Blackhawks should do whatever it takes to trade for Elias Pettersson

There have been two kinds of losses this season for the Blackhawks .

There are the mind-numbing, soul-sucking, nihilistic losses that make this season feel pointless, that make fans and players feel hopeless, that make the franchise look directionless.

And there are the losses in which Connor Bedard scores.

Advertisement One flick of the wrists, one corner picked is all it takes.

A brilliant pass works, too.

Even one daring dangle through traffic can serve in a pinch.

Desperate times and all.

Because Bedard is where the hope lies, and a parched hockey town is desperate for any drop of water.

That the 19-year-old has reached 100 points in just 112 games with so little help is a testament to his skill and his will.

That so little help is coming feels like franchise malpractice.

Ive been thinking a lot about the conversation I had with Patrick Kane last week in Detroit.

We were talking about how he and Jonathan Toews, as teenagers, stepped right into a winning team with a winning mindset, and Kane started rattling off names.

Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook already were there.

Patrick Sharp and Dustin Byfuglien, too.

The Blackhawks signed Brian Campbell a year later, and Marian Hossa a year after that.

There was no distant future.

There was just now.

And within three years, they were Stanley Cup champions.

We just expected to win, and even after that first year, it was like, were all going to take that next step, Kane said.

Obviously, the team wanted to win back then.

And Im not saying its not that way now, but the team, the organization wanted to win.

It was all about winning, right? He was, of course, saying its not that way now in Chicago.

The Blackhawks havent been trying to win for quite a while now, and you can see the losses weighing on everyone in that room, particularly Bedard, whos been borderline despondent after some of the uglier losses lately.

Now, these are different situations, of course.

Bedard was the first piece of a long franchise rebuild.

Kane was one of the last pieces of a franchise resurrection.

But the point remains: Kane had help.

Bedard doesnt.

And help isnt exactly on the way.

Frank Nazar has looked good since being recalled and had a strong game Thursday night as Bedards right wing in a 3-2 shootout loss to Nashville, but he still doesnt project as a true top-line forward.

Neither does Colton Dach .

Oliver Moore, who wont be here until the very end of the season, might be more of a middle-sixer, too.

Lukas Reichel might have to reinvent himself as something like the next Michael Frolik to have a long career in Chicago.

Nick Lardis is a ways away.

And whomever the Blackhawks draft at the top of the first round this year will take time, too.

GO DEEPER Would Blackhawks draft Matthew Schaefer another defenseman at No.

1? Meanwhile, Bedard will keep toiling in vain, a Kane without a Toews.

Sure, the Blackhawks could throw $15 million a season at Mikko Rantanen or Mitch Marner this summer, or muck their way through another miserable season and hope that Kirill Kaprizov is available and willing in 2026.

That last ones been the organizations grand plan for a while.

But all of those are the longest of long shots.

Because superstars in their primes simply dont become available in the NHL , a league of long-term extensions and no-movement clauses.

Its not like the Blackhawks can just go out and get a 26-year-old superstar with a 100-point season to his name to play alongside Bedard on their top line.

Advertisement Or can they? The Blackhawks like every other team in the league, quite frankly should be trying to move heaven and Earth to pry Elias Pettersson out of Vancouver.

A reported rift between Pettersson and J.T.

Miller has put those two stars at the top of Chris Johnstons trade board , and for good reason.

Theyre both legitimate stars, elite talents and high-end scorers.

Miller is 31 with a full no-movement clause and some baggage to boot, so he doesnt fit Chicagos needs.

But Pettersson does.

Hes 26.

Hes signed through 2031-32 at a cap hit of $11.6 million, which will look like a steal within a couple of years as the cap climbs.

Hes a true star, a dazzling playmaker and an elite finisher.

He has scored 32, 39 and 34 goals over the last three seasons.

He had 102 points in 2022-23 and 89 last season.

And his creativity and vision would mesh beautifully with Bedards.

