News Blackhawks Team Notes

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Folignos Give Back, Trade Board Updates, a Beauty From Rinzel, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

Yesterday we looked at how three Blackhawks prospects/young players now rank in a 2022 re-draft. It was encouraging to say the least; two of the three are now top-ten players from their class in the eyes of Scott Wheeler.

Whenever we jump into that exercise, there are other conversations that pop up in which we try to compare where players were drafted and how their development compares. For example, I had one in my DMs on Twitter pointing to the development curves of Lukas Reichel and Oliver Moore with the two being drafted in similar spots in their respective drafts. I once again want to caution that, while doing that can make for some spirited conversation, we need to employ context when considering development timelines for prospects and players.

In the coming years, I’m sure there will be some deep-dive studies into how the pandemic shutting down the CHL (and other leagues) affected the timeline for a lot of young players — specifically players who were drafted between 2019-21. Some players turned pro prematurely. Isaak Phillips was a great example of that reality.

The other reality we need to keep in mind in these conversations is how the NCAA ranks are quickly turning into a path to professional hockey that some organizations are starting to prefer over junior hockey. Moore playing two years in the Big Ten — and being part of two gold medal-winning World Junior teams for the US — gave him a robust collection of experience before turning pro. He still has development to come, but simply comparing his trajectory now to Reichel’s three years ago in a vacuum leaves a lot to be desired.

• Speaking of Reichel, his name popped back up in the summer trade winds. David Pagnotta at The Fourth Period updated their Summer Trade Watch List earlier this week. Current Blackhawks Connor Murphy ranked 13th and Reichel ranked 23rd overall. However, neither has teams listed as being reportedly interested.

• It’s noteworthy that the Blackhawks are among the teams reportedly interested in Penguins winger Rickard Rakell and Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues.

Summer Trade Watch List: Karlsson, Chinakhov, Jarnkrok & others still on watch https://t.co/k68x5owAbO

— The Fourth Period (@TFP) July 22, 2025

• I love brothers who compete against each other in everything, but when they can do it to help improve others’ lives it’s even better. If you’ve somehow missed it since he arrived, Blackhawks captain Nick Foligno is one of the most active players in the league when it comes to community engagement. And the foundation he and his family started after losing their mother to cancer, the Janis Foligno Foundation, has done incredible things for those battling cancer. It looks like Nick and Marcus were at it again in Sudbury recently.

• How about a Sam Rinzel highlight from Da Beauty League last night?

Mason Shaw Sam Rinzel#daBL2025 | @NHLBlackhawks pic.twitter.com/8GwPSjw560

— Da Beauty League (@DaBeautyLeague) July 23, 2025

• How about a Wyatt Kaiser highlight from Da Beauty League last night?

• Four our Canadian readers/viewers, Prime Video announced the schedule for Monday Night Hockey on Wednesday. The Blackhawks make zero appearances.

Prime Video announces Monday Night Hockey schedule for 2025-26 season https://t.co/lOnGiWk0g5

— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) July 23, 2025

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• What are the latest Cubs-related rumors from the increasingly warming stove?

• Caleb Williams has some big goals for himself and the Bears this season.

• The Bulls want Coby White to be around for “a long time.”

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...uty-from-rinzel-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Blackhawks Announce Numbers for Three New Players (and One Change)

On Thursday morning the Blackhawks announced the numbers that will be worn by the three new members of the roster — and one change for a player who’s been here.

Here are the numbers for the new players:

• André Burakovsky — 28
• Sam Lafferty — 24
• Dominic Toninato — 25

Burakovsky taking 28 means Colton Dach won’t be wearing it any longer. Dach has changed numbers to 34. The Blackhawks should just retire 28 for Steve Larmer and save all of us this confusion.

Lafferty wore 24 when he was with the Blackhawks previously. It was most recently worn by Jaycob Megna in 2024. Like 28, the Blackhawks should have put 24 in the rafters a long time ago for Doug Wilson.

