Blackhawks Rumors: Corey Perry Finished in Chicago

After the Chicago Blackhawks announced Taylor Hall would be done for the season after suffering a knee injury recently, all the attention has turned to another veteran. Corey Perry was a scratch for the Blackhawks against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday and on Thursday, Perry was not present at practice.

Corey Perry, after being healthy-scratched due to an “organization decision” last night, is not practicing with the Blackhawks today.

Petr Mrazek is not either. Not a very joyous Thanksgiving around these parts. pic.twitter.com/eI55narTa1

— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) November 23, 2023

There's growing speculation that the team is trying to move Perry to a desired destination as the veteran forward isn't likely happy with not seeing the ice for Chicago. Perry signed a one-year deal with the Blackhawks and was seen as a mentor figure for Connor Bedard. This is certainly quite the turn of events.

Perry, 38, is under contract this season for a whopping $4 million as the Blackhawks used his contract and Nick Foligno's one-year deal at $4 million to get over the salary cap floor. The only issue is now the team may need to trade Perry and no team is going to take on the full salary and GM Kyle Davidson will have to retain the maximum to receive the necessary interest.

The Tampa Bay Lightning have reshaped their fourth line so it's unlikely Perry heads there, but there's a number of contending teams who will be interested in adding some depth to their bottom six.

Perry has appeared in 16 games this season, has scored four time and recorded nine points. It's not like he hasn't been a productive player for the Blackhawks so what's currently going down is quite the turn of events.

Photo credit: Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports