The Chicago Blackhawks are on the verge of competing in their second Stanley Cup Final in the last four years. However, that hasn't stopped general manager Stan Bowman from looking to this offseason.
Blackhawks will do ‘everything’ they can to retain Bryan Bickell, GM says
Bryan Bickell stands to earn a raise this offseason. The Blackhawks seem willing to give it to him -- at least, that’s what their general manager says.
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Bowman stated to Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times that the Blackhawks will attempt to retain pending unrestricted free agent forward Bryan Bickell. Bowman believes that the potential of such an occurrence is not "far-fetched," according to Lazerus.
Bickell has managed to raise his stock considerably over the course of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs. Registering eight goals and five assits for 13 points in 17 playoff games, the 27-year-old has emerged, for some, as a comparable option to New Jersey Devils pending unrestricted free agent David Clarkson. Many believe Clarkson will receive a copious amount of interest if he hits the open market on July 5. Some have speculated that Bickell might be a target for teams who don't land Clarkson.
The Blackhawks forward finished out the final year of a three-year, $1.6 million contract in 2013 that carried an annual average value of $541,667 against the salary cap.
Bickell was originally selected with the No. 41 overall pick in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by Chicago. Bowman stated that the organization hopes to continue building upon their relationship with Bickell. After winning the Stanley Cup in 2010, the Blackhawks were forced to purge their roster in order to become compliant with the salary cap. Bowman states that won’t be the case this season.
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