What is Going on With Brandon Saad
When the Blackhawks traded Brandon Saad after the 2015 season, many fans were upset. Saad was apart of two Stanley Cup winning teams, and was considered a core member at only 23 years old.
We all know why he was traded. The Blackhawks couldn’t afford Saad’s asking price, and letting him go into the open market would have left the Hawks, coming off a Stanley Cup, with just a draft pick in return.
So Stan Bowman did what he had to, and turned Saad into the second line center the team was looking for, Artem Anisimov, a top young prospect, Marko Dano, two bottom line wingers in Corey Tropp and Jeremy Morin (again), and a draft pick. While fans hated to see him go, many understood why he was moved. Add in the signing of Artemi Panarin and things looked okay.
Fast forward two seasons and once again the Blackhawks made a shocking move involving Saad. This time, they traded Russian sensation and a new member of the core, Panarin, to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Saad. This time, fans were upset to see Saad return.
The move was said to be done for two reasons. Saad has 4 years remaning at a cap hit of $6 million per year, the same contract the hawks could not afford when they traded him. However, Panarin was also set to make $6 million, but for only two more years, and judging by his production up until then, would make much more when that deal was up.
Secondly, with Marian Hossa set to be placed on long term injured reserve and a slip in Jonathan Toews’ production, the team hoped reuniting Saad and Toews would give him the boost he needed.
Well here we are in February, and that has not happened. At all. Not only has Toews not seen the uptick in production that was hoped, he is on pace to have the worst statical season of his career. But this is not about Toews.
This season, Saad has 15 goals and 12 assists, for a mere 27 points. After scoring 53 points in both of his seasons in Columbus, and 52 in his final season with the Blackhawks, Saad’s season has been a disappointment. While 20 goals is still entirely possible, this is looking like it will be his worst season, statistically, in his career.
Where Saad’s season is confusing, is that everything else looks good.
When looking at his possession numbers, its nothing but good. His Corsi % is the highest its been in nearly 4 seasons, and almost 3 points higher than last season. His 58.9 is one of the best in the NHL. While his Fenwick % is less than a point less than last season, it is about at his career average.
When looking at his shooting, he is on pace to have well above his average number of shots per season. His shots through percentage is nearly 3% higher than last season.
Defensively Saad has been sound. Starting nearly 42% of his shifts in the defenesive zone, the highest percentage in his career, he has been on the ice for more goals for than against.
So what is the issue?
Well, the real answer I have is that I do not know. Everything about Saad’s game looks better or at worst the same as his previous seasons. He has the highest takeaway-giveaway ratio of his career, his possesion stats are almost identical if not better than previous years, and he is shooting more with more shots getting to the goaltender than in years previous.
But the points are just not coming.
Some will look at his line mates. Toews’ possesion numbers are both the highest since Saad left in 2015, and his defensive game has looked better than last year. Losing Hossa on the wing likely has a little to do with struggles, and the constant turnover on the opposite wing cannot help. We have seen Richard Panik, Anthony Duclair, Alex Debrincat, Ryan Hartman, Vinnie Hinostroza, and now Tommy Wingles get their opportunities on the Blackhawks top line, but outside of Debrincat none of shown enough to stay on that line.
It could be other reasons. Despite starting his career in Chicago, Saad could still be trying to adjust to the move back. Maybe he still needs to get back into the teams style of play.
Maybe it is a health issue. In his draft season in the OHL, Saad played with an injury all season and that led to a disappointing season, one like we are seeing out of him now. Saad has not missed anytime this season, which likely means there is no injury to talk about, but we have seen players be relatively healthy all season just for offseason news to come saying they have been dealing with something.
Rumors have been swirling that the Blackhawks could look to move Saad before Monday’s trade deadline, with Elliotte Friedman including Saad as a potential trade candidate in his 31 thoughts piece just a few weeks ago.
11. Three others to keep an eye on: Chicago needs cap relief. With Brandon Saad dropped down the lineup, wonder if they look to give him a fresh start somewhere else.
While Saad has been disappointing this season, I can’t imagine the Hawks feel guys like Hartman, Hinostroza, or Duclair have a better chance at becoming 50 point players than Saad, who has proven he can nearly every season of his career.
I can’t tell you what is wrong with Saad or that he will bounce back next season. But trading him this season would be selling low. We all want to see the Brandon Saad we are used to, and I think it is coming. For now, I think we all need a little patience and let him ride these struggles out.
Do you think Saad will return to form? Do you have another reason he might be struggling? Should the Blackhawks just bite the bullet and move on? Let us know in the comment section below!
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