Seabrook made his professional debut after completing his fourth and final WHL season, being assigned to the Norfolk Admirals, the Blackhawks' American Hockey League affiliate, for the final three games of the regular season and six post-season games. Seabrook cracked the Blackhawks' line-up his first year out of junior in 2005–06 and recorded five goals and 32 points as a rookie. In his third NHL season, in 2007–08, Seabrook matched his rookie total with 32 points while tallying a personal-best nine goals. He began the season on the top-defensive pairing with Duncan Keith. The following season, Seabrook became an integral part of a young and rejuvenated Blackhawks team that made the Stanley Cup playoffsfor the first time in seven years the following season in 2009. He scored 11 points in 17 post-season games as the Blackhawks made it to the Western Conference Finals, where they were defeated by the Detroit Red Wings. On March 17, 2010, Seabrook was knocked out by a high hit from James Wisniewski, a former teammate. Seabrook missed the next two games, while Wisniewski was ultimately suspended for eight games. On June 9, 2010, the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup after defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 4–3 in overtime. On February 27, 2011, the Blackhawks signed Seabrook to a five-year, $29 million contract extension. On May 29, 2013, Seabrook scored the Game 7 overtime winner against the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Semi-finals, advancing Chicago to the Western Conference Final. During the Finals, on June 19, Seabrook scored the overtime winner against the Boston Bruins in Game 4 of the series. Seabrook won his second Stanley Cup as the Blackhawks beat the Bruins in six games. During the first round of the 2014 playoffs, Seabrook delivered a high-hit to David Backes of the St. Louis Blues. Backes was forced to leave the game and Seabrook was assessed a match penalty. The Department of Player Safety reviewed the hit and suspended Seabrook for three games. On September 17, 2015, the Blackhawks named Seabrook as an alternate captain. On September 26, 2015, Blackhawks extended Seabrook's contract for 8 years. Seabrook played in his 1,000th NHL game on March 29, 2018, in a game against the Winnipeg Jets. On December 11, 2018, Seabrook and teammate Duncan Keith became the first pair of defencemen, and the seventh duo in NHL history to play 1,000 games together. On December 26, 2019, the Blackhawks placed Seabrook on long-term IR after announcing he would require three separate surgical operations to repair his right shoulder and both hips. Seabrook missed the remainder of the 2019-20 season. He returned to practice with the team in July to prepare for the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs, which had been postponed to August due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Seabrook opted out of the playoffs on July 24 to focus on fully recovering from his surgery.
International play
During his junior career, Seabrook represented Team Canada in two World Junior Championships. In 2004 in Finland, he recorded three points to help Canada to the gold medal game against the United States, where they were defeated 4–3. Returning the following year in 2005 in the United States, he matched his three-point total from the previous tournament and helped defeat Russia 6–1 in the final to capture Canada's first gold medal that began a five-year run. After his rookie season with the Blackhawks, Seabrook made his senior international debut with Team Canada at the 2006 World Championships in Latvia, where Canada failed to medal. On December 30, 2009, Seabrook was called and asked to play for Team Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, along with Blackhawks teammates Duncan Keith and Jonathan Toews. He was expected to continue his NHL pairing with Keith during the tournament, but he instead became designated as Canada's seventh defenceman. He notched one assist over seven games as Canada won the gold medal over the United States 3–2 in overtime on February 28, 2010.
Personal life
Seabrook and his wife Dayna have three children: a son and two daughters. On February 25, 2014, Seabrook, along with Blackhawks teammate Duncan Keith, made a cameo appearance in the episode "Virgin Skin" on the NBC drama Chicago Fire. His younger brother, Keith Seabrook, was drafted by the Washington Capitals and played in the AHL from 2009 to 2012, returning in 2014 after a brief hiatus from the sport.
