Chicago Blackhawks acquire Brett Connolly in five-player trade

Credit: Jasen Vinlove

Mar 30, 2021; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers right wing Brett Connolly (10) celebrates his goal against the Detroit Red Wings with teammates on the bench during the first period at BB&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Blackhawks and Florida Panthers combined for a five-player trade Thursday with the former acquiring forward Brett Connolly and two other players.

Chicago took Connolly and his $3.5-m cap hit off the hands of the Panthers, while also acquiring defenceman Riley Stillman, prospect Henrik Borgstrom and a seventh-round pick. Flordia, meanwhile, acquired defenceman Lucas Carlsson and forward Lucas Wallmark.

It marks the return of Wallmark to the Panthers after he was traded by the club at last years deadline. Carlsson, meanwhile, has scored one assist in 12 games with Chicago this year and one goal and three points in seven AHL games.

Connolly, meanwhile, has scored two goals and four points in 21 games with Florida this year. He has two years remaining on his contract and scored 33 points in 69 games last year with the Washington Capitals.

Lastly, Borgstrom was highly praised by Chicago GM Stan Bowman.

“We are receiving a very exciting, young player with a bright future in ,” Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said. “He is a high-end talent and we think he has the ability to be a big time player for us. We also add to our forward depth with an experienced veteran in and a physical defenceman in .

He’s appeared in 27 games with HIFK Helsinki this year scoring 11 goals and 19 points.

All in all, it’s a moved that saw Chicago acquire two prospects in exchange for freeing up some cap space for Florida.

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.