It will continue to haunt the Chicago Blackhawks for moving on from Brandon Hagel at such a young age while he was just breaking out. This season, the current Tampa Bay Lightning forward is playing very well, scoring 30 goals and 68 points in 60 games.
Those 30 goals have come in a very unique way. Hagel is the third player in NHL history to record 30 goals in a season without scoring any on the power play. He is the first player to do so in 40 years as Doug Smail was the last to do so in 1984-85. The other player to accomplish this rare feat, Rick Kehoe in 1972-73.
Hagel has scored 27 goals at even strength and three goals while shorthanded this season. He is on one of the best offensive teams in the league even though he isn’t playing on the top line or the top power play right now. He has actually played 173 minutes on the power play without a goal and has seven assists, but is a +29 this season. His effectiveness while not on the man advantage has been stellar.
The Blackhawks traded Hagel during the 2021-22 season when he had already scored 21 goals and 37 points in 55 games. He has gone on to quickly become a star at both ends of the ice.
Hagel is a long-time fit in Tampa Bay and could have been that for the Blackhawks if they didn’t decide to strip everything down to its core ahead of drafting Connor Bedard. Chicago didn’t draft Hagel, but they were the first team to give him a shot in the NHL at age 21 and the rest is history.
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