The Blackhawks acquired forward Spencer Watson from the Kings in exchange for forward Matt Iacopelli in a minor-league swap Sunday night.
Watson only played in two AHL games this season for the Ontario Reign. The 2014 seventh-round pick has 22 goals and 47 points in 47 ECHL games with the Manchester Monarchs. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound winger will report to the Blackhawks’ AHL affiliate in Rockford.
Iacopelli scored just two goals and four points in 27 AHL games for the IceHogs this season and four goals for the Indy Fuel. Drafted in the third round in the 2014 NHL draft, the 24-year-old was one of the Blackhawks more promising prospects after his sophomore season at Western Michigan, where he tallied 20 goals and 36 points in 40 games.
Iacopelli had a goal and three assists in eight AHL games after signing his entry-level contract with the Blackhawks in 2017. He tallied 19 points (11 goals, eight assists) in 50 AHL games and also tallied a point per game in 10 ECHL contests the next season.
It’s the second time this season the Blackhawks have traded a 2014 draft pick. They sent first rounder Nick Schmaltz to Arizona in November for forwards Dylan Strome and Brendan Perlini. Chicago also cut ties with fifth-rounder Luc Snuggerud, who cleared unconditional waivers after struggling to stay healthy.
The Blackhawks have five prospects left from their 2014 class: center Beau Starrett; wingers Fredrik Olofsson, Jack Ramsey and Dylan Sikura and goaltender Ivan Nalimov. Sikura is the only one among the group to have played in the NHL.