The St. Louis Blues can't afford to underestimate the Chicago Blackhawks, even if the latter still look like a bleak bunch. With a tough Central Division, the Blues must bring their A-game against teams they should beat, and the Blackhawks still reside in that category.
But, this isn't the same Hawks team you saw last year, even if little changed for them on paper this past offseason. It's a young team that's supposed to bring an identical lineup, albeit a more experienced one.
The Hawks will grow this season in every facet of the game, and they will catch teams sleeping. What should they expect from the Hawks? Let's break them down.
Forwards
Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
Andre Burakovsky | Connor Bedard | Ryan Donato |
Tyler Bertuzzi | Frank Nazar | Teuvo Teravainen |
Nick Foligno | Jason Dickinson | Ilya Mikheyev |
Oliver Moore | Sam Lafferty | Landon Slaggert |
Lukas Reichel |
The projected forward group per Daily Faceoff shows the exact scenario I'd roll with this season. Get the youngsters in Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar, and flank them with experience.
Andre Burakovsky's the player who jumps out at me on that projected first line. If he can be that 60-plus point player again, or even anything close to it, Bedard and Donato will cook. The same goes for Nazar should Bertuzzi and Teravainen return to form quicker.
The bottom six doesn't look as promising, with an aging Nick Foligno, an ailing Jason Dickinson, and a pleasant surprise from last season in Ilya Mikheyev. But it's not the trio you'd want to see rounding out the top nine.
Oliver Moore's a mystery, while Sam Lafferty's gonna put up Sam Lafferty numbers. Not very encouraging, if you want my honest take. Maybe Moore and Landon Slaggert show promise, or maybe Lukas Reichel, who didn't even crack the 12th forward in this scenario.
Defense and goaltenders
Left Defense | Right Defense |
|---|---|
Alex Vlasic | Sam Rinzel |
Wyatt Kaiser | Artyom Levshunov |
Ethan Del Mastro | Connor Murphy |
Kevin Korchinski | Louis Krevier |
G: Spencer Knight | G: Arvid Soderblom |
I like this setup, as it lets the youngsters take the top four spots. We know Vlasic's a brewing star, and don't be surprised when Sam Rinzel and Artyom Levshunov join him. It might not be this season, but they'll make strides.
I was surprised to see Ethan Del Mastro on the third pairing, convinced Kevin Korchinski would be there, so I manually added him to the fourth left defense slot. Ideally, the Hawks would sign a veteran and give players like Korchinski reps in the AHL as opposed to him sitting in a press box for half the season.
That said, I don't anticipate that this rotation will be the group we see on the ice. But nevertheless, they're young. As I write this, Wyatt Kaiser still has yet to sign, but if/when he does, he'll give the Hawks another good, young option at the blue line.
Speaking of a young goaltending tandem
This is when I say don't underestimate the group. Young? Absolutely. But they're growing together, and that chemistry could come fast.
As for the netminders, it's a duo I like a lot. Spencer Knight's the surefire No. 1, but Arvid Soderblom's proven he's a capable No. 2 guy. Overall, there's youth here and I'd be surprised if there wasn't a ton of optimism in the Windy City should the Hawks get off to a good start.
So, how good will this team be in 2025-26? I'd give them about 72 points, and a likely eighth-place finish in the Central. But that's a lot better than what we've seen from the Hawks lately, and for the fans over in Chicago, it's an encouraging sign.