The Chicago Blackhawks don’t necessarily need to add any players that are still left on the free agent market, but what about RFAs that have yet to be signed by their teams? This, Kyle Davidson and the Blackhawks could find intriguing.
The only way Chicago is going to land any RFA and pluck them from another roster is if they send an offer sheet and that player accepts. This already happened twice at the same time this offseason with two former Edmonton Oilers signing offer sheets from St. Louis, probably thinking the Oilers would match and they’d get their money.
The target player that could be of interest to the Blackhawks is Cole Perfetti of the Winnipeg Jets. He is not the best RFA still out there, so these are the reasons why Chicago should send him an offer sheet.
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Winnipeg isn’t the most popular place to play. This has been evident for a long time through the team finding it tough to bring in big free agents and players wanting to leave. Winnipeg is in Canada and the taxes are high. A very recent example of a player not wanting to play for the Jets is one of their former top prospects, Rutger McGroarty, who forced his way out and over to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
While there has been no indication that Perfetti is looking to do the same, if an opportunity to sign a contract for more than the Jets are offering him comes and he can play elsewhere, there’s a good chance he at least signs. Winnipeg could match the contract and pay more than they would have liked, but the Blackhawks could also squeeze the Jets a little more and make it a multi-year offer. The Jets can match and be under the salary cap this season, but who knows how things play out ahead of the 2025-26 season.
What if the Blackhawks send the offer sheet, it’s accepted by Perfetti, and the Jets don’t match? The Blackhawks send a draft pick over as compensation, which they have plenty of, but it also gives a little time for development of Frank Nazar and company. Perfetti is ideally a second line center and has played in that role for the Jets. The Blackhawks are looking for just that and aren’t going to find it on the UFA market at this time of the summer.
At the very least, trying to pull this off would put the Jets in a worse spot. Since they are division rivals to the Blackhawks, that’s never a bad play. Winnipeg is one of the teams that stand in Chicago’s way of jumping up the standings and into a playoff spot.
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