The Chicago Blackhawks traded forward Kris Versteeg to the Carolina Hurricanes along with defenseman Joakim Nordstrom and a third-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft in exchange for defensemen Dennis Robertson and Jake Massie and a fifth-round pick in the 2017 draft, the Blackhawks announced on their team website on Friday. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was the first to report that the teams were discussing a deal.
Versteeg, 29, has appeared in 124 regular season games for the Blackhawks over the past two seasons, along with 27 postseason contests. In that time, he has amassed 24 regular season goals and 39 assists and added two more goals and three more assists during the playoffs.
"Kris is a skilled forward who has won a pair of Cups with the Blackhawks and can provide veteran leadership in our room," said Hurricanes GM Ron Francis, via the Carolina team site. "Joakim is a solid, 200-foot player who can kill penalties. This gives us more options up front for this season, while also now giving us 10 picks in the first three rounds over the next two drafts."
Set to embark on his ninth NHL season, Versteeg initially entered the league has a fifth-round pick of the Boston Bruins, but made his professional debut as a member of the Hawks, before spending parts of four seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers.
Versteeg was likely set for third unit duties with the Hawks this season, alongside Andrew Shaw and Marko Dano. It's unclear where he'll slot in with the Hurricanes, though it's likely to be somewhere in the bottom-six, perhaps in place of Chris Terry or Zach Boychuk on the left wing.
The 23-year-old Nordstrom appeared in 38 games for the Hawks last season, managing three assists. He also appeared in three playoff games.
For the Hawks and GM Stan Bowman, moving Versteeg and his $2.2 million cap hit opens up a little breathing room under the cap and also ensures that they see a return for a player who would likely have left via unrestricted free agency after the season.
