The Blackhawks announced another surprising move this afternoon, announcing that they had traded defenseman Henri Jokiharju to the Buffalo Sabres for right wing Alexander Nylander.
The 6-foot1, 192-pound Nylander, who is the brother of Maple Leafs forward William Nylander and son of former Blackhawks center Michael Nylander, is a former first round pick (eighth overall) of the Sabres in 2016. He has had a hard time transitioning to the pro game, spending most of his time in the AHL with the Rochester Americans. Since being drafted he has 86 points (30 goals, 56 assists) in 156 AHL games, as well as six points (three goals, three assists) in 19 NHL games.
Nylander’s Chicago ties run deeper than his father’s playing time with the Blackhawks from 1999–2002. The younger Nylander also grew up playing with the Chicago Mission youth organization.
This could turn out to be yet another Stan Bowman former first round player reclamation that works out in favor of the Blackhawks
Henri Jokiharju was highly regarded by the Blackhawks last summer and for the beginning of the 2018–19 season, but failed to maintain the level of play head coach Jeremy Colliton was looking for following his stint with the gold-medal-winning Finnish World Junior team.
Jokiharu is a former first round pick (29th overall) of the Blackhawks in 2017 and had 12 assists in 38 NHL games. After returning from the World Junior tournament, he was sent to Rockford to play with the Icehogs, where he had 17 points (two goals, 15 assists) in 30 games.