Sopel signs with Blackhawks

Former Canucks defenseman Brent Sopel signed with the Blackhawks after a tryout with the Red Wings. Got all that?

Sopel spent the preseason with Detroit on a tryout basis and the club offered him a contract, but it was not as good as the $1.5MM deal Chicago offered. This is the first loosening of the purse strings since notorious Hawks owner/penny pincher Bill Wirtz kicked it. Sopel becomes Chicago's highest paid D-man (per nhlnumbers.com).