Some legit legends (wink emoji) have worn 25 in the history of the Blackhawks. Toninato joins a remarkable list that includes Alexander Karpovtsev, Cam Barker, Viktor Stålberg, Jarred Tinordi and, most recently, Alec Martinez.

pic.twitter.com/TZjYBTS2zd

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) July 24, 2025

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...numbers-for-three-new-players-and-one-change/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

McKenna Talks College, Dirk Graham Honored, WJC Showcase Begins, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

Let’s get our Friday started with some fun news out of the WHL. Tomorrow, six individuals will be inducted into the Saskatchewan Hockey Hall of Fame — including former Blackhawks captain Dirk Graham. Graham appeared in 546 regular-season games for the Blackhawks, for whom he became the first Black captain in NHL history. He was a marvelous player, winning the Selke Trophy following the 1990-91 season. Today, he’s still a pro scout for the San Jose Sharks (and regularly appears in the United Center press box in that capacity). Congrats to a fantastic former Blackhawks captain on the honor!

• While we’re on the subjects of Graham and halls of fame, he should absolutely be in the Blackhawks Hall of Fame at some point in the not-too-distant future. His name is on a crowded Heritage Era Ballot this year. Here’s hoping he stays on the ballot in future years so he can earn his deserving recognition from Blackhawks fans!

• Fabulous read here from Scott Wheeler, who spoke with Gavin McKenna — the projected No. 1 overall pick in next summer’s draft — about going to college and a lot more.

I spoke with Gavin McKenna one-on-one for @TheAthletic.

On his decision, his summer, his home, and more, with insight into what makes him “special” from those around him:https://t.co/3NEsR3q8Py pic.twitter.com/ogElj1h8uE

— Scott Wheeler (@scottcwheeler) July 24, 2025

• Happy birthday to the wonderful Tony Granato, who turns 61 today. Tony’s 773 regular-season games played tops all players born on July 25. But, more than just numbers, Tony’s a great person and has always been a tremendous teammate — on the ice and everywhere else in life. Here’s hoping for continued strength for Tony and a few extra candles on the cake this year!

• Here’s a nice surface-level look at the 2025 World Junior Summer Showcase from the IIHF. The games begin this weekend at the University of Minnesota.

• Earlier this week, CHSN and WCIU, The U, announced a partnership to simulcast seven White Sox games during the second half of the MLB season. I wonder if they’ll work on simulcasting Blackhawks games during the coming season as well.

• North Dakota rolled out some new uniforms on Thursday.

Please allow us to reintroduce ourselves#UNDproud | #LGH pic.twitter.com/OAL2V2cH0O

— North Dakota Hockey (@UNDmhockey) July 24, 2025

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• The Cubs are monitoring the reliever market before next week’s trade deadline.

• The Packers’ new throwbacks have a distinctly… Illini feel.

• We’ve got some broadcast names attached to the return of the NBA on NBC this coming season.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...showcase-begins-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Kaiser’s Turn, Streakers, Colton and Chance, Canada’s Coaches, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

The Blackhawks have one remaining restricted free agent: defenseman Wyatt Kaiser. The Blackhawks like him enough to believe he can be a top-four defenseman for them. I would like to see him get some run with Artyom Levshunov to see how they can complement each other in training camp (and maybe to open the season).

Here’s the tricky part: the Blackhawks have Alex Vlasic, Ethan Del Mastro, Kevin Korchinski and Nolan Allan all on the left side of the blue line with at least three — likely four — being NHL-ready in the coming season. I would argue Del Mastro and Allan have done enough to be in the NHL lineup every night by now. Korchinski is still young enough that I’m not ready to sell. So the logjam on the back end isn’t going to make the decision making life of the front office easy in the coming months.

To be clear: this is a terrific “problem” to have for the Blackhawks. But we’ve reached a first potential crossroads in the building process as the organization is going to have to start making some tough decisions with the depth they’ve drafted and developed. I’m fascinated to see how the blue line shakes out between now and the start of the regular season.

But, again, Kaiser still needs a new contract for this conversation to move to that next step. So stay tuned…

• Hey look who showed up at the Blackhawks’ GOAL Floor Hockey Program! It looks like Colton Dach hadn’t changed his jersey number yet for the photo shoot…

• There are some intriguing names still on the UFA market as we get closer to August, and there are a few teams with limited/no cap space trying to clear room to make changes (cough, Edmonton, cough). I’m interested to see if we need to just get past the dates set for arbitration hearings for there to be more trade movement and free agent signings around the NHL.