Hed be able to cash in those no-look passes that often handcuff Bedards most pedestrian partners, and hed be able to tee up Bedards world-class shot all over the offensive zone.

If Bedard can produce at this rate with the likes of Philipp Kurashev and Ilya Mikheyev on his right wing, imagine what he could do with Pettersson on his right wing.

Or on Petterssons right wing, for that matter.

Pettersson would fully unlock Bedard, elevating him to the megastar level hes been destined for since he was 14.

Pettersson can make Bedard and the Blackhawks better and a hell of a lot more palatable for a fan base thats starting to check out, if that sub-16,000 crowd on Monday was any indication immediately.

But hes also young enough, and signed for long enough, to fit Chicagos longer-term timeline.

A better player and better fit might never become available again.

And heres the thing: The Blackhawks might have the pieces to actually make this trade happen.

Vancouver surely would rather move Miller than Pettersson, and perhaps the only reason were talking about a Pettersson deal is because the Swedes no-trade clause doesnt kick in until July 1.

The Canucks would justifiably want a huge haul for a player of Petterssons caliber, especially in the prime of his career.

Chicago could offer one.

Do I think Nazar is going to be a good NHL player? I do.

I love his speed, his relentlessness and his confidence.

He can be a very good No.

2 center.

Do I think Kevin Korchinski is going to be a good NHL player? I do.

I love how he skates, Ive seen the improvements hes made on the defensive side, and I know the offensive flair from his time in juniors still lives within him.

He can be a very solid No.

2 defenseman.

Advertisement Would I trade Nazar, Korchinski and Toronto s first-round pick (acquired in the Jake McCabe trade) for Pettersson? In a heartbeat.

I dont know if thats quite enough for Vancouver, but its better than most teams can offer.

And if the Canucks like other prospects or players better? Id be happy to accommodate.

Bedard, and perhaps perhaps Artyom Levshunov, are the only untouchables in this organization.

So yes, in a heartbeat.

General managers pile up picks and prospects to be developed, yes, but also to be traded when the time is right.

This might be a year or two earlier than he expected, but there wont be a better trade target for Kyle Davidson anytime soon.

Maybe ever.

Nazar might be good.

Korchinski might be good.

The No.

20-something pick might be good.

Pettersson is great.

And hes great now .

And Bedard and the Blackhawks need great, a sure thing, to move Bedard along and to move the team along.

There are enough forwards in the system, including last years first-round picks, Sacha Boisvert and Marek Vanacker, and Lardis, and Ryan Greene, and Roman Kantserov, to keep the future bright while significantly improving the present.

And theyll still have a top-three or top-four pick in this years draft (which, to be clear, Kyle Davidson almost certainly would not put on the table for this kind of trade), a draft that is top-heavy with skilled forwards.

Things can take a while, and then they can change quickly, Kane said.

Look at a team like Colorado .

It took a while, and then all of a sudden, theyre one of the best teams in the league and theyre winning.

It could be a situation like that in Chicago where it takes a little bit of time and then all of a sudden, theyre really good and theyre competing for a Cup.

Trading for Elias Pettersson would not make the Blackhawks really good, nor would it put them in contention for the Stanley Cup.

But it would get them significantly closer.

And it would make it all a heck of a lot more realistic.

Because they wont ever get there with just one star.

Not in this sport, not in this league.

There might be a second (or a third, or a fourth) star somewhere in this deep prospect pool, or in next years draft.

But itll take years to find out.

Years of losing.

Years of frustration.

Years of the hyper-competitive Bedard stewing and spinning his wheels.

Years of fans tuning out.

But theres one of those stars in Vancouver right now.

The Blackhawks these miserable, moribund Blackhawks should be willing to do just about anything to get him.

For Bedard.

For the franchise.

For the city.

For the love of god.

(Top photo of Connor Bedard and Elias Pettersson: Melissa Tamez / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.