Goodbye Shawzy, Blackhawks Trade Andrew Shaw For Two 2nd Round Picks

Another summer, and another key role player has to be shipped off thanks to the hard salary cap.

As we inched closer and closer to the Draft it sounded like the Blackhawks and Andrew Shaw were very far apart on a contract. Shaw reportedly asking for $4.5M AAV and obviously that’s way too much. The Blackhawks were forced to either trade his rights, or wait until he signed an offer sheet and take the RFA compensation for Shaw next year. Former Hawks assistant GM Marc Bergevin traded away Eller to Washington and cleared up the space needed to presumably sign Shaw. The Blackhawks basically just accelerated the process. Why wait a year for a potentially a 2nd or maybe a late 1st and a 3rd when you can get two high #2 picks now? And it’s done.

Andrew Shaw will be sorely missed on the ice, in the locker room, and in the city of Chicago. He came in as a relative unknown prospect, and threw absolute BOMBS in a fight vs Rinaldo in his first NHL game. He grew into a guy that would help win the Blackhawks multiple Stanley Cups, playing on many lines, many positions, and playing any role the Blackhawks needed him to. So many memorable moments.. Great team player, agitator, and a guy known for keeping the team loose. A guy that Coach Q called irreplacable now has to be replaced.

Best of luck to a great Hawk, Andrew Shaw