Blackhawks trade Brandon Hagel to Lightning for 2 first-round picks, Boris Katchouk, Taylor Raddysh
The Blackhawks traded Brandon Hagel to the Tampa Bay Lightning for first-round picks in 2023 and 2024, Boris Katchouk and Taylor Raddysh, the teams announced Friday. The Blackhawks are sending a fourth-round pick in 2022 and a fourth-round pick in 2024 to Tampa to complete the deal.
Both of the first-round picks are top-10 protected. Should Tampa Bay’s 2023 first-round pick be in the top 10, the Lightning will instead transfer their own, unprotected first-round pick in 2025 to Chicago. If both of Tampa Bay’s 2023 and 2024 picks are in the top ten, then the Bolts will transfer their unprotected first-round picks in 2025 and 2026 to Chicago.
The 23-year-old Hagel has 21 goals in 55 games and is under contract for the next two seasons at a salary-cap hit of $1.5 million. This marks the first major move for GM Kyle Davidson since he took the job.
"I said a few weeks ago that we are rebuilding and this is clearly the start of that," Davidson said in a statement. "Getting two first-round draft picks as well as two young NHL players helps us kickstart that process in a major way."
"We love Brandon Hagel," a Blackhawks team source told The Athletic. "If we had the team around him, we'd love to keep him for the next three years. We don't have that. We're not winning with him in the lineup right now."
The Lightning have been active in past trade deadline periods in their Stanley Cup years, adding pieces like Barclay Goodrow, Blake Coleman and David Savard that helped them win championships in 2020 and 2021.
“Nothing is off the table in terms of improving our odds of winning a Stanley Cup. If there is an opportunity for me to make a decision I feel will increase our odds of winning a Cup, I’ll make that decision,” GM Julien BriseBois said earlier this season.
The 23-year-old Katchouk has six points in 38 games and the 23-year-old Raddysh has 12 points in 53 games.
Tampa is 39-15-6 and has 84 points, four behind the first-place Panthers in the Atlantic Division. The Blackhawks are 22-30-9 and have 53 points, which ranks 25th in the NHL.
(Photo: Bill Smith/NHLI via Getty Images)
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Blackhawks trade reaction: Did Chicago make the right decision in dealing Brandon Hagel?
Should Blackhawks fans be happy with this trade?
Scott Powers, Blackhawks senior writer: Time will tell. Not all first-round picks are of equal value. If the Blackhawks are picking at No. 32 in 2023 and 2024, then it's probably not as great of a trade. The Blackhawks have to hope the Lightning fall off a bit in the next few years and that pick improves.
But what the trade does indicate is new GM Kyle Davidson is serious about a rebuild. He traded one of his best young players who was on a very favorable contract in exchange largely for draft picks. That definitely points to Davidson knocking things down before building them back up. We'll see how much more of that he does in the coming days.
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What are the Hawks getting in Raddysh and Katchouk?
Corey Pronman, senior NHL prospects writer: Taylor Raddysh and Boris Katchouk are solid young players. They both have some skill, with Raddysh being a little smarter with more of a scoring touch. Both work hard enough off the puck, but with both players being below-average skaters they were tweeners in the Lightning lineup.
On Chicago, they'll have more opportunity to play and carve out real roles and both project as legit bottom-six forwards in the NHL with Raddysh having PP2 upside.
Why did the Lightning add Hagel?
Joe Smith, Lightning beat writer: The Lightning took another big swing but added a strong middle-six winger who can set up his teammates and create off the rush. He should help replace that third line of Yanni Gourde, Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow that was impactful on Tampa's Cup teams.
Hagel is a good forechecker, can match up defensively and is under contract for two more years at $1.5 million AAV (then an RFA). It’s a hefty price, but Tampa Bay is in “all-in” mode going for a threepeat.
