<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><a href="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/image.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="728" height="90" src="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/image.png" alt="" class="wp-image-96919" srcset="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/image.png 728w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/image-300x37.png 300w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/image-150x19.png 150w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/image-600x74.png 600w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/image-696x86.png 696w" sizes="(max-width: 728px) 100vw, 728px"></a></figure>



<p>Think you know sports?&nbsp;<a href="https://join.pointsbet.ca/april-launch-generic/?utm_source=Unbounce_Nation_Network_Display&amp;utm_%20medium=Generic_First_Bet&amp;utm_campaign=Free_Bet_25_Bet_Insurance_560&amp;utm_term=Unbounce&amp;utm_content=Nation_Network_Display&amp;promo=NHLGNFBPND" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PointsBet Canada is live in Ontario!</a></p>



<p>_____</p>



<p>With less than five weeks until the NHL’s trade deadline on March 3, we’ve got you covered at <em>Daily Faceoff</em> with one trade-focused story every day until Deadline Day.</p>



<p>Today we’re going to focus on Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Jake McCabe, who was ranked No. 7 on <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/trade-talks-heating-up-with-canucks-bo-horvat-no-1-on-latest-trade-targets" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">our latest Trade Targets board</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2023-trade-deadline-countdown-32-days">2023 Trade Deadline Countdown: 32 days</h2>



<p><strong>JAKE McCABE</strong><br>Left Defense, Chicago Blackhawks<br>Shoots: Left<br>Age: 29<br>Height: 6’1″ | Weight: 204 lbs.<br>Cap Hit: $4 million<br>Term: 2 seasons remaining<br>Clauses: 7-team ‘no-trade’ list<br>Stats: 45 GP, 2 goals, 12 assists, 14 points, 19:20 avg TOI<br>Career: 10th season (Buffalo, Chicago) 473 GP, 24 goals, 113 points, 19:26 avg TOI</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-archetype-and-ideal-role">Archetype and Ideal Role</h2>



<p>Defensive Defenseman, 3rd Pair / 1st Unit Penalty Kill</p>



<p>McCabe is a steady, reliable and predictable defender when healthy, which he has been for the bulk of his tenure in Chicago. Ideally, on a championship caliber roster, he will slot into the third pair and be a significant contributor to the penalty kill.</p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="159"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scouting-report">Scouting Report</h2>



<p>McCabe is like an easy bake oven for a coaching staff, you can set it and forget it – the classic steady defenseman. No muss, no fuss. He is rarely in trouble, but he also isn’t going to ‘wow’ you in any one area of the game. His compete level is what stands out, he doesn’t quit on plays. His hockey sense is above average and there is no doubt he is willing to lay it on the line for his team. McCabe’s mobility is slightly below average, but he makes up for it with his defensive instincts and willingness to battle. He rarely hesitates in his own zone, finishes his checks, and makes life harder for the opposition.</p>



<p>His puck play is simple. One of his best attributes is his sense of self. He knows who he is and limits mistakes by not trying to do too much. McCabe’s underlying numbers are solid for never having played on a good team at the NHL level. Because of that, if the acquiring team can stomach his injury risk, they may unlock a solid contributor for the next couple seasons. McCabe is a respected leader, teaches young players and holds fellow veterans accountable, and is routinely at the very top of the Blackhawks’ off-ice fitness chart.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="215"></div>



<p>Additionally, the Blackhawks appear to be willing to retain up to half of McCabe’s contract, which would knock him down to just $2 million per season – taking his cost certainty to the next level.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-buyer-beware">Buyer Beware</h2>



<p>Mobility is the one area of weakness in McCabe’s game. His first three strides are average, which limits his ability to consistently close on attackers and stop them in their tracks – particularly the more creative players. He makes up for a lot of that with his hockey IQ, anticipating lanes and attacking dangerous space prior to plays developing. His penalty differential is mostly even throughout his career, which means he can and does get to where he needs to go more often that not.</p>



<p>Although his puck play is simple and he does a nice job limiting mistakes, he will cough up pucks under pressure because he cannot escape using his feet.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="2" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="148"></div>



<p>The biggest knock on McCabe has been something mostly out of his control – his injury history. He has missed 118 games in his NHL career, but appears to have put some of that to rest in Chicago, with 75 games played last season and another 45 this year. However, the acquiring team is not just taking him on for the stretch run, but two more years beyond that. They’d have to be comfortable believing McCabe is going to continue to play meaningful minutes beyond his 30th birthday.</p>



