Confirmed Trade: [CHI/BUF] Bowen Byram, Jordan Greenway for Louis Crevier, 2026 1st round pick (4th overall), 2026 2nd round pick (45th overall)

[Ianturnedbull]

Do you realize how valuable having young contributing players playing well over their cap hit is to contending teams in terms of allowed them to retain players and keep their contention window open?

I know how valuable punctuation is.

Dude, break it down.

What cha saying?

 

[ZDH]

Obviously not 4OV so tough to tell what the return might be?

tough one

 

[HaNotsri]

oh yeah. Thanks for reminding me. It was Kyle Davidson's bright idea to start the moms on the road trip thing and Bedards mom went and got hammered at the hotel bar with the other moms, when Mr Perry walks in and something "happens".

To me that sealed Perry in the hall of fame. He'd truly do God's work in a monastery.

 

[HFpapi]

Wtf is Chicago thinking? I mean seriously, what are they thinking?

Bedard is 20 years old. How do you not go out and draft an 18 year old Chase Reid there or whatever stud is available at 4. They are basically Bedards peers in this draft. Talk about a panic move, jesus.

This is a fireable GM offence.

 

[UrbanImpact]

4th Overall for Byram??

Bowen Byram?

Why not wait till he hits free agency and just back the brinks truck at him?

Sure there's no guarantee he'll make it to ufa but so what if he doesn't. He's not a must have franchise Dman.

I thought using the 4th to try and get Knies was a horrendous idea but using the 4th to get Byram is even worse!!

 

[Daisycutter]

4th Overall for Byram??

Bowen Byram?

Why not wait till he hits free agency and just back the brinks truck at him?

Sure there's no guarantee he'll make it to ufa but so what if he doesn't. He's not a must have franchise Dman.

I thought using the 4th to try and get Knies was a horrendous idea but using the 4th to get Byram is even worse!!

Speaking of backing the brinks truck... Byram has Davidson by the balls right now.

Byram could ask for $20.8 million and demand he be made captain. Whats Davidson going to do? Let him walk at the end of the season? After what he just paid? I can't facepalm hard enough

This move is pants on head stupid.

 

[UrbanImpact]

Speaking of backing the brinks truck... Byram has Davidson by the balls right now.

Byram could ask for $20.8 million and demand he be made captain. Whats Davidson going to do? Let him walk at the end of the season? After what he just paid? I can't facepalm hard enough

This move is pants on head stupid.

Yes and no.

If I was JD, id give him until trade deadline to extend at an overpaid but not ridiculous contract.....if he doesnt, then you trade him. Hawks wont get nearly as much as they paid but you cut your losses.

The worst think Hawks can do is fix a loss with a loss. Trade huge for him, overpay him to a ridiculous ridiculous contract.

 

[SeanMoneyHands]

Davidson must see them being a playoff team and Byram being a #1D. Huge overpayment by Chicago.

What is Davidson thinking giving up this years 4th overall lol. Yikes, was he drunk when he made this deal?

 

[67 others]

Speaking of backing the brinks truck... Byram has Davidson by the balls right now.

Byram could ask for $20.8 million and demand he be made captain. Whats Davidson going to do? Let him walk at the end of the season? After what he just paid? I can't facepalm hard enough

This move is pants on head stupid.

Isn't he represented by Darren Ferris? The guy most known to Hardball and encourage going to UFA?

Ferris will burn every bridge and permanently damage or ruin his clients reputation to get them an extra $500k per year

 

[LiseL]

Wtf is Chicago thinking? I mean seriously, what are they thinking?

Bedard is 20 years old. How do you not go out and draft an 18 year old Chase Reid there or whatever stud is available at 4. They are basically Bedards peers in this draft. Talk about a panic move, jesus.

This is a fireable GM offence.

According to Frank Sevaralli, Bedard contacted Byram yesterday while on the golf course telling him how excited he was that Byram would be a Hawk. Byram will be great on the PP and getting the puck to Bedard. Byram has waited a long time to be 1D, pretty sure he's going to give it his all.

 

[Daisycutter]

Yes and no.

If I was JD, id give him until trade deadline to extend at an overpaid but not ridiculous contract.....if he doesnt, then you trade him. Hawks wont get nearly as much as they paid but you cut your losses.

The worst think Hawks can do is fix a loss with a loss. Trade huge for him, overpay him to a ridiculous ridiculous contract.

