CHICAGO — Chicago Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson said he gave team leaders Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews a heads up about some “real tough decisions,” though he didn’t give them foreknowledge about the details of the moves he was planning.
“It wasn’t specific about, ‘We’re going to do this,’ it was more in general that there are probably some real tough decisions that are going to have to be made,” Davidson told reporters Thursday at Fifth Third Arena. “You don’t know what you’re actually going to do, so you can’t necessarily say we’re going to telegraph it, because who knows if anything comes to fruition.
“But we knew there were some difficult decisions to come this summer, and we definitely put that in their court. So, it’s something they were aware could potentially happen, but not from a specific standpoint.”
Davidson traded leading goal-scorer Alex DeBrincat and Kirby Dach on draft day, and he declined to re-sign Dylan Strome, Kane’s and DeBrincat’s linemate, as well as Dominik Kubalík, who often skated with Toews last season.
Toews, in particular, hasn’t received trades well in the past, such as when Davidson dealt Brandon Hagel to the Tampa Bay Lightning before this year’s trade deadline, and both he and Kane have been adamant that the team could quicken their turnaround if much of the roster was kept intact.
That’s not going to happen now.
Davidson said he has talked with Kane and Toews this week about the personnel decisions.
“I thought it was healthy, open communication, open dialogue as it has been in the past. It was necessary,” he said. “It’s never easy losing great players and great friends off the team. So, it was important that we sat down.”
Kane’s and Toews’ agent, Pat Brisson, told TSN’s Pierre LeBrun that his clients are “not necessarily in agreement with the direction the team is taking,” according to LeBrun’s tweet at the opening of the free-agent signing period Wednesday.
But “they will let the dust settle first and then patiently make the best decisions for each player as it pertains to their respective careers,” LeBrun tweeted.
Davidson was asked if he sensed Kane and Toews still buy into the rebuilding plan.
Said Davidson: “I think that’s probably more of a question for them, but I felt the meeting went well and (it was) open dialogue both ways. It was a healthy process, so they’re both here and chatting with them and keeping that communication open.”
While there has been speculation that parting ways would benefit both sides, Davidson reiterated his stance that he wants the three-time Stanley Cup winners to stick around.
“From our perspective they offer so much value to being here,” Davidson said. “Not only are they great on the ice, but all of the experience and all of the professionalism and what they know and what they know of the NHL and the lifestyle is something that’s invaluable when bringing younger players into the organization.”
Davidson bemoaned his lack of a pipeline when he inherited the job but has brought an infusion of prospects in short order — including 11 draft picks.
However, he said, “You can’t just have a full NHL team of ‘kids.’ That wouldn’t be fair to those young players coming in, so you need great veterans. That’s something you need around the room and to help them in their development.”
Those “great veterans,” Davidson said, include Kane and Toews.