<p>Finally, McCabe has never appeared in a Stanley Cup playoff game. He left the rebuilding Sabres to sign with the Blackhawks as part of their retool, but that quickly turned into a tear-it-down rebuild. That makes it incredibly difficult to predict or project how McCabe will fare in the spotlight of the postseason.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="3" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="141"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-potential-fits">Potential Fits</h2>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li><strong>Toronto Maple Leafs: </strong>The Leafs will need to replace Jake Muzzin and what he brought to the lineup. While McCabe won’t be a replica at the offensive end, he’d certainly help fill the defensive void, and slide right in next to a guy like T.J. Brodie who can move the puck. We also know the Maple Leafs value term over rentals and if Chicago retains, McCabe at $2 million is a home run. Six of the seven Canadian teams are on McCabe’s seven-team ‘no-trade’ list and the Maple Leafs are not one of them.</li><li><strong>Edmonton Oilers: </strong>The Oilers are in desperate need of help that keeps the puck away from their end of the ice. McCabe seems like a perfect fit in Edmonton, becoming a defensive anchor on a team lacking just that. They’d have to convince him to waive his ‘no-trade’ to come to Oil Country.</li><li><strong>Los Angeles Kings: </strong>The Kings have expressed interest in McCabe. They currently have a surplus on defense and Jordan Spence waiting in the wings in AHL Ontario. One of those eight defensemen would probably need to head elsewhere first, such as Sean Walker or Matt Roy. What McCabe brings over those guys is more predictability and a little more bite.</li></ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-comparable-trade-returns">Comparable Trade Returns</h2>



<p><strong>July 23, 2021</strong><br>To Philadelphia: Rasmus Ristolainen<br>To Buffalo: Robert Hagg, 2021 1st Round Pick (Isak Rosen), 2023 2nd Round Pick</p>



<p><strong>Feb. 24, 2020</strong><br>To Carolina: Brady Skjei<br>To NY Rangers: 2020 1st Round Pick (Hendrix Lapierre)</p>



<p>The list of defensemen traded in recent years with term on their contract is small. Neither one of these examples is a true direct comparable. Ristolainen was a bigger name then and he had one year remaining on his deal, not two like McCabe. And then Skjei had a whopping four years remaining when New York decided to dump his contract as part of their rebuild.</p>



<p>Erik Gudbranson was traded to Pittsburgh in 2019 with two years remaining on his deal at $4 million, but he was swapped for Tanner Pearson, and Chicago likely doesn’t have interest in a player-for-player deal.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="4" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="134"></div>



<p>Even among forwards, the only two recent comps with term in that dollar range are Tyler Toffoli to the Flames (for a first, a fifth, Emil Heineman and Tyler Pitlick) and Vincent Trocheck to Carolina (for Erik Haula, Lucas Wallmark, Chase Priskie and Eetu Luostarinen). But they aren’t great comps because term and dollars for forwards are vastly different than defense.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-summary">Summary</h2>



<p>In McCabe, a contending team in ‘win-now’ mode will get a player that will certainly help given his hockey intelligence and compete. His injury history looms large. But the Chicago Blackhawks would be selling high on a player who has rounded into pre-injury form. If the Blackhawks are retaining half on McCabe, his return absolutely starts with a first-round pick in a deal not all that dissimilar to the comps above.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="5" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="132"></div>



<p>_____</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Recently by Frank Seravalli</h3>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/mckennas-matchup-of-the-day-jan-28-anton-forsberg-vs-samuel-montembeault" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Vancouver Canucks’ Luke Schenn is a high-floor Trade Deadline target</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/2023-nhl-trade-deadline-playbook-calgary-flames">2023 NHL Trade Deadline Playbook: Calgary Flames</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/minnesota-wilds-matt-dumba-among-the-trade-deadlines-top-boom-bust-assets">Minnesota Wild’s Matt Dumba among the Trade Deadline’s top boom/bust assets</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/2023-nhl-trade-deadline-playbook-edmonton-oilers">2023 NHL Trade Deadline Playbook: Edmonton Oilers</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/what-team-will-overpay-to-beef-up-with-vladislav-gavrikov-at-the-trade-deadline">Which team will overpay to beef up with Vladislav Gavrikov at the Trade Deadline?</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/how-blue-jackets-winger-gustav-nyquist-can-boost-a-third-line-without-breaking-the-bank">How Blue Jackets winger Gustav Nyquist can boost a third line without breaking the bank</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/2023-nhl-trade-deadline-playbook-vancouver-canucks">2023 NHL Trade Deadline Playbook: Vancouver Canucks</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/2023-trade-deadline-preview-new-york-rangers">2023 NHL Trade Deadline Playbook: New York Rangers</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/trade-talks-heating-up-with-canucks-bo-horvat-no-1-on-latest-trade-targets">Trade talks heating up with Canucks’ Bo Horvat, No. 1 on latest Trade Targets</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/sharks-timo-meier-wont-come-cheap-at-the-trade-deadline-but-hes-worth-it">Sharks’ Timo Meier won’t come cheap at the Trade Deadline, but he’s worth it</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/what-could-andrei-kuzmenkos-next-contract-look-like-with-vancouver-canucks">What could Andrei Kuzmenko’s next contract look like with Vancouver Canucks?</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/buy-or-beware-assessing-jakob-chychruns-trade-value">Buy or Beware? Assessing Jakob Chychrun’s trade value</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/rental-or-trade-and-sign-the-potential-trade-paths-of-vancouver-canucks-bo-horvat">Rental or Trade and Sign? The potential trade paths of Vancouver Canucks’ Bo Horvat</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/2023-trade-deadline-countdown-which-teams-will-be-third-party-money-brokers">2023 Trade Deadline Countdown: Which teams will be third-party money brokers?</a></li><li><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/2023-trade-deadline-countdown-what-is-the-market-for-mattias-ekholm">2023 Trade Deadline Countdown: What is the market for Mattias Ekholm?</a></li></ul>
