Blackhawks among the final teams left in the race for Anton Wedin.

Another European free agent for the Blackhawks?

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Published 4 years ago
Blackhawks among the final teams left in the race for Anton Wedin.
Simon Hasteg RD/Bildbryan-Zuma

The Chicago Blackhawks have made a habit of finding quality talent outside the National Hockey League's traditional avenues, specifically through the free agent signing of European players, and it sounds like they may be looking so to do again.

According to a breaking news report from Chicago Blackhawks insider Scott Powers of The Athletic, the Blackhawks are currently trying to acquire forward Anton Wedin. Wedin is a 26 year old forward who was currently playing for Timra IK in the Swedish Elite League, however that team has now been relegated and there is a belief that this could open a path for Wedin to make his way to North America. Wedin is of course on the older side of things for a prospect, however the Blackhawks have made a habit of finding late bloomers across the ocean so I have little doubt that they once again have a pretty good idea of what there are doing here. That being said it does not sound like they are the only contenders for Wedin at this time, so there is still no guarantee they will land him.

From Powers:

The Blackhawks are pursuing forward Anton Wedin in Sweden. According to a source, the Blackhawks have made Wedin’s final list of teams and a decision is expected soon.

This of course clearly indicates that Chicago is not the only team in the mix but as to who those other teams may be we do not know at this time. Powers did not provide any details regarding the nature of the other teams involved, however he did speak to one source that did a very good job of articulating why there may be so much hype around Wedin this late into his career.

“Anton has been one of the best forwards in the league,” a SHL league source said as per Powers' report. “He played for one of the worst teams. He is a speedy forward. His biggest strength is using his speed, mostly on the entry. He is not extremely skilled. His shot is not spectacular, but he is strong on the puck and is using his skating to create time and space. Besides that he is a pretty all-around player. I have seen him play both center and winger, but I think he is way more effective as a winger. He’s a late bloomer, played his first season in the top league this season. He may have to start in the AHL.”

The fact that there are multiple teams involved could mean that Wedin will attempt to leverage a one way deal out of this, avoiding a trip down to the American Hockey League without waivers, although that is purely speculation on my part at this time.

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