Free-agent defenceman Jake McCabe will be signing with the Chicago Blackhawks once free agency opens up at noon ET. The 27-year-old blueliner played 13 games last season for the Buffalo Sabres scoring a goal and two assists. Details of the contract are unknown at the time.
Chicago’s fake rebuild continues to add more pieces. Defenceman Jake McCabe, formerly of Buffalo, is expected to sign with the club today… which makes me wonder about RFA Nikita Zadorov’s future as a Hawk.
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) July 28, 2021
Blackhawks Sign Jake McCabe
The Chicago Blackhawks have been busy over the past few days since the draft last weekend. They’ve traded for defenceman Seth Jones, goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, and now McCabe through free agency today. McCabe is a two-way defenceman with a more defensive-minded style of play. A second-round pick in 2012 by Buffalo, the left-handed defenceman has appeared in 353 games throughout his eight-year career. Through this time he has scored 18 goals and 59 assists. McCabe will likely play decent minutes on the Chicago blue line. With a lot of younger players on the defence already, McCabe will play mentor to players like Ian Mitchell and Nicolas Beaudin next season.
What This Means for the Future
Chicago’s team makeup is significantly different than it was at the end of the season in the spring. They’ve traded away Duncan Keith, who was a mainstay on Chicago’s blue line since 2005. Former eighth overall pick Adam Boqvist, who many thought would be a part of the team’s future, is now a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets. For a team that was interring a rebuild at the beginning of last season, they sure look like an organization that wants to be in the playoffs sooner and not later. Adding McCabe only furthers this narrative. He’ll play in the top four likely next to Calvin de Haan. McCabe’s last contract with the sabres paid him $2.85 million each season. He’s a solid defenceman that will surely help with the team’s poor defensive performance over the past few seasons.
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