Blackhawks trade – Chicago traded veteran forward Andre Burakovsky to the Ottawa Senators for Ottawa’s sixth-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft, ending his one-season run with the Blackhawks.
The Blackhawks didn’t drag out the decision. On Friday, Chicago traded veteran forward Andre Burakovsky to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Ottawa’s sixth-round selection in the 2027 NHL Draft, ending the winger’s short tenure with the organization after one season.
Burakovsky, 31, played 75 games for Chicago during the 2025-26 campaign, totaling 11 goals and 22 assists for 33 points. His season also finished with a minus-32 rating. The storyline inside those numbers has a clear split: he built momentum early. recording 10 goals and 29 points through his first 41 games. but after mid-January his offense slowed. Over his final 34 contests, he managed just one goal and four points.
For Chicago. the trade is about getting value back—Ottawa sends a draft asset instead of keeping a player who had looked. at least by reputation. like a potential buyout candidate after an uneven season. Burakovsky had joined Chicago in 2025 after the Seattle Kraken traded him in exchange for Joe Veleno. who was later bought out by Seattle.
The move also carries money and context. Burakovsky is entering the final season of the five-year. $27.5 million contract he signed with the Kraken as a free agent in 2022. The deal carries an average annual value of $5.5 million. It’s the kind of cap-management moment that can define what comes next for a rebuilding roster.
A wider look at Burakovsky’s career shows why Ottawa is willing to pay the price for experience. Originally selected 23rd overall by the Washington Capitals in the 2013 NHL Draft. the Austrian-born winger has played 771 NHL regular-season games across 12 seasons with the Capitals. Colorado Avalanche. Kraken and Blackhawks. In that span, he has accumulated 164 goals, 256 assists and 420 points.
His playoff resume is even harder to ignore. Burakovsky was part of Washington’s Stanley Cup-winning team in 2018 and later won a second championship with Colorado in 2022. His most productive season came with the Avalanche in 2021-22, when he set career highs with 22 goals, 39 assists and 61 points. Across 93 career playoff games, he has contributed 20 goals and 47 points.
Ottawa’s motivation is also part of a bigger offseason rhythm. The Senators have already been among the busiest teams. completing a blockbuster trade that sent captain Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers while acquiring William Eklund from the San Jose Sharks. Earlier Friday. they also acquired goaltender Samuel Ersson from the Toronto Maple Leafs and signed defenseman Jordan Spence to a four-year. $20 million contract extension.
With Burakovsky now added to that mix. the Senators take on a forward with championship experience and a relatively modest trade cost in the sixth-round pick they receive from Chicago. For the Blackhawks. the departure closes a one-season chapter—one that started strong and then faded after mid-January. culminating in a season of 33 points across 75 games before Friday’s trade shifted his NHL home again.
Andre Burakovsky Chicago Blackhawks Ottawa Senators 2027 NHL Draft trade NHL offseason Brady Tkachuk Samuel Ersson Jordan Spence William Eklund
Minus-32?? dude was cooked lol.
So the Blackhawks just… traded him mid-season for a 2027 pick? Feels like they waited way too long to admit it wasn’t working. Also $27.5 million for 1 good stretch is kinda brutal.
Minus 32 usually means bad defense right? Like how does he even still get traded for anything, I don’t get it. They say he had momentum early but only one goal after mid-January… so was he playing injured or what? Either way Senators fleecing Chicago or Chicago fleecing Ottawa, who knows.
I swear I saw somewhere he was already on the Senators like last year. Maybe I’m mixing him up with someone else but it feels like teams just rotate the same guys forever. And a sixth-round pick in 2027 seems kinda pointless, like why not just keep him and see if he rebounds? Rebuilding roster my ass.