Hunter Drew traded for Josiah Slavin

Feb 26th 2023, San Diego – California. Hunter Drew traded for Josiah Slavin. In a deal that involved two wingers of similar age and draft pedigree the Anaheim Ducks and Chicago Blackhawks made a swap that initially on the surface appears to be purely for “change of scenery” reasons. I made some comments in the post game notes of last nights game here but here is my full breakdown.

Looking at the two – there isn’t much separating them and you can see why both teams felt secure in doing the deal; although comparing them using Sean O’Briens Offensive vs Defensive share model for this season – Drew comes out on top.

For last season – again pretty close but this time Slavin comes out on top.

Both players have regressed heavily this season and although Slavin showed early potential – it may have been a high shooting percentage (22.2%) that saw him put up 32 points in 49 games last year. He has been nowhere near that this season, currently shooting at a 6.3% rate.

His initial draft profile reads like a carbon copy of Drew’s except for one difference – his skating. Where Drew’s needed work, Slavin’s could “do with work but should be able to get to the pro level”.

Other than that – they are essentially the same kind of player, right down to their team-first leadership qualities.

So why was the deal made? If I had to guess – it was because Slavin has been used at Center before and can take face-offs while also being defensively responsible. The AHL website doesn’t keep stats on Face-Off win percentage but the NHL does and in the 15 games Slavin has seen with the Hawks he has a 43.28 Face-Off win percentage.

With the injuries to Groulx and now Cotton the Gulls needed an extra body that can take draws that isn’t Josh Lopina. The only other natural centers on the roster are Chase De Leo and Glen Gawdin. Kindopp and Grimaldi have been essentially filling in. Although Justin Kirkland is back as of this week, I don’t think that assignment will last long.

What do you think? What was your reaction to see Hunter Drew traded? Let me know on Twitter or on Discord.