Versteeg Sent to Toronto

			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Toronto	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Kris Versteeg	Forward	24	79	20	24	44	2	$3.1 million
Bill Sweatt	Forward	21	0	0	0	0	0	RFA
--------------
To Chicago	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Viktor Stalberg	Forward	24	40	9	5	14	1	$850,000
Chris DiDomenico	Forward	21	0	0	0	0	2	$678,000
Philippe Paradis	Forward	19	0	0	0	0	0	RFA

It's fair to say that most of us saw the exodus of at least one or two more big Blackhawks coming before this was all said and done, so seeing Kris Versteeg on his way out of Chicago should not come as a surprise to anyone.  His destination, Toronto, does surprise me a little bit, possibly moreso the timing of the deal than anything, but I shouldn't be surprised that they had their stick in the fire as well.

So, the Blackhawks sent Versteeg and Bill Sweatt, an unsigned prospect, to Toronto for Viktor Stalberg, a speedy Swedish winger, Chris DiDomenico, a late round pick with ties to the World Juniors for Canada, and Philippe Paradis, a former first rounder.  It's a hefty deal, which does not burden the Blackhawks to any great extent salary-wise and gives Toronto a Stanley Cup-winning forward to add to their collection.

In what is supposed to be a salary dump for the Blackhawks, they did manage to pick up a few good prospects out of Toronto for an established player, so the hefty price was paid by someone to get Versteeg out of town.  You know, before the Blackhawks became too desperate and shipped him off for less.


This deal does shift some numbers around for the 2011 salary cap totals and they are beginning to look better for both teams.  Okay, mind you these totals are without any sort of buyouts and they just include who would be on my team tables in the middle of the Summer, so bear with me and the numbers.  Currently, the Blackhawks have 13 players signed on to their roster for a cap hit of $51 million, only giving them about $8.4 million for 10 players on their roster.  That will have to be a lot of quality depth to fill on their roster.  The Maple Leafs, on the other hand, now have 16 players on their roster for a cap hit of $49 million, giving them $10.4 million for 7 players, which looks a lot healthier at the end of the day.  The Leafs can still be solid players in the free agent frenzy that begins on Thursday.


It's hard not to like this deal, if you were a Leafs fan.  Versteeg is a quality forward, that plays with a ton of work ethic, something you could argue that has been lacking in Toronto for a while now.  You can build line-ups in your head between now and the beginning of preseason and like what you see, but it will be the on-ice product that everyone is looking for from this deal.  The Blackhawks didn't do too badly for having to make the dump of salary, I am weary of Stalberg actually making the team in Chicago, since he was a bit of a flake for the Maple Leafs at the best of times.  Wait and see, I guess.