The “Greece Lightning” GIFs will live on.
According to multiple reports, the Blackhawks have re-signed forward Andreas Athanasiou to a two-year contract, keeping him from hitting unrestricted free agency in a few weeks. Based on the reporting below, Athanasiou will receive a decent raise from his $3.0 million salary last season:
The Blackhawks have signed Andreas Athanasiou to a 2-year contract with $4.25M cap hit, per a source close to the situation.
Athanasiou gets a nice raise over the $3M he made last year; the Hawks get closer to the cap floor and help support Bedard. Everyone's happy.
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) June 7, 2023
[THURSDAY UPDATE] The Blackhawks have confirmed the signing:
happy to see you is back 😁 pic.twitter.com/iZnYktncdD
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) June 8, 2023
Athanasiou signed that one-year deal last July and produced 40 points (20 G, 20 A) in 81 ganes while averaging 16:00 of ice time. It wasn’t a career-best season from Athanasiou but he proved to be a viable NHL-caliber player on a roster which did not have as many of those as one might expect – all part of The Plan™, of course.
Dave Melton
In fact, let’s revisit a little snippet of that article right now:
Still, there’s a worthwhile NHL player here and it wouldn’t be the worst choice in the world to bring him back for another season in Chicago. His long-term future won’t be with this franchise – Athanasiou turns 29 in August – so it’s possible that he will seek more term elsewhere than what the Blackhawks would offer. If not, though, Chicago could easily afford to pay him $4 or $5 million for another season with the intention of retaining half of that salary at the 2024 deadline to entice potential buyers next spring.
Even with a second year on the deal, this contract carries zero risk for a team still miles away from the salary cap floor, let alone the ceiling. And should Athanasiou have a breakout performance in the upcoming season or the one after, it’s entirely possible that the Blackhawks retain half of that salary to make it worthwhile for a cash-strapped Cup contender. Having that contract locked in for a second season at that same rate could be another positive factor for GM Kyle Davidson at the bargaining table.
Not much of anything to dislike about about this move.