I hear what you're saying but other GMs are going to be aware of the desperate situation Davidson is in and he's going to get fleeced no matter what. It's a disaster of his own making.

The only potential winners are Canucks fans. I can see Bedard getting discouraged by this dumpster fire and taking the 4 year bridge deal before bolting for his home team.

Blackhawks fans deserve better...

 

[BKarchitect]

I'll pull back a bit on my initial reaction that this deal just got worse and worse for Chicago every time a new part was added. Probably a bit of "trade frenzy brain" yesterday evening lol.

I still don't think this was good value in a vacuum. You can do the "well Byram was a #4 overall and he's more developed and that's worth more than waiting on a new pick" - but the simple truth is a top 5 pick is not simply a good shot at an elite blue chip player, but it's the inherent value of having said player for cheap as they develop. This is much more prevalent in other major sports - but there is still value to it in the NHL, even with the rising cap. The joke in the NFL is trades for stars are hard because you have to trade the assets and then you have to pay the guy. The premise that "well an 18 year-old #4 pick could bust", while not untrue - is blunted by the idea that hopefully you trust your own scouting staff to make the right pick.

I'm still not sure people fully grasp how rare and how extreme it is for a franchise to knowingly deal a top 5 NHL draft pick, even with all the caveats.

That said - let's also break this down specifically for Chicago...I will buy the arguments that there is value incentive here because they cannot afford to wait around. I will also buy this - I've already seen folks doing the "if this...then why not that" thing with Hronek and Larkin and other guys. The idea is now "my veteran star is worth a top 5 overall pick because Byram is". This is simply faulty thinking. And ignores a very specific case and a very specific player. Hronek may very well be a "better" or at least a more "consistent" defenseman than Byram. That doesn't mean the Hawks (or others) would've valued him the same way.

Byram is - assuredly - both an elite physical talent and still in his "growth phase" as a multi-tool, multi-level defenseman. His pops...his highs...are very high. And he's popped in high-leverage situations. His physical make-up, his tools, the way he can play nasty and be an alpha on the ice - it pops in a "this guy could legitimately be a top 10 type blueliner in the league" kinda way. The consistency and whether he develops from a guy who can pop for stretches into a true #1 is very much still a question.

It's a question that the Hawks sank a #4 overall pick + other stuff plus what will certainly be a very expensive extension into - they have now provided Byram with the platform he has been demanding and given him every bit of rope they can for him to either explode or falter. It's a rare bet, it's a risky bet and it's not a bet I think I would've wanted my team to make. But...viewed with a bit more space...I don't think it's quite as crazy as it seemed yesterday, for me anyways.

 

[Daisycutter]

According to Frank Sevaralli, Bedard contacted Byram yesterday while on the golf course telling him how excited he was that Byram would be a Hawk. Byram will be great on the PP and getting the puck to Bedard. Byram has waited a long time to be 1D, pretty sure he's going to give it his all.

I hope this is true

 

[Sergei Shirokov]

Wtf is Chicago thinking? I mean seriously, what are they thinking?

Bedard is 20 years old. How do you not go out and draft an 18 year old Chase Reid there or whatever stud is available at 4. They are basically Bedards peers in this draft. Talk about a panic move, jesus.

This is a fireable GM offence.

So lets say they draft Chase Reid (or Carson Carels), that player goes to college, and enter the league full time 1-2 years from now.

Then it takes them another 2 years to learn the league, mature, and become a true bonafide top 3 defenseman. That's 3-4 years from now if everything goes smoothly. What is Bedard thinking in the meanwhile?

Chicago was against a rock and a hard place here. They can't keep waiting around.

4th Overall for Byram??

Bowen Byram?

Why not wait till he hits free agency and just back the brinks truck at him?

Sure there's no guarantee he'll make it to ufa but so what if he doesn't. He's not a must have franchise Dman.

I thought using the 4th to try and get Knies was a horrendous idea but using the 4th to get Byram is even worse!!

With the amount of interest in Byram there's no way that was happening. He would've been acquired and signed by another team.

Big names getting to UFA and fielding offers is going to be a thing of the past. Trade & sign is the way as we've seen for awhile now.

 

[landy]

It is if the want to extend Zach Benson to a long-term deal which Jarmo stated is what he wants to do this off-season. They also have a couple of other players to sign who will expect raises.

Are we looking at the same page? $26M is more than enough for Tuch, Benson, and anyone else currently on the roster. f the goal is a trade or UFA target, fine, but as is, they have no reason to not have Tuch re-signed assuming both parties wanted it.

