The Chicago Blackhawks 2023-34 regular season is finally here, with their opening game this Tuesday, Oct. 10, versus the Pittsburgh Penguins. Yes, 18-year-old Connor Bedard will line up opposite his childhood idol, Sidney Crosby. This season promises to be a special one as many new, young Blackhawks find their way, and the rebuild continues to have a positive trajectory.
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In the spirit of the season, Brooke LoFurno, Connor Smith and myself (Gail Kauchak) got together to answer some burning questions as we head into this year’s campaign.
Blackhawks Standout Players in Preseason
It’s been an eventful preseason for the Blackhawks, with players young and old coming together to form a team. Many individual players have stood out as they either fight for a spot or try to find their role. Pick one player you feel has stood out, and why.
Brooke: MacKenzie Entwistle
I have to point out how impressive Entwistle has been. I didn’t have high hopes for him to make the team or even make a lot of noise during training camp, but he was locked in even during the team scrimmages. You can tell he’s been working his tail off, and he has two impressive preseason goals to show for it. He may not be a Blackhawks’ regular in the lineup this season, but his hard-working mentality and results prove he deserves to make the team. He’s been dynamite!
Connor: Ryan Donato
I’ve been impressed with Donato. He’s a great skater and has nicely complemented Bedard and Taylor Hall on the top line. I was especially impressed with his effort in Thursday’s (Oct. 5) 3-2 shootout loss to the Minnesota Wild. Around halfway through the second period, he recorded a beautiful takeaway, perfectly setting up Hall on a breakaway goal and recording the primary assist.
I was hesitant when head coach Luke Richardson initially placed him on the top line, as I was expecting Taylor Raddysh or Tyler Johnson to fill that void. But it’s appearing to slowly pay dividends. Donato’s a versatile player who has thrived in multiple roles over his NHL career. The fact he comes from the Seattle Kraken, who built a winning culture last season and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, can’t be overlooked.
Gail: Wyatt Kaiser
I’m going to have to go with the young defenseman Kaiser here. In my pre-preseason predictions of the lines and pairings, this 21-year-old was on the outside looking in. His fellow teammate Alex Vlasic and Isaak Phillips were given a shot to prove themselves late last season, so I felt they would be the ones to with first dibs this year.
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But Kaiser was placed on the top defensive pairing with Seth Jones at the beginning of camp, and then on his off side (the right side) towards the end of camp. He also played in five of the Blackhawks’ preseason games. Obviously, the coaching staff was looking at what they had in the young blueliner. Coach Richardson sang Kaiser’s praises early in camp, saying he “really stood out” and that he was strong coming out of college, but even stronger now.
Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times recently shared a clip of Kaiser from the preseason tilt against the Minnesota Wild.
I was so impressed by this play by Wyatt Kaiser in OT last night.
Used his body angle and strength to absolutely manhandle Jonas Brodin one, two, three times behind the net, then jumpstarted a counterattack with his speed and vision: pic.twitter.com/RRPHEIMUpR
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) October 6, 2023
This is just one of the many strong and smart plays Kaiser has made in the preseason. He’s ready for the NHL, and deserves a spot on the roster.
Should Bedard & Reichel Play Together?
Brooke recently wrote an article about Bedard and Lukas Reichel playing together, instead of on separate lines. Do you agree with this? Talk about the pros and cons of each.
Brooke: Yes
Since I wrote the article, yes I agree Bedard and Reichel should play together! But the basis of my article was that Bedard said he would love to play with Reichel, as it would make it easier for him. I think they play similar styles and see the ice similarly, so they could complement each other and lead to a good, goal-scoring pair.
The only con is that putting Bedard and Reichel on the same line messes with depth. Keeping them apart balances the lines better and also allows Reichel to stay at center. But I think they should definitely play them together at some point, to see the impact they could have.
