New Look Blackhawks — Rebuilding or Rebuilt?
Coming into the season the expectations were not exactly large for this young Blackhawks team. Chicago was coming off of a season that resulted in a 12th place finish in the Western Conference, but oddly enough a series victory over McJesus and the boys from Edmonton. From the outside looking in it didn’t seem like there were many large offseason moves for this team. Also two of the biggest contracts on the roster have started the season not playing — Toews and Seabrook. Not to mention the 2019 first round pick, Kirby Dach, is sidelined with an injury.
I wrote an article after the first 3 games of the season, and believed this was a total rebuild situation. I did mention the youth and potential of the team, but from what I had seen with Subban and Delia in between the pipes it didn’t look promising. Any time you have Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith on your team you are going to be at least watchable, but I had little faith.
That was until Kevin Lankinen was put in net in his debut against the Florida Panthers. They eventually lost the game in overtime, but the feel of the season has completely shifted. From this game on, the Blackhawks have posted a 6–2–4 record and scored at least 1 point in 10 out of 12 games. Lankinen has put up a .924 save % and a 2.55 Goals Against Average. These are easily some of the top numbers in the league, and he is doing this with incredibly young players in front of him. It isn’t just the numbers, but the way in which he is playing. For a young goalie, he looks extremely confident and makes big stops throughout the entire game. I thought the Blackhawks were in the beginning stages of a rebuild, and they appear they are further along. Chicago could very well be a couple of free agent signings — and continued development of the young guns — from one more run in the near future with a Kane, Toews, and Keith core.
If you have been watching, you have already seen the resurgence of the Kane and DeBrincat duo. They both have put up 7 goals each, which is top 10 in the league for individual scoring. Let’s not forget DeBrincat has missed a couple games due to safety protocols. Kane in the meantime is 4th in total points in the whole league, and is continuing to cement his claim as best US born skater in NHL history. Add this with the incredible production from the other young skaters. Pius Suter leads all rookies with 6 goals himself.
Below is a list of the guys that have been productive and are still under the age of 25
- Alex DeBrincat (LW) ( 7 goals, 7 assists)
- Pius Suter ( C ) ( 6 goals, 3 assists)
- Dylan Strome ( C ) ( 4 goals, 4 assists)
- Phillip Kurashev ( C ) ( 4 goals, 3 assists)
- Dominik Kubalik (LW) ( 3 goals, 9 assists)
- Nikita Zadorov (D)
- Ian Mitchell(D)
- Nicolas Beaudin (D)
- Lucas Carlsson (D)
- Brandon Hagel (LW)
- Matthew Highmore ( C )
Clearly a young team, but performing extremely well. This team will continue to shock a lot of people if Lankinen stays strong in net, and there is consistent, balanced production. Chicago fans have a lot of reasons to watch this team and be excited about the future. We could be looking at the start of another impactful Chicago Blackhawks core.