• With that in mind, I’m not sure the Blackhawks can/will trade a goalie before training camp because everyone needs to see Laurent Brossoit healthy. But the Blackhawks could move out a forward or two before training camp or certainly early in the regular season as younger guys show they’re ready. And there is still a lot of smoke around Lukas Reichel on the market. He’s got a cheap cap hit ($1.2M) for only one year.

• The NHL shared this graphic on their social channels on Saturday. Patrick Kane having the longest point streak by a Blackhawks player in a single season isn’t an enormous surprise, but look at the former Blackhawks who made the list with other teams. And… 51 straight games for the Great One in Edmonton??

• Hockey Canada announced their final coaching staff for the 2026 World Junior Championship.

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• What does the trade market look like for starting pitchers?

• How about some updates from Bears training camp?

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...canadas-coaches-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Three Blackhawks Prospects in Action at the World Junior Summer Showcase (Update)

There’s no Blackhawks-specific hockey going on in late July, but there will be a few prospects in action in the coming days that should get some attention. USA Hockey is hosting the 2025 World Junior Summer Showcase from July 25-August 2 on the campus of the University of Minnesota. And the Blackhawks will a couple prospects on the ice.

The camp includes teams from the USA, Canada, Finland and Sweden with games beginning this weekend (July 27). Practices begin today.

• AJ Spellacy received an invitation to be on the United States roster.

Spellacy opened some eyes with his performance in training camp for the US roster before the 2025 World Juniors and was one of the last players cut from that roster. The US went on to win gold with a veteran roster; Spellacy should have a better chance of contributing this year, but the coming week is important for him to establish himself on the new-look roster.

• Sacha Boisvert received an invitation to be on the Canadian roster.
• Marek Vanacker received an invitation to be on the Canadian roster.

Boisvert was named the NCHC Freshman of the Year after a strong season at North Dakota and has since transferred to Boston University. He isn’t considered a lock for Canada’s World Juniors roster; Canada will skate two full rosters in these exhibitions. I’m looking forward to seeing how he performs with a talented group of skaters.

When the 44 names on the Canadian roster were announced finally on Sunday, Vanacker was a bit of a surprise. He was initially rumored to be on the outside looking in, but eight notable players not able to attend the camp opened the door for Chicago’s third pick from the first round of the 2024 NHL Draft.

Anton Frondell also received an invitation to be on the roster for Sweden — but he will no longer be there. He had a disappointing U18 performance for Sweden, but attributed that to being a late addition to the roster and being tired from helping Djurgårdens win their league championship and earn promotion to the SHL for the coming season. It appears he plans on putting in a full training camp to help Djurgårdens with the jump to the top level in Sweden this year, so he won’t be in Minnesota.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...ion-at-upcoming-world-junior-summer-showcase/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Considering How the Blackhawks’ Books Are Influencing Current Decision Making

Without a lot of hockey happening right now, it leaves idle hands to do the Devils’ work on social media. And there are still lots of conversations about what the Blackhawks are doing — and haven’t — in free agency and trades to improve the NHL roster.

One of the things that I don’t think gets brought up enough when considering moves the Blackhawks could / might / should make — and the pipe dreams about guys like Connor McDavid hitting UFA and coming to Chicago — is the enormous task ahead for the Blackhawks’ front office with their young players.

We’ve talked a lot about the Blackhawks’ evolving roster and how the 2025-26 season is really the first step forward for Kyle Davidson’s draft and develop rebuild strategy. We’ll see the first wave of players drafted by the current front office making a significant impact on the NHL roster. Yes, Frank Nazar was fantastic last year — but he started the season in Rockford. Now, we’ll see him as an every night NHL player and others join him.

The topic at hand has been percolating in my brain since I wrote about Davidson having signed 16 of his 38 draft choices already.

The Blackhawks are not only entering the exciting — and scary — part of the rebuild where we start to really see the proof of concept at the NHL level, but that also means the clock is ticking on all of these young players’ contracts.

In the coming 24 months, Davidson has a huge, daunting task in front of him. The majority of the veterans on the roster at this moment will hit unrestricted free agency, and most of them will depart as young players become ready to take their roles in the NHL. That’s not necessarily a concern.

But, as the Blackhawks consider their options in free agency and trades in the immediate moment, they have also kept in mind the enormous number of players needing their second NHL contracts between now and the start of the 2027-28 season. And we need to be mindful of that reality, too.

