{"id":450871,"date":"2026-02-08T02:10:55","date_gmt":"2026-02-08T02:10:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/450871\/"},"modified":"2026-02-08T02:10:55","modified_gmt":"2026-02-08T02:10:55","slug":"the-chicago-blackhawks-traded-a-star-to-the-vancouver-canucks-before-they-even-knew-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/450871\/","title":{"rendered":"The Chicago Blackhawks traded a star to the Vancouver Canucks before they even knew it"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<p>PUBLICATION<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagohockeyinsider.com\/collaborators\/sam-walker\" class=\"lediv\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Sam Walker<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFebruary 5, 2026\u00a0\u00a0(1:27 PM)<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t&#13;<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t  &#13;<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/639758.webp.webp\" style=\"width:100%;\" border=\"0\" alt=\"Oct 26, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; A view of the logo on the jersey of Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Petr Mrazek (34) during the game between the Dallas Stars and the Chicago Blackhawks at American Airlines Center.\" title=\"Oct 26, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; A view of the logo on the jersey of Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Petr Mrazek (34) during the game between the Dallas Stars and the Chicago Blackhawks at American Airlines Center.\"\/>&#13;<\/p>\n<p>Photo credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p>Ilya Safonov just turned a quiet Vancouver Canucks trade into a loud Chicago Blackhawks mistake, and it stings for a rebuilding team.<\/p>\n<p>Chicago basically handed over a legit center prospect for free.<\/p>\n<p>Safonov is 24, and he was a 2021 sixth-round pick, 172nd overall, by the Blackhawks. That\u2019s the kind of lottery ticket you keep until it cashes.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, the Hawks cashed it in for air.<\/p>\n<p>This is not some distant, years-away long shot either. Vancouver is openly lining him up as a real option to bring over and use.<\/p>\n<p>Safonov\u2019s KHL production is the flashing sign. He has 17 goals and 29 points in 53 games with Ak Bars Kazan this season.<\/p>\n<p>That is bottom-six scoring with teeth, not empty touches.<\/p>\n<p>Ilya Safonov makes Vancouver Canucks look like geniuses over trade with the Chicago Blackhawks<\/p>\n<p>Blackhawks fans can feel the annoyance here, because Chicago needs cost-controlled centers more than almost anyone.<\/p>\n<p>Safonov plays a direct style, lives around the crease, and can handle penalty-kill work. That\u2019s useful NHL stuff, even if the upside is \u201conly\u201d a strong third-liner.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Another two goals for Ilya Safonov today, giving him four goals in two games. This man just lives in the blue paint.<\/p>\n<p>He&#8217;s up to 29 points (17 goals, 12 assists) in 53 games.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Chicago could have simply kept his rights, sold the idea of a role, and let him fight for a job in camp.<\/p>\n<p>If it failed, fine. If it hit, you just found a bargain.<\/p>\n<p>Now Vancouver gets that same swing, with none of the original scouting pain.<\/p>\n<p>It also undercuts the Hawks\u2019 rebuild logic. You cannot preach patience and then donate a mature prospect for nothing.<\/p>\n<p>If Safonov signs and sticks before the end of 2026, this trade is going to get replayed every time Chicago\u2019s depth dries up.<\/p>\n<p>The next milestone is simple: the moment his North America decision becomes official, the \u201cfuture considerations\u201d line will look brutal.<\/p>\n<p>Previously on Chicago Hockey Insider<\/p>\n<p>POLL<\/p>\n<p>FEVRIER 5|389 ANSWERS<\/p>\n<p>The Chicago Blackhawks traded a star to the Vancouver Canucks before they even knew it<\/p>\n<p>Do you think Ilya Safonov will make the Chicago Blackhawks regret this Vancouver Canucks trade?<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PUBLICATION Sam Walker February 5, 2026\u00a0\u00a0(1:27 PM) &#13; &#13; &#13; Photo credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Ilya Safonov just&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":450872,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5128],"tags":[894,96,5,181,11713,4,3613,893,27,5313],"class_list":{"0":"post-450871","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-vancouver-canucks","8":"tag-canucks","9":"tag-chicago-blackhawks","10":"tag-hockey","11":"tag-hockey-news","12":"tag-ilya-safonov","13":"tag-nhl","14":"tag-trade","15":"tag-vancouver","16":"tag-vancouver-canucks","17":"tag-vancouvercanucks"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116032588180531180","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/450871","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=450871"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/450871\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/450872"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=450871"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=450871"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=450871"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}