Blackhawks trade Max Domi to Stars for Anton Khudobin, 2025 second-round pick: What does he bring to Dallas?

The Blackhawks have traded forward Max Domi to the Stars for goaltender Anton Khudobin and a 2025 second-round pick, the teams announced Thursday. Here’s what you need to know:

Domi, who turned 28 on Thursday, has accrued 18 goals and a team-high 49 points through 60 games with the Blackhawks this season.
He landed with Chicago on a one-year, $3 million deal this past offseason after stints with the Hurricanes and Blue Jackets last season.
Domi was selected No. 12 by the Coyotes in the 2013 NHL Draft, where he spent the first three seasons of his career before notching a career-high 72 points with Montreal in 2018-19.
The Stars also acquired goaltender Dylan Wells from Chicago.

The trade deadline is Friday at 3 p.m. ET: Follow here for live updates.

🚨 ANNOUNCING DOMI! 🚨
We have acquired Max Domi and Dylan Wells from the @NHLBlackhawks for Anton Khudobin and a 2025 Second-Round Pick.
Welcome to #TexasHockey, Max and Dylan!
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) March 3, 2023

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

What does Domi bring to the Stars?

The Stars are in great need of scoring and Domi brings that to the table. He’ll fit right into the middle six and gives the Stars the opportunity to be more flexible in their line combinations. The top line is intact and the Stars have a formidable duo on the third line with Wyatt Johnston and Jamie Benn. With the addition of Domi, as well as Evgenii Dadonov earlier in the week, coach Pete DeBoer has ample flexibility to juggle things up.

The only real answer the Stars have beyond the top line and third-line duo is Tyler Seguin on the second line. Mason Marchment’s dry spell has run too long, and if he’s unable to snap out of it soon, he should be demoted to the bottom six. With Domi and Dadonov, DeBoer can now do that, while also knowing he has a Swiss Army knife in Ty Dellandrea in his back pocket. — Yousuf

What’s left in Chicago?

Domi and Patrick Kane were the Blackhawks’ leading scorers this season and by quite a margin. With Jonathan Toews out indefinitely due to long COVID, that leaves Seth Jones as the top producer on the Blackhawks with a whopping 27 points in 50 games. Top prospect Lukas Reichel was recalled Thursday morning and will play against Dallas, but the team wants him in Rockford for the AHL playoff push. That leaves the likes of Philipp Kurashev, Taylor Raddysh, Jason Dickinson, Tyler Johnson and Andreas Athanasiou as the top offensive weapons in the lineup.

That’s all by design, of course. Chicago still has 22 games left, more than a quarter of the season, and the race to the bottom (and the best odds at drafting Connor Bedard) is a crowded one. As for the future, despite getting less than he wanted for Kane and nothing for Toews, Kyle Davidson has managed to bring in a 2025 first-rounder, four seconds, a fourth and several roster plug-ins over the past 10 days. — Lazerus

GO DEEPER

NHL trade grades: Stars get Max Domi as Blackhawks continue teardown

What does the future hold for Domi?

Domi knew all along he could be traded; he was basically signed just to be flipped. But in between, he seemed to find a home in Chicago. After bouncing around from team to team (the Stars will be his fourth team in two seasons), Domi seemed comfortable and happy in Chicago, and the Blackhawks liked the personality and energy he brought to the locker room and the skillset and motor he brought to the ice. It’s far from guaranteed, but you can be sure the two sides will at least talk about a longer-term contract to bring him back to Chicago in the summer. — Lazerus