Oilers & Blackhawks linked in proposed pre-deadline blockbuster

The NHL's trade deadline is less than two weeks away and Seth Jones of the Chicago Blackhawks has been making headlines, as Jones approached GM Kyle Davidson and stated he'd prefer to get traded before March 7 to a Stanley Cup contender.

Jones has a full no-movement clause and controls his own destiny, however, he's been very candid about how his $9.5 million AAV through the 2029-30 season will be a hard contract to move. Davidson will surely have to retain some level of Jones' remaining money.

In a proposed trade, Josh Wegman of The Score suggested the Edmonton Oilers could be a potential landing spot:

Oilers receive: Seth Jones ($1.5M retained)
Blackhawks receive: Jeff Skinner, Matt Savoie, 2025 2nd-round pick (via Blues)

With the familiarity of Oilers' GM Stan Bowman with Jones, this makes sense as a potential landing spot. Bowman traded for Jones in Chicago, and signed him to his current deal. In Savoie, the Blackhawks would be getting one of the best prospects in hockey and someone who has potential to ride shotgun to Connor Bedard.

The Blackhawks must retain salary to get this deal done as the Oilers are in a bit of a cap crunch and have some uncertainty with Evander Kane on LTIR, without a defined time line to return.

Keep an eye on Jones, he's likely to be moved before March 7 and the Oilers make some sense as a trade partner for the Blackhawks.

Remember, #Blackhawks fans:

We all need to cheer for Seth Jones to be great

Need that trade value to be as high as possible pic.twitter.com/SLBxKRBl1S
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) February 22, 2025