Hawks have to give up Wisniewski to get Pahlsson

Let's assume the Western Conference standings stay as they are and the Blackhawks face the Vancouver Canucks in the first round of the playoffs.

Who is going to match up at center against Canucks horse Mats Sundin?

The Hawks now have their answer.

It was with an eye to the playoffs that the Hawks acquired gritty center Sami Pahlsson from the Anaheim Ducks at Wednesday's trade deadline.

The price for the 31-year-old Pahlsson was steep, costing the Hawks popular defenseman James Wisniewski and prospect Petri Kontiola.

The Hawks also got minor-league defenseman Logan Stephenson and a conditional draft pick in the deal.

The 6-foot, 203-pound Pahlsson is a top checker who played a major role in the 2007 playoffs when the Ducks won the Stanley Cup, shutting down the opposition's top lines series after series.

"Scotty (Bowman) coached against him and thinks he's a great shutdown guy," said Hawks general manager Dale Tallon.

The veteran Pahlsson was exactly what Tallon, Bowman and coach Joel Quenneville felt the Hawks needed at center behind youngsters Jonathan Toews and Dave Bolland.

He's not a big scorer (11 is his career high), but he is 20th in the NHL in faceoffs, winning 54 percent.

"We felt we were inexperienced up the middle," Tallon said. "I think we addressed a need. We needed a centerman. We needed a shutdown centerman. We needed a faceoff guy, penalty-killer, veteran guy that won a Stanley Cup.

"We were able to address a need that we felt that we had to address to go deeper into the rest of the season and playoffs. This is a guy that's played against the top players in the league and been able to be successful as a defensive, two-way centerman."

Unfortunately for the Hawks, Pahlsson won't be ready to play for anywhere from 1-3 weeks while he recovers from a bout with mononucleosis that has sidelined him since Jan. 31.

Pahlsson saw doctors in Anaheim on Tuesday and was given the OK to resume working out.

"He's going to come into town at the end of the week and then start skating Sunday or Monday," Tallon said. "He could be back in the lineup anywhere from one week, two weeks or three weeks depending on his conditioning.

"He's missed a month of games, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. He should be well rested for the playoff run. We're confident he'll be healthy and ready to go."

As long as Pahlsson is ready to roll when the playoffs start April 15, the Hawks will be happy considering the possibility of facing the likes of Vancouver's Sundin and Henrik Sedin, San Jose's Joe Thornton and Detroit's Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg one after another.

"Our coaching staff was hugely in favor of this deal," Tallon said. "Joel has coached against him in many playoff series and playoff games and is very confident in his abilities and what he can do as far as matchups and playing against the other team's top lines."

Tallon hated to part with the 24-year-old Wisniewski, a fifth-round draft pick in 2002 who developed into a top-six defenseman.

"We gave up a great asset in James Wisniewski," Tallon said. "But sometimes when you have to address needs you need to give up an asset to get something back you felt was really important to your team."

Wisniewski hates to leave the team he grew up with but is excited about the opportunity to play on an Anaheim defense with Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer.

"It's a little heartbreaking, but there very few guys in this league that play for one team their whole career," Wisniewski said. "It's sad to go, but it might be better off for me. I've got to turn the page now."

Wisniewski thought he might get traded with the Hawks right up against the salary cap and him set to be a restricted free agent after the season.

"I have arbitration rights, so I'm looking to get a little bit of a pay raise, and with us right around the salary cap it was probably going to be a little hard for them to re-sign me," Wisniewski said.

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