The Chicago Blackhawks ended up trading Taylor Hall away. However, there is a source that believes that they tried to keep him.

For one, Brind’Amour is pairing his two best players by putting them on a line together. Aho has led the Hurricanes in scoring in six of the last seven seasons, and Rantanen was a superstar in Colorado, logging more minutes than any forward in the league since the start of the 2021-22 season.

The Hawks will receive a third-round draft pick, but the Hurricanes' acquisition of Mikko Rantanen from the Avalanche is the far bigger part of the trade Friday, per reports.

Getting a 3rd round pick from the Hurricanes gives the Blackhawks nine total selections in the upcoming draft.

Here are our Mikko Rantanen trade grades for the Blackhawks, Avalanche, and Hurricanes after Friday's stunning deal.

Mikko Rantanen's trade from the Colorado Avalanche to the Carolina Hurricanes shocked the NHL world on Saturday, but it didn't take him long to fit in with his new team.

Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman talk about Ichiro, C.C. Sabathia and Billy Wagner getting elected to the Hall of Fame, the Dodgers introducing Roki Sasaki and the Braves solidifying their lineup and outfield by signing Jurickson Profar.

Will he re-sign in Carolina after this season -- and if not, where else? And what will other contenders do to keep pace ahead of the March 7 deadline?

ELMONT, N.Y. --Mikko Rantanen and Taylor Hall were essentially strangers to one another when they arrived at UBS Arena on Saturday, two veteran forwards who played on different teams the past decade.

Colorado Avalanche star Mikko Rantanen was reportedly acquired by the Carolina Hurricanes in a three-team trade on Friday night. Chicago Blackhawks

The trade is a stunning midseason swap of point-per-game players in their primes, an anomaly in the NHL trade market in the salary-cap era.