The Chicago Blackhawks announced that the team had acquired forwards Ilya Mikheyev, Sam Lafferty and a 2027 second-round pick from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a 2027 fourth-round pick. Vancouver will retain 15% of Mikheyev’s salary for the remaining term of the contract.
Mikheyev, 29, is under contract for two more seasons at $4.75 million per year — a deal he signed ahead of the 2022-23 season. While his first season with the club was respectable — 13 goals and 28 points in 46 games before being sidelined with an ACL injury — his production took a sharp downturn in his second season with the club.
The native of Omsk, Russia has earned 131 points (60G, 71A) in 270 career regular-season games with Toronto and Vancouver. Mikheyev has also made four career trips to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, logging four points (2G, 2A) in 30 career postseason games.
Lafferty, 29, enjoyed the most productive season of his career, primarily playing on the Canucks’ fourth line. He scored 13 goals and 11 points for 24 points in 79 games. He is a pending unrestricted free agent. Lafferty was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks in 2022 for Alexander Nylander. During the following 2022–23 NHL season, while during a breakout season in establishing new offensive highs, Lafferty was traded by the rebuilding Blackhawks to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
After locking down Teddy Blueger, the Canucks are continuing to work on trying to create necessary cap space to take a run at their seven remaining pending free agents, such as Nikita Zadorov, Dakota Joshua, and Elias Lindholm.
Heading into the 2024 NHL Draft, the Hawks hold the No. 2 and No. 18 overall picks, as well as a pair of selections in the second and third rounds, and two late-round picks, General Manager Kyle Davidson, director of amateur scouting Mike Doneghey and the amateur scouting team are more confident than ever about their process heading into the weekend — the third draft since Davidson took over as GM. They have options that could set them up for success in the very near future, while the Canucks are making moves that will allow them to continue to build on the success they have saw in the 2023-24 season.
