators were 23rd overall in goals scored last season (averaging 2.73 per game) and have lacked for the type of consistent top-line threat DeBrincat can be. Now the Senators can slot DeBrincat in with Tim Stutzle, and DeBrincat can help drive play at either end of the rink and be a bonafide playmaker all over the ice. DeBrincat led the Blackhawks in power-play goals last season (14), and uses his speed to draw penalties (24 last season, versus eight taken). His will be the kind of presence Ottawa’s been needing to become competitive again.
Ultimately, the Senators want to avoid a rebuild, so flipping their first-round pick isn’t a huge deal. However, the return for Chicago was also lower than perhaps expected because DeBrincat has just one year remaining on his contract before becoming an unrestricted free agent. If Ottawa can’t re-sign him, they’ll have one season where DeBrincat should elevate the team offensively and bring some life back to a franchise that’s struggled for some in recent years.
The Blackhawks really must have thought they couldn’t re-sign DeBrincat. Or they’re fully leaning into the idea of struggling for a few years more.
That’s the only way this trade seems to make the most sense for Chicago. DeBrincat is a player barely in his mid-20s who has been one of the NHL’s most impressively consistent scoring wingers. He and Kane have shown incredible chemistry, and that’s led to DeBrincat making great strides throughout his NHL tenure. Chicago certainly didn’t have to trade him.
Was Dorion’s offer the best Blackhawks’ GM Kyle Davidson had to entertain? The fact it came down before the draft began — when other teams might have started coming to the table — suggests Davidson was in a hurry to move things along. This deal could be part of a bigger picture strategy, of course. But whomever Davidson picks at No. 7 on Thursday — if he retains the choice — won’t be having an impact on the Blackhawks’ NHL roster for years, compared to the guaranteed contributions the Blackhawks would have received from DeBrincat.
At this point, Chicago looks like the clear trade loser.