It wasn’t all that long ago that Blackhawks center Dylan Strome was viewed as a potential centerpiece player when he was drafted third overall by Arizona back in 2015. Even as recently as 2019-20, when he had a good season with the Blackhawks, he still looked like a part of a longer-term core in Chicago. But since then, he has struggled mightily, and it doesn’t appear as if other teams around the league believe he could rebound as Mark Lazerus of The Athletic reports (subscription link) that the Blackhawks haven’t been able to get a team to meet their asking price of a mid-round draft pick for Strome’s services. The 24-year-old has just a goal and two assists this season in 12 games while being a frequent healthy scratch. His average annual value of $3 million is problematic while a $3.6 million qualifying offer looms large as well. If a mid-round pick isn’t feasible, it appears that interim GM Kyle Davidson will need to consider some retention to try to find a new place for Strome to play.
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