NHL Trade Rumors: Blackhawks Working to Deal Duncan Keith to PNW, Western Canada

Duncan Keith's 16-year stint with the Chicago Blackhawks may have reached its end. 

According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the Blackhawks are working with Keith to move him to a team in either Western Canada or the Pacific Northwest this offseason. Keith has family in the area, including a young son, he would like to be closer to. 

Keith, 37, has been one of the Hawks' most valuable players over the last decade, helping the team win three Stanley Cups in six years in addition to taking home the 2015 Conn Smythe Trophy. In 1,192 regular-season games with Chicago, the defenseman has tallied 105 goals and 520 assists and averaged 24:57 of ice time per night. 

Keith is one of seven players who had a role in Chicago's runs to the Stanley Cup in 2009-10, 2012-13 and 2014-15 along with Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa, Brent Seabrook and Niklas Hjalmarsson. 

Sharp was traded to the Dallas Stars after the 2014-15 season. Hjalmarsson was traded to the Arizona Coyotes after the 2016-17 season. Hossa was forced into retirement ahead of the 2017-18 season because of a progressive skin disorder. Seabrook—Keith's longtime defensive partner—was forced to retire in March after multiple injuries to his hips and shoulder. Toews missed all of the 2020-21 season with what he called "chronic immune response syndrome," and while he's training to return to the ice, it's unclear if he'll play again. 

Kane and Keith remain the only two players from the Hawks dynasty to contribute on a nightly basis. Keith continued to show his ability to play significant minutes last season, averaging 23:25 of ice time.

The No. 54 overall pick of the Blackhawks out of Michigan State in 2002, Keith has two years remaining on a 13-year, $72 million deal. He carries a salary-cap hit of $5.5 million each of the next two seasons. 

News of a potential trade comes as the Blackhawks confront increasing scrutiny over the handling of former video coach Bradley Aldrich in 2010. The franchise is facing two lawsuits stemming from alleged sexual abuse by Aldrich, including the alleged abuse of two Blackhawks players during the 2009-10 season and a high school player in Michigan in 2013.