29-year-old defenseman appears unhappy with team's direction, may want out and could be a solid fit for the Leafs
Jake McCabe has been in the NHL since 2013, playing the first 8 seasons of his career with the lowly and constantly rebuilding Buffalo Sabres before signing a 4-year, $16M deal with the Chicago Blackhawks in July of 2021. At the time, the Hawks had not declared that they were going into full rebuild mode and had just acquired Seth Jones from Columbus and Marc-Andre Fleury from Vegas as well.
Now, two seasons into his tenure with Chicago, McCabe finds himself stuck in yet another rebuild - something he is not very fond of given the fact that he has yet to play playoff hockey in his NHL career. He is playing some of the best hockey of his career right now, but when asked about his strong individual play, McCabe indicated that personal stats and strong play really don't matter when you're losing every night.
"I don't really give a shit about my personal stats, to be honest with you ... It's all about the team and all about winning. I've lost a lot in this league, and it's getting pretty old. So I wouldn't say that I'm by any means satisfied if I'm playing good or not. It depends on how we're doing as a team.
-McCabe on being sick and tired of losing
-McCabe on being sick and tired of losing
With the Hawks in the midst of a rebuild, McCabe could find his way out of town come the trade deadline or at some point in the off-season. By the sounds of things, he's not very happy with where he is right now.
McCabe is signed through 2024-25 at a reasonable $4M per season. If the Hawks are willing to eat some of his salary, McCabe could make an interesting deadline target for the Leafs. He has experience playing in the top four, is a +2 on an awful Chicago Blackhawks team and has term remaining on his deal, so he wouldn't be a pure rental.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 31 | 190 ANSWERS 29-year-old defenseman appears unhappy with team's direction, may want out and could be a solid fit for the Leafs Is defenseman Jake McCabe someone the Leafs should target at the deadline? | ||
| Yes | 146 | 76.8 % |
| No | 44 | 23.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
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