"Yeah, we've been exploring options," Perlini said after practice on Friday. "I think a lot of that stuff is between myself and the team, myself and the agents. I let them handle it. I just continue to play."
The 23-year-old forward has been scratched in seven of the Blackhawks' eight games this season. He last played against the Winnipeg Jets on Oct. 12 and had one shot on goal in 7:49 of ice time.
"That's something for me, I feel like I got to play," Perlini said. "That's why I play the game, that's to play hockey, not miss games and stuff. It's tough. At the same time, I've been working hard, trying to do everything possible to try to get in the lineup and play, keep developing."
Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton said Thursday he and his staff have tried to make sure Perlini has been staying positive despite the lack of playing time.
"We'll try to keep having conversations, whether it's me or other guys on the staff," Colliton said. "He's got to just take care of his own, whether it's in practice or when he gets the chance to go in try to make an impact. Sometimes it takes longer than you want and that's the business we're in. I think we've got quite a bit of depth up front and that's ultimately good for our team. Individually it makes it hard on our guys because you're going to go a stretch without playing. For the team performance, that's what we try to build is more depth."
Perlini was acquired by the Blackhawks with forward Dylan Strome in a trade with the Arizona Coyotes for forward Nick Schmaltz on Nov. 25, 2018. He had 15 points (12 goals, three assists) in 46 games with the Blackhawks last season.
Selected by the Coyotes with the No. 12 pick of the 2014 NHL Draft, Perlini has 72 points (45 goals, 27 assists) in 200 NHL games.
The Blackhawks (2-4-2) play the Carolina Hurricanes (6-3-1) at PNC Arena on Saturday (1 p.m.ET; FS-CR, NBCSCH, NHL.TV).
