Chicago Blackhawks trade for defenseman Maatta
The Chicago Blackhawks took a big step in helping their 'D' corps Saturday by trading forward Dominik Kahun and a fifth-round draft pick for Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Olli Maatta.
Maatta, the 22nd overall pick in 2012, had 25 goals and 82 assists in 325 games for Pittsburgh over six seasons.
A left-shot defenseman, Maatta had 1 goal, 13 assists and 116 blocked shots in 60 games last season while averaging 18.5 minutes of ice time. He was a healthy scratch in Pittsburgh's final three playoff games during a four-game sweep by the New York Islanders.
The 6-foot-2, 206-pound Maatta carries a $4.083 million cap hit through the 2021-22 season.
The trade means the Hawks' top five D-men are Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Connor Murphy, Erik Gustafsson and Maatta. If no other moves are made, then Henri Jokiharju, Gustav Forsling, Carl Dahlstrom (a restricted free agent) and Slater Koekkoek figure to fight for the two remaining spots.
Kahun had 13 goals and 24 assists last season for the Blackhawks, but he scored just twice in the last 26 games. The Hawks have recently signed forwards Anton Wedin and Dominik Kubalik.
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