 

[itwasaforwardpass]

Before the trade I was thinking Buffalo had limited leverage and a ticking clock with Byram a year from UFA and him re-signing with the team unlikely.

But damn it turned into a bidding war. There's often at least one GM that will overpay for a big toolsy defenseman.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

It's a little bit funny with people saying what a disaster this is with Byram himself being a 4th overall pick.

Of course I know the upside, but just a little funny.

 

[SnuggaRUDE]

Babe wake up new Hall for Larsson just dropped

 

[HFpapi]

So lets say they draft Chase Reid (or Carson Carels), that player goes to college, and enter the league full time 1-2 years from now.

Then it takes them another 2 years to learn the league, mature, and become a true bonafide top 3 defenseman. That's 3-4 years from now if everything goes smoothly. What is Bedard thinking in the meanwhile?

Chicago was against a rock and a hard place here. They can't keep waiting around.

He'd hopefully be thinking thank god my team isn't run by morons and didn't burn our most valuable asset on a 2nd pairing dman.

Again, Bedard is 20, the players being drafted are 18. They are dead smack in his age range in terms of competitive windows. Making the pick here made a lot of sense even if Bedard isn't keen to hear "have patience." No doubt Bedard wants to contend sooner rather than later but you don't accelerate the timeline by making braindead moves and blowing valuable assets like this.

Bedard should prefer to be a cup contender in 5 years than a playoff contender in 2 years. Celebrini I'm sure wants to improve asap too, should the Sharks trade 2nd overall pick for Noah Dobson or someone like that? Bad asset management is bad asset management regardless of the impetus.

 

[joepeps]

False.

Parayko denied the trade and was later quoted as saying the timeline to make the decision quickly was an issue for him. It's very possible he still will not waive for the Sabres.

Sabres and Blues did talk about Thomas as well. There was no deal they agreed on so Thomas was not asked to waive. That is Armstrong's motto. Deal first and then ask.

ah maybe I remember wrong...

 

[Cavin 4 Gavin 2026]

As someone with Byram in fantasy, I can't say how ecstatic I am that he's getting his own team, he'll get to be a #1 D and play with Connor Bedard.

As a hockey fan, I can't help but say how shocked I would've been if I were a Hawks fan to take such a gamble and to pay such a price for him. Hope Hawks fans aren't losing their ish today.

 

[CowbellConray]

I understand it from Chicago's point of view. You want a #1 PP QB and #1D to play with Bedard to 1) Make him happy and 2) Improve your team.

Where I struggle is Byram isn't either of those things... YET. But Chicago paid as if he was. And will offer him a deal as if he is. 4th overall + 45th + crevier for Byram and a cap dump 4th liner is not only an overpayment for a #1D 1 year from UFA, its a mega overpayment for a guy who isn't a #1D.

With that said, Byram skates incredibly well and has all of the tools to achieve #1D status. However, he was comfortably 4th on the Sabres top 4, so to turn that into what they did.... huge props to Jarmo.

 

[Dubi Doo]

Speaking of backing the brinks truck... Byram has Davidson by the balls right now.

Byram could ask for $20.8 million and demand he be made captain. Whats Davidson going to do? Let him walk at the end of the season? After what he just paid? I can't facepalm hard enough

This move is pants on head stupid.

It is stupid value. Im pretty dumbfounded. As of now, Byram is a good 2nd pairing defenseman. He could become more. He's still young. But top-5 picks dont get traded for a reason. That valuable of an asset on an ELC is what contenders dream to have.

Also, now Chicago has to pay the premium in assets and cap. It's just far too risky for me to understand. That said, Byram had immense skill. It's just the defensive side of things and decision making that can get him in trouble. If he matures in that area, then watch out. The tough part is, he won't have the defensive support from the forwards like Buffalo did. BUFFALO is full of dawgs who back check like hell and help their D out. I dont think Chicago has anything close to that in the offensive ranks. Vlasic should be a great partner for him at least, and Byram could put up a ton of points with Bedard on the PP. It's just the nuances to the game where he may drive fans mad.

 

[The Hockey Tonk Man]

Does this mean Mittelstadt is worth pick 7-12?

Seems like an overpay for Byram.

 

[wetcoast]

Consider my flabbers gasted. Awful, awful trade for Chicago.

I guess if people don't like Bryan but he is alot better than many people give him credit for.

Really good deal for the Sabers and could turn into a win/win for both teams type of trade was my first reaction here.