This past weekend the Chicago Blackhawks agreed to a contract extension with defenseman Brent Seabrook. The deal is for eight years, $55 million paying him $6.875 million a year. This will keep him in Chicago until the 2023-2024 season. Is this a good deal for the Blackhawks?
Brent Seabrook has spent his whole NHL career with the Blackhawks. Chicago drafted him in the first-round and 14th overall in the 2003 NHL Draft. He wouldn’t play his first game until the 2005-2006 season. In his first year he scored 5 goals and 27 assists for 32 points. Seabrook’s best season came in 2013-2014 scoring 7 goals, 34 assists, and a total of 41 points.
Last year he lit the lamp 8 times while he assisted on 31 goals for a total of 39 points. Seabrook elevated his game in the playoffs where he scored 7 goals, 4 assists and 11 points helping the Chicago Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup.
In his career Seabrook has scored 71 goals, 247 assists for a total of 318 points. He has an impressive +- of +108. To this point his career highlights include three Stanley Cup rings, a gold Olympic medal in 2010, and being named to one All-Star Game.
Seabrook was set to play on the last year of his contract for $6 million. The Blackhawks could have let him test free agency at the end of the year. They didn’t want to risk that because he is such a valuable part of their team. This also insures that they keep their two top defensemen on the roster for years to come. Duncan Keith is signed through the 2022-2023 season.
According to dailyherald.com, Seabrook said, “I’m excited to be a Blackhawk. That’s where I wanted to be the whole time. I didn’t want to push it or wait. … I’m proud to be a Blackhawk.”
The Blackhawks are paying this defenseman a lot of money for the next eight years. He is worth it because he can score goals from the point and finds his teammates on the open ice. He also logs playing time on special teams killing penalties and setting up the power play. Seabrook is a leader on the bench. That leadership is difficult to find. The Blackhawks wrapped up one of the best scoring defenseman in the NHL. Seabrook will help the Blackhawks defense for years to come.
What do you think of Chicago Blackhawks extending Brent Seabrook?
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