Brent Seabrook's eight-year extension: A smart move for Blackhawks?
The Chicago Blackhawks signed defenseman Brent Seabrook to an eight-year contract, the team announced Saturday. The extension is worth $55 million, according to ESPN's Pierre LeBrun.
Here are five things to know about Seabrook and what the move means for the Blackhawks.
Top pair locked up: Seabrook and Duncan Keith have become one of the NHL's most reliable pairs since they started their NHL careers in 2005. Since 2007, Seabrook has spent over 71% (7,336 minutes of 10,404) of his even-strength ice time with Keith, per stats.hockeyanalysis.com. The two will be able to play together in Chicago until at least 2023. Teams can spend entire seasons trying to find pairs that gel.
Capped out: The Blackhawks have seven players (Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Marian Hossa, Artem Anisimov, Corey Crawford, Keith and Seabrook) under contract for at least the next five seasons, when all of them will be in their 30s. In two seasons, they will account for $49 million of the salary cap; it is $71.4 million now. Expect more cap trouble for general manager Stan Bowman into the future.
Core together: With Patrick Sharp in Dallas, Seabrook was named the alternate captain. There is something to be said for keeping your core pieces together, especially when the team has won three Stanley Cups in six seasons. This core has bred a winning culture. When lesser free agents are weighing similar offers, it could be a deciding factor in Chicago's favor.
Seabrook's advanced stats: The right-handed shooting Seabrook might not flash gaudy offensive numbers -- his career-highs are nine goals and 48 points -- but he has been a good possession player. In his 10 NHL seasons, Seabrook has been a plus-51% Corsi player in eight of them, per war-on-ice.com. In three seasons, the Blackhawks have controlled the flow of the game better without him on the ice, even if by a small margin. Seabrook's defensive impact, per war-on-ice.com, has been inconsistent.
Smart? Maybe for the next few seasons it will be OK, but it doesn't seem prudent to sign a 30-year-old player for that length of time. Seabrook is an excellent player now. It's hard to expect him to be as good even halfway into the eight-year deal.