According to reports, unrestricted free agent left winger Patrick Sharp has agreed to sign a one-year deal the Chicago Blackhawks. The contract carries a base salary of $800,000 with $200,000 in potential bonuses. Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that his contract comes at a significant discount in terms of salary, and may also contain bonuses. We will update when the details become available. Sharp has been a member of the Dallas Stars for the past two seasons. He was traded to Dallas by the Blackhawks in the summer of 2015.
Confirmed: Patrick Sharp returning to #Blackhawks as a free agent. Story: https://t.co/oa7ZBTAKyR pic.twitter.com/ZuxmG9zmnv
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) July 1, 2017
$1 million cap hit for Patrick Sharp, per source. https://t.co/6Q7F8GrB1b
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) July 1, 2017
Patrick Sharp Signs with Chicago Blackhawks
After a successful first season with the Dallas Stars in 2015-2016, in which he recorded 55 points in 76 games, last season was one to forget. Sharp was sidelined twice during the season by concussions, forcing him to miss 26 games. Sharp also had his season cut early in March. He underwent hip surgery that is expected to take five months to recover from. Due to these injuries, Sharp was limited to just 48 games last season with the Stars. In these contests he recorded a mere 18 points, his lowest point total since the 2005-2006 campaign. To say the least, it was a disappointing campaign for the offensively gifted winger.
Prior to joining the Stars via trade in June 2015, Sharp spent the previous 10 seasons in the Windy City with the Chicago Blackhawks. Over the course of his 10 year stint with the Hawks, Sharp won three Stanley Cups. He won an Olympic Gold Medal in 2014 with Canada. Sharp also managed to find a lot of individual success with Chicago recording 239 goals and 511 points games in 679, including a career high 78 points in 2013-2014. Before joining the Hawks, Sharp spent parts of three seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers drafted Sharp in the 3rd round of the 2001 NHL Draft.
Sharps signed his last contract in August 2011 with the Blackhawks. That deal was worth $29.5 million over the course of five seasons, with an annual cap hit of $5.9 million. The contract also included a modified No Trade and No Move Clause.
Main Photo:
DALLAS, TX – OCTOBER 13: Patrick Sharp #10 of the Dallas Stars skates the puck against Nick Ritchie #37 of the Anaheim Ducks during opening night of the 2016-2017 season at American Airlines Center on October 13, 2016 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
