I guess the Thrashers aren’t quite done picking up some pieces from the Hawks. There is nothing official yet but there are all kinds of rumors flying around that the Blackhawks have traded Andrew Ladd to the Thrashers. I believe Darren Dreger broke the news and is now saying Ladd will be shipped out for a “pick and a prospect”.
This is the first of the moves that hurts. Buff, Eager and Sopel were all pretty expendable and generally overpaid… we knew those moves were coming and we were ready. The VERSTEEG! trade also made sense – due to last year’s bumbling at the deadline he was overpaid and didn’t have a great spot on this team.
With Ladd being a restricted free agent though, there was hopes he could be re-signed. There were also rumors though that teams were offering him $3 Million a year which is quite a boost from the $1.6 he was paid last year. If the Hawks were worried they couldn’t sign him then getting a pick and a prospect might make more sense than simply the pick they’d receive on compensation. This may be the first time we’ve seen the Hawks make a pure strategic move, not simply a salary dump (though they’ve been good at not just dumping money, they’re getting a lot of good picks and prospects in return so far). A lot more on this as we get some more time.
Word is that the prospect is Ivan Vishnevskiy.. the pick is a second rounder.
UPDATE: A reaction from The Falconer of Bird Watchers Anonymous on Twitter: “Much happier with Ladd deal than earlier CHI trade. I think Vish will be a NHL bust or bottom pairing D, smart to leverage him.”