The Pittsburgh Penguins are going to trade Rickard Rakell at some point before his contract ends. That contract has three years remaining at $5 million AAV, and for a player that just recorded 35 goals and 70 points on a bad team, he isn't going to come cheap.
For the price and term of Rakell, any number of teams could throw their hat in the race for him. For the Chicago Blackhawks, it actually does make sense for them to bring him in if the team isn't on his no-trade list. There are eight teams on that list.
While the Blackhawks brought in Andre Burakovsky this summer, in no way does that reduce the chance of targeting someone like Rakell if they can. Chicago is going to have to give up a lot in the hopes that Rakell helps the team push closer to the playoffs and into the dance before his contract is up. That is a long way to go, but his contributions would very much help along with the growth of many of the younger players.
Rakell could slide in on the top line beside Connor Bedard and play on the top power play. Rakell is a player that can score, and while the Blackhawks have a number of average to above average top-9 players, he is a step above that.
Starting in a package to acquire Rakell would very likely be Lukas Reichel and Kevin Korchinski, but I would expect even more, whether it is a first-round pick and more or another prospect in the system that the Blackhawks could afford to trade or won't be in the NHL just yet.
Rakell is a player that could help a non-contender get much better or a playoff-bound/contender get a step up on the competition at a price that can fit in most team's cap. If Rakell isn't traded this offseason and the Blackhawks look better, both overall and with development of the young players, then the Penguins' sniper is very much in the cards and makes even more sense.