Connor: No
This is an interesting question, but I’m leaning towards no. As great as both players will likely be, they’re still adapting to the NHL, and I’d like to see both gain a little independence. Plus, this would mean moving Reichel away from center and back to wing. While I’m not sold on him being a center yet, the Blackhawks aren’t under pressure to win right now. They might as well see what he can do there before his entry-level contact (ELC) expires next offseason.
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I also don’t love the idea of moving Reichel away from Andreas Athansiou and Philipp Kurashev. All three players bring an element of speed, and they jelled in training camp. That said, if things don’t go to plan early on, I wouldn’t totally be against this. As Brooke said, it could be great for both player’s confidence, especially since they’re at similar stages of their careers.
Gail: No
I really like the one-two punch of having Bedard and Reichel on separate lines. It forces the opposition to pick their poison, similar to Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane back in the day. It obviously spreads out the talent more, not having it be top heavy on the first line. Plus, it gives them both a chance to play center and drive the play on their respective lines.
Although, I’m sure we’ll see these two put together in certain situations. They’re on separate power play units right now. But if the power play starts to struggle, putting them both on the top unit could be an option. They might also be deployed together when the team is behind at the end of games, in an effort to secure a win. I could further see them being quite lethal during 3-on-3 overtime.
Excitement for Blackhawks Season
There’s lots of excitement revolving around the Blackhawks as they head into the regular season. There have been a lot of positives to focus on, which is a big change from the grind of last season. So, for our last question, tell us what you’re most excited about for this upcoming season.
Brooke: Defense
I’m most excited about the defense this season. They will likely be scary as a whole, but I’m excited to see the potential. With Phillips, Kevin Korchinski, Nolan Allan, Vlasic, and Kaiser, they have all been impressive in their own ways during the preseason, and some may make their NHL debuts this year. This season is a big opportunity for them to show their abilities, so I’m looking forward to seeing how they develop.
Connor: Developing Players
I’m excited to see the overall development of the Blackhawks’ young players. There are so many unknowns right now. Will Bedard have a Crosby-like rookie campaign, something closer to Matty Beniers last season, or somewhere in the middle? What kind of rookie campaign does Vlasic have? What about Kaiser? Can Arvid Soderblom potentially overtake the starting job in net? This season’s group is a lot younger and more compelling compared to last season, and questions will be answered.
On another note, this would’ve sounded crazy a year ago, but the Blackhawks may be the best thing in Chicago sports right now. The Bears and the White Sox have been in crisis mode, the Bulls are stuck in mediocrity, and the Cubs’ collapse last month left a sour taste in my mouth. With a potential generational talent in Bedard, the Blackhawks should be a breath of fresh air compared to the city’s other teams, even if the on-ice results aren’t always great.
Gail: Power Play
The Blackhawks haven’t had a good power play for the past few seasons. Last year, they finished an abominable 28th in the league, and the year before they were 21st. Even with the talent of Kane and Toews, they just couldn’t seem to find success on the man-advantage.
But I believe this season could be another story. Both power play units have looked really good throughout the preseason. Granted, they’re officially 2-for-21 through six exhibition games (Nick Foligno scored right after time expired which didn’t count as a PP goal), but there’s been lots of movement and chances. The current units look like this:
PP1: Corey Perry, Bedard-Donato-Hall, Jones
PP2: Foligno, Athanasiou-Kurashev-Reichel, Korchinski
Obviously, the top two lines from 5-on-5 play should gel on the power play. Perry and Foligno make the perfect net front presence guys, and Jones and Korchinski (probably Vlasic if Korchinski doesn’t make the team) are strong quarterbacks to man the point. Coach Richardson is also preaching to be aggressive and shoot early to catch the other team off guard.
Needless to say, the Blackhawk’s power play should be a lot of fun to watch this season.
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This season sure looks to be a promising one for the Blackhawks. Development and improvement will be the name of the game, regardless of their place in the standings. There are lots of players to watch and many things to be excited about!
