Blackhawks trade Artemi Panarin to Blue Jackets for Brandon Saad

The Chicago Blackhawks have gotten Brandon Saad back two years after trading him. But they had to send Artemi Panarin to the Columbus Blue Jackets to make it happen. 

Two years ago, the NHL offseason got to an unbelievable start. Just days after reportedly being close to an extension with the Chicago Blackhawks, Brandon Saad found himself traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Now, two years later, he’s back in The Windy City. Chicago missed Saad a lot and they’re very happy to have the two-time Stanley Cup champion back. However, it cost them star forward Artemi Panarin.

Combined with the Niklas Hjalmarsson deal, it seems the Blackhawks are shedding short-term deals for long-term ones. Panarin has two years remaining on his deal, with a $6 million annual cap hit. Meanwhile, Saad has the same annual cap hit over the next four years.

There are some other parts involved as well. Anton Forsberg will be heading from Columbus to Chicago, along with a fifth round pick in the 2018 draft. Also, Tyler Motte and a sixth-round pick in this year’s draft will head to the Blue Jackets.

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Reportedly, the Blackhawks missed Saad a lot. He was an important part of two of their Stanley Cup runs. They should be very happy to get him back. And, for what it’s worth, they get a pretty good return for Panarin. Saad is someone Chicago is very familiar with, and that’s important. But Columbus gets the better end of the deal here, as they get Panarin, who is the better player.