The Chicago Blackhawks made the move everybody had been waiting for them to make. After hearing a trade request and speaking out to the media, it became clear that Seth Jones needed to go.
On Saturday, the Blackhawks made Jones’ wish come true. Seth Jones has been traded to the Florida Panthers along with a fourth-round pick in exchange for Spencer Knight and a conditional first-round pick in 2026.
The first in 2026 can become a first in 2027 if the Panthers no longer have that pick available. The Blackhawks are retaining 25% of the contract in the deal.
The Blackhawks became a worse team in the immediate future. Seth Jones provides stability on the blue line and helps them in multiple situations. Their power play, penalty kill, and even strength units are all losing a minute-munching defender that can produce some offense.
With that said, they are seeing a ton of money come off their salary cap. Jones’ cap hit of $9.5 million is gone. The 25% is just a bit over $2 million against Chicago’s cap over the next five seasons.
The Hawks now have all three retention slots used up. Seth Jones, Jake McCabe, and Mikko Rantanen are on the books for the rest of this year. Only Jones will be on the list going into next year.
Spencer Knight is a great young goalie prospect who has a bright future in the NHL. He has had an up-and-down tenure in the NHL so far but that happens with young goalies. The tools are there for him to be the goalie of the future in Chicago.
How are the Blackhawks going to handle that with Petr Mrazek and Laurent Brossoit signed through next year? Arvid Soderblom is also an RFA this summer. That’s an obstacle for Kyle Davidson to overcome in the future.
Overall, this is a great trade for the Blackhawks who looked like they might get nothing for Jones unless they retain at least half. Instead, they are getting a great young player and a first-round pick without retaining more than 25% of the money.
Florida needed to replace Brandon Montour with a right-handed defenseman and they got their guy with Jones. As a second-pair guy, he should look like the version of Jones that got him paid in the first place.
Now, the Blackhawks can move forward without this issue hanging over them. There are surely more moves to be made before the deadline next Friday.
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