The Chicago Blackhawks have acquired first round (24th overall) and second round (54th overall) selections in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft and forwards Jeremy Morin, Marty Reasoner and Joey Crabb from the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for forwards Akim Aliu, Dustin Byfuglien and Ben Eager and defenseman Brent Sopel.
With the addition of the 24th and 54th picks in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, the Blackhawks now have 10 total selections, including five in the first two rounds (24, 30, 43, 54 and 60).
Morin, 19, tied for fourth in the Ontario Hockey League with 47 goals and ranked 12th with 83 points in 58 regular-season games with the Kitchener Rangers last season. Atlanta’s second pick, 45th overall, in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, Morin also ranked second on the Rangers with 12 goals and fourth with 21 points in 20 playoff tilts, helping the club reach the Western Conference Finals. He paced the OHL with 23 power-play goals during the regular season and also earned CHL and OHL Player of the Week honors for the week ending April 18 (7G, A), which included two hat tricks.
The Auburn, New York, native captured a Gold Medal with Team USA at the 2010 World Junior Championships, collecting five assists and seven points in seven games during the tournament. Prior to making his OHL debut with Kitchener in 2009-10, Morin spent three seasons with the United States National Team Development Program (2007-2009), posting 139 points (81G, 58A) in 120 career games.
Reasoner, 33, recorded 13 assists, 17 points and 24 penalty minutes in 80 games with the Thrashers last season during his 10th NHL season. The Honeoye Falls, New York, native has registered 223 points (82G, 141A) and 319 penalty minutes in 624 career regular-season games with the St. Louis Blues (1998-01), Edmonton Oilers (2001-06; 2006-08), Boston Bruins (2005-06) and Thrashers (2008-10). The Blues’ first pick, 14th overall, in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft, Reasoner has also appeared in 23 career Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Blues and Oilers, collecting six goals and eight points.
Crabb, 27, made his NHL debut in 2008-09 with Atlanta, recording nine points (4G, 5A) and 28 penalty minutes in 29 regular-season games. The Anchorage, Alaska, native ranked third on the American Hockey League’s Chicago Wolves with 24 goals and shared fourth with 53 points – both professional career highs – in 79 regular-season games in 2009-10. Crabb has appeared in 256 AHL games over the past four seasons with Chicago collecting 139 points (55, 84A), which includes helping the club capture the 2008 Calder Cup.
Byfuglien, 25, recorded 109 points (55G, 54A) and 268 penalty minutes in 260 regular-season games with the Blackhawks over parts of five seasons (2005-10), which includes 17 goals and 17 assists in 82 tilts in 2009-10. The Minneapolis, Minnesota, native also appeared in 39 Stanley Cup Playoff games with Chicago over the past two years, notching 14 goals, 25 points and 46 penalty minutes. He was originally selected by the Blackhawks with their eighth choice, 245th overall, in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.
Sopel, 33, appeared in 152 regular-season games with the Blackhawks over the past three seasons, registering 30 points (3G, 27A) and 70 penalty minutes. Sopel, who was signed by the Blackhawks as a free agent on October 3, 2007, also netted one goal and six points in 22 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the club in 2010.
Eager, 26, appeared in 144 regular-season games with the Blackhawks over parts of the last three seasons, racking up 308 penalty minutes and 33 points (18G, 15A), which includes seven goals, 16 points and 120 penalty minutes in 60 games in 2009-10. Eager, who joined the Blackhawks in a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers on December 18, 2007, also appeared in 35 Stanley Cup Playoff matchups with Chicago over the past two years, collecting five points (2G, 3A) and 81 penalty minutes.
Aliu, 21, was selected by the Blackhawks with their third choice, 56th overall, in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. Last season, Aliu notched 17 points (11G, 6A) in 48 games with the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs before finishing the campaign with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye, collecting 14 points (5G, 9A) in 13 contests.