The season is over. The mighty Detroit Red Wings lost in game seven to the Pittsburgh Penguins. First order of business for the Blackhawks should be to re-sign unrestricted free agent (UFA) Martin Havlat. Reports have stated that he would like to return, and that Marty’s camp has been in contact with Dale Tallon already. The fact that there doesn’t seem to be a sense of urgency surrounding this tells me that a deal will get done before the free agent frenzy starts on July 1st.
A major concern that would come with re-signing Marty is that his new contract would hinder the front office’s ability to lock-up Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Duncan Keith – each are restricted free agents (RFAs) next year, and are cornerstones to the Chicago Blackhawks’ resurgence. This doesn’t have to be the case.
Havlat is a great talent, and it would be hard to replace him if Tallon let him walk this summer. He is a good two-way forward with the ability to create scoring chances for himself and others on the ice. As valuable as Marty was to the team this season, the $6M he made in his three years in Chicago was too much. His value lies somewhere between the $4M to $5M range, and that won’t break the ‘Hawks bank if a deal at that price can be struck.
With the Khabibulin likely to sign elsewhere, and a cheaper contract for Marty, Tallon will have freed up some cash. He may have to resort to a lot of creativity with the cap, move an RFA this summer, and trading a bloated contract or two to get it done. The point is that re-signing Marty doesn’t have to interfere with Chicago’s future plans.
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