Tampa Bay Lightning/Syracuse Crunch left wing Pierre-Cedric Labrie has signed with the Chicago Blackhawks.

Opening day of the Free Agency period is always an exciting time. Unfortunately, as we welcome many new players here in Hockey Paradise, we have to say goodbye to some as well.

This has been the story more than once today.

Tampa Bay Lightning and Syracuse Crunch left wing Pierre-Cedric Labrie has signed a one year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks.

This move will be an entirely different animal for Labrie as the Western Conference is much more competitive than here in the East.

This is not to say that there aren’t incredibly talented teams here in the East, but just take a look at the numbers.

Last season, Labrie only played in 13 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning before he was reassigned to the Lightning’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch.

In those 13 games, the Quebec native was unable to net any points and carried a minus-4 rating.

Labrie performed slightly better once he made the trip to Syracuse. In the 38 games he played with the Crunch, he scored 2 goals and 4 assists for a total of 6 points.

Where Labrie is of the most value was in the enforcer position. He was one of the few players the Lightning had on their roster who was unafraid to step in when someone got out of line with one of our players, and unlike one of the other recently departed Bolts, Labrie usually came out on the winning end when he dropped the gloves.

At this point, it is unknown whether he will be joining the Blackhawks main roster or if Labrie will be sent to the Hawks AHL affiliate the Rockford Icehogs, but no matter where he lands, they are getting a tough as nails player that is not afraid to lay it all on the line to get the job done.

We here at Bolts By The Bay certainly wish Pierre-Cedric Labrie the best of luck with his new team. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Be sure to stay up-to-date with all the latest Lightning news and updates with Bolts By the Bay. LIKE us on Facebook at Bolts By The Bay, and you can follow us on Twitter at @BoltsByTheBay.