Blackhawks could make Connor Bedard’s dream come true with huge trade

The Chicago Blackhawks are expected to be one of the more active teams in the NHL this offseason, as they are loaded with cap room and impressive draft capital that they can use to wheel and deal and improve their roster for a playoff run next year.

The Blackhawks have missed the postseason six years in a row, representing their longest drought since 1952. But Chicago has shown some positive signs recently, displaying clear improvement over the last couple of seasons.

Still, it’s obvious that the Blackhawks need more pieces to seriously contend, and one of their primary issues is not having enough help for Connor Bedard up front.

The prevailing thought is that Chicago will pursue another wing this summer, whether that be via free agency or trade, and on that note, a very intriguing target may be available in the latter category: New York Islanders forward Mathew Barzal.

Bedard has said in the past that Barzal is his idol and that he would love to play with him, so can the Blackhawks make it happen?

Can the Chicago Blackhawks trade for Mathew Barzal?

Barzal has been a member of the Islanders ever since he made his NHL debut back in 2016-17. He has made three All-Star appearances in New York, and because the Islanders remain playoff contenders, they surely won’t move him without getting a hefty return.

What would that return look like? Greg Boysen of Blackhawk Up explained what New York would probably want.

“For argument’s sake, if Barzal was put on the market, what would the cost be? You’d have to imagine the asking price would be similar to what the St. Louis Blues reportedly want for Jordan Kyrou: an established player, a prospect, and a draft pick. The Blackhawks can easily come up with the draft pick and prospect, but it’s that established player that will be an issue in any trade,” Boysen wrote.

Chicago is full of young players and draft capital, so that part would be easy. But what established player could the Blackhawks possibly dangle that would interest the Islanders?

Boysen suggested 22-year-old budding star Frank Nazar as a possibility, but that would be risky for Chicago. Ilya Mikeheyev was also floated as a potential option.

One thing is for sure: the Blackhawks should absolute exhaust all of their resources to see if they can try to get a deal done here. It would make Bedard incredibly happy, and it would absolutely improv Chicago as a collective unit.

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