Johnny Oduya is still weighing his options, including returning to the Chicago Blackhawks next season, according to a source.
Oduya, a 33-year-old defenseman, became an unrestricted free agent after last season. He spent the last 3 ½ seasons with the Blackhawks and was part of two Stanley Cup championship teams. He had nine goals, 34 assists, was a plus-31 and averaged 20:37 of ice time in 219 regular-season games for the Blackhawks. He also played in 71 playoff games for them.
Oduya signed a three-year, $10.125 million contract extension with the Blackhawks after the 2011-12 season. He was acquired by the Blackhawks in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets.
The Blackhawks currently have five defensemen returning from last year’s team. Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Brent Seabrook, Trevor van Riemsdyk and David Rundblad are signed for next season. Oduya, Michal Rozsival and Kimmo Timonen became unrestricted free agents after the season.
The Blackhawks are still expected to trade a few current players and re-sign restricted free agent Marcus Kruger while becoming cap-compliant.