Sources: Blackhawks to sign Bowen Byram to 6-year, $75M extension
The Chicago Blackhawks are signing defenseman Bowen Byram to a six-year, $75 million contract extension, sources told ESPN.
The $12.5 million AAV, which would kick in for the 2027-28 season, would make Byram the highest-paid defenseman in the league -- more than Byram's former Buffalo teammate, Rasmus Dahlin's $11 million cap hit.
Byram told the Sabres he wanted an opportunity to showcase himself as a No. 1 defenseman, which led to the stunning predraft trade in which the Blackhawks acquired Byram and forward Jordan Greenway for the No. 4 and No. 45 pick of last week's NHL draft as well as defenseman Louis Crevier.
Byram, 25, was the No. 4 pick himself in the 2019 NHL draft, and went on to win a Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche. Byram is finishing up a two-year contract he signed with the Sabres in 2025, which pays him $6.25 million annually.
Byram scored 11 goals and a career-high 42 points for Buffalo last season. He was part of a resurgent Sabres team that won the Atlantic Division title and earned the franchise's first playoff appearance since 2011.
"To be honest, I feel like I've just been preparing for an opportunity like this for a long time," Byram said last week in his introductory news conference with the Blackhawks.
Byram previously played behind Cale Makar for top minutes in Colorado while Dahlin is the clear No. 1 in Buffalo.
The Blackhawks, who have been bottom dwellers over the last few seasons in the midst of a rebuild, are looking to take a step next season and play more competitive games down the stretch.
Next up on Chicago's offseason to-do list is a new contract for their franchise center, Connor Bedard. In the NHL's new economic reality with an increased salary cap, teams are figuring out what new benchmarks should look like. Bedard is one of several young stars likely to reset the market this summer with a new contract, along with Macklin Celebrini of the San Jose Sharks and Leo Carlsson of the Anaheim Ducks.br/]
