Rumour season is upon us, ladies and gentlemen.
On Wednesday afternoon, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Chicago Blackhawks defenceman Seth Jones would welcome a trade.
“I would like to give myself a chance to win in my career,” Jones said. “I know that the money is not an easy thing to move, and that’s what we’re figuring out.”
The right-shot defenceman hasn’t formally requested a trade, but Jones noted that his agent and the Blackhawks’ general manager have spoken about a hypothetical trade. It’s unclear if a trade will materialize ahead of the March 7 trade deadline.
Some factors make moving Jones difficult, though. Acquired from the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2021, Jones signed an eight-year, $76 million extension on July 23, 2021, with an annual cap hit of $9.5 million and a full no-move clause.
“If it happens, it happens,” Jones added. “Obviously, while I’m here with the Blackhawks, they have my full effort [and] full attention to this team to try to get this team better … You have fun coming to the rink every day. That’s what my goal is for this team, as long as I’m here. It could be two weeks. It could be five more years.”
The 30-year-old was born in Arlington, Texas, and grew up in the United States. His younger brother, Caleb, is a former Oiler who was selected in the fourth round of the 2015 draft and played three seasons with the club.
Seth Jones’ career-best season was in 2017-18 when he scored 16 goals and 57 points, with the closest he’s come since then being in 2021-22 when he scored five goals and 51 games. So far this season, the right-shot defenceman has six goals and 26 points in 38 games and is on pace for 12 goals and 56 points over a full 82-game season. However, he missed time with a broken foot which made him miss a chunk of games.
It’s safe to say that Jones would be a fit for the Oilers. He’d instantly become their second-pair right-shot defenceman alongside Darnell Nurse. Jones can move the puck, put up points, and kill penalties. What makes a potential trade virtually impossible is his cap hit of $9.5 million and his full no-trade clause.
The Blackhawks only have one retention spot remaining this season, before Mikko Rantanen and Jake McCabe’s contracts are off the books next season. Asking the Blackhawks to retain 50% is a huge ask and would cost the Oilers an arm and a leg. Moreover, with McDavid’s impending contract extension (knock on wood), the Oilers may not have cap space to spare to add a player like Jones.
Either way, it’ll be interesting to see what happens with Jones before March 7’s trade deadline, along with what the Oilers will do to improve.
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