The Chicago Blackhawks needed to shed some salary to re-sign Marcus Kruger, so why not ship out Kris Versteeg, aka the guy who always gets traded?
That’s what happened on Friday, as the Blackhawks made this deal with the Carolina Hurricanes:
To Carolina: Versteeg and Joakim Nordstrom, plus a 2017 third-round pick
To Chicago: Prospect defensemen Dennis Robertson and Jake Massie, plus a 2017 fifth-rounder
Most obviously, the Blackhawks save money; Versteeg carries a $2.2 million cap hit that expires after the 2015-16 season. That’s actually a discounted rate stemming from the swap that sent him from the Florida Panthers to Chicago, but that still ended up being too rich for the ‘Hawks. Nordstrom’s cap consideration was pretty negligible at $605K.
So the #Blackhawks shed salary and lose their 2015 Stanley Cup Parade rap duo in one move.
— Tracey Myers (@Tramyers_NHL) September 11, 2015
One would feel bad for Versteeg, 29, although he managed to win two Stanley Cups with Chicago despite bouncing around the NHL like a pinball.
Just looking through the archives of PHT alone, check out his recent history of being traded:
November 2013: Blackhawks got him back from Florida
July 2011: Flyers send him to the Panthers
Feb 2011: Maple Leafs traded Versteeg to Philly
June 2010: The other time Chicago traded him
Versteeg in July: "For myself to be moved, it wouldn’t shock me at all ever. Hopefully I’m a Blackhawk in the end." http://t.co/GMZi9Lwy1l
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) September 11, 2015
Versteeg is becoming a solid yet constantly traded journeyman. Think of him as hockey’s answer to former NBA player Chris Gatling, only with goofy hair and hopefully without the legal issues.