Hawks deal Parenteau

The Chicago Blackhawks have sent winger P.A. Parenteau to the Phoenix Coyotes in a deal finalized yesterday. The move has Chicago sending Parenteau, along with goaltending prospect Alexander Salak to the desert in exchange for Phoenix's 1st round pick in the 2012 draft, as well as young winger Colton Gillies. Parenteau was originally acquired by the Hawks in the offseason for a 5th round pick, Salak was drafted by the team in last June's draft in the 5th round, 130th overall.

The move shows off the asset management that had made the Hawks a perrennial power house in the MRFHL, essentially dealing two 5th round picks for a 1st rounder and a former 1st round pick.

"PA has lived up to all our expectations of him when we acquired him this past summer, we knew he had offensive potential and he is showing that off this season. That being said at present time he is well down our depth chart on the wing, and with stud prospects Logan Couture and Jordan Eberle soon to enter the mix it was very apparent that we would not have a spot on our pro roster for him in the immediate future. Adding a 1st round draft pick will either bring another top end young player to our organization, or provide us with another excellent trade chip. We also believe we are getting a player who still has significant upside in Colton Gillies. We did not originally plan on parting with Salak, however with the acquisition of Tuukka Rask, the development of Martin Jones and Mike Murphy and of course the prescence of Roberto Luongo we are quite well positioned in goal going forward" was the statement from GM Todd Semonick.

The team does indeed add two more valuable assets to an already deep stable. To this point Gillies has not lived up to his draft position, however power forwards tend to have a longer development curve than other players, and being rushed to the big league has no doubt slowed his progression. With the deep system in Chicago he should have all the time he needs to mature, and he could end up being the most valuable asset moved in this deal. The 1st rounder should probably be in the 10-15 range, with an outside shot at landing in the top-10. This pick should land the team another quality player given the Hawks phenomenal draft record.

The team figures to be fairly active in the trade market heading up to the deadline and is rumored to be eyeing an addition on the wing to aid in a cup run.