Chicago Blackhawks acquire Ilya Mikheyev, Sam Lafferty in trade

The Chicago Blackhawks used their considerable salary cap space to reach a deal with the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday night, acquiring wing Ilya Mikheyev, forward Sam Lafferty and a 2027 second-round pick in exchange for a fourth-round pick from 2027.

Mikheyev has a cap hit of $4.75 million. The Canucks will keep 15% of their salary. His agent, Dan Milstein, celebrated trade through X: “Nobody comes to Chicago to get a tan. Ilya Mikheyev is linked to the #Blackhawks. #WeAreGoldStar!”

According to reports, other teams expressed interest in Mikheyev, who had to waive his modified no-trade clause for the deal to go through. He is signed through the 2025-26 season before becoming an unrestricted free agent.

Lafferty, 29, can become an unrestricted free agent on Monday.

The NHL Draft takes place Friday and Saturday at the Sphere in Las Vegas. The Hawks hold the No. 2 and 18 in the first round, then six more Day 2 picks, including two each in the second and third rounds.

After the April season, Hawks general manager Kyle Davidson reiterated his stance on preserving cap space for situations like Wednesday’s predraft maneuver.

“We’re in a very good place contractually and salary-cap-wise,” he said during exit interviews with reporters. “We have a ton of flexibility, a ton of space. You don’t want to do anything that hurts you in the long run.

“Because the salary cap is unforgiving, and once you give up that cap space, you can’t get it back.”

The Hawks had $32.9 million in cap space before the trade, according to Capfriendly.com. The Canucks’ cap space with long-term injured reserve candidates was estimated to be around $17 million.

Some teams are struggling more, but the Canucks will likely need more cap space to sign free agents, including forwards Elias Lindholm and Dakota Joshua and defenseman Nikita Zadorov.

Mikheyev had 11 goals and 20 assists in a career-best 78 games last season. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound native of Omsk, Russia also played in a career-high 11 games this postseason. He has 60 goals and 71 assists (131 points) in five seasons and 270 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Canucks forward Elias Lindholm said of Mikheyev via Postmedia: “He’s fast and strong on the puck. And he’s one of those guys as an opponent where you don’t realize how fast he is.”

Coach Rick Tocchet praised him for playing with more anticipation late last season: “When he waits too much, that’s when he’s in trouble,” he said, via Postmedia.

Lafferty, 29, a frequent teammate of Mikheyev, had 13 goals and 11 assists last season. This is the second time he has been traded to the Hawks.

The Pittsburgh Penguins sent him to Chicago in January 2022 for Alex Nylander, and Lafferty found his stride with the Hawks, who parlayed that success into a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs in February 2023.

Lafferty has 83 points (36 goals, 47 assists) in 289 career games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Blackhawks, Leafs and Canucks.