The Blackhawks will have 11 players hit RFA status next summer. Another 13 will hit RFA in the summer of 2027. While not all 24 of those players will carry the same importance on the long-term success of the rebuild, that’s a lot of paper that could potentially be written in the next couple years. And some of those guys are going to be potentially big-ticket players (Connor Bedard, Nazar, Spencer Knight, Sam Rinzel, Artyom Levshunov start the list).

Here’s what the Blackhawks books look like the next two years with players who will hit either restricted or unrestricted free agency, beginning with the one piece of unfinished business this summer.

• Wyatt Kaiser — still pending RFA

Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images

2026 Blackhawks Restricted Free Agents​

• Connor Bedard
• Frank Nazar
• Lukas Reichel
• Colton Dach
• Spencer Knight
• Drew Commesso
• Kevin Korchinski
• Ethan Del Mastro
• Nolan Allan
• Ryan Mast
• Dmitri Kuzmin

2026 Blackhawks Unrestricted Free Agents​

• Nick Foligno
• Jason Dickinson
• Ilya Mikheyev
• Sam Lafferty
• Joey Anderson
• Connor Murphy
• Laurent Brossoit
• Shea Weber (wink)

Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

2027 Blackhawks Restricted Free Agents​

• Sam Rinzel
• Artyom Levshunov
• Louis Crevier
• Oliver Moore
• Ryan Greene
• Landon Slaggert
• Samuel Savoie
• Gavin Hayes
• Aidan Thompson
• Martin Misiak
• Paul Ludwinski
• Taige Harding
• Stanislav Berezhnoy

Sergei Belski-Imagn Images

2027 Blackhawks Unrestricted Free Agents​

• Teuvo Teräväinen
• André Burakovsky
• Dominic Toninato
• Arvid Söderblom

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...ooks-are-influencing-current-decision-making/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Blackhawks Fan Survey Grades Kyle Davidson’s Job, State of the Rebuild (and I Have Thoughts)

On Tuesday morning, Mark Lazerus and Scott Powers over at The Athletic published the results of their annual summer survey of Blackhawks fans. As I’ve mentioned since they posted the questionnaire, they do a nice job of asking broad questions and a few that are more focused. And the results are always fascinating.

In their intro, the guys note there were more votes (3,216 total) in this year’s Blackhawks fan survey than they have ever had at The Athletic. I’m not shocked that there’s a ton of engagement in the fan base (our traffic here is shattering records every month for Blackhawks coverage at BN) despite the team’s record remaining bad.

I encourage you to read their comments about the results. But I also wanted to discuss a few as well.

I’d like to specifically focus on a few questions that relate to the job of Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson. And, for the sake of this discussion, I’m going to take a few out of the order that they guys presented them because I think there is (should be?) some correlation in how fans responded.

So, if we translate 5 to an A, 4 to a B and so on, 51.4 percent of Blackhawks fans would give Davidson an A or B letter grade thus far. I’m not shocked that the second-highest response would be a C, but this feels like we’re seeing more buy-in from fans in the rebuild strategy because we’re some of his draft picks starting to matriculate their way to the NHL level — and make an impact there.

Here’s where my hopes/expectations of a correlation in answers starts to find some intrigue, though. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say Kyle Davidson’s job is the Blackhawks’ rebuild. As such, if you feel pretty good about the job he’s doing, one would tend to think you feel pretty good about the rebuild overall… right?

And yet here we are with more people assigning a C grade to the rebuild’s current state. Half of the more than 3,100 fans who responded to this question gave the rebuild a C or D at this point. So there appears to be a disconnect between the perception of Davidson’s performance and the rebuild.

Okay…

That brings me to two more questions that focused on Davidson’s job to date that had widely different responses to what feels like almost the same question.

We’ve talked a lot here about the why behind the Blackhawks not being more engaged in free agency since the market opened on July 1. And, based on reactions and comments here and on social media, I’m not terribly surprised that the voting here was relatively even. I was at least a little surprised to see the highest percentage was giving Davidson a B for his free agency work this summer — or lack thereof.

But one would think the results to that question would be almost mirrored in responses to this question:

Based on the percentages, it looks like 14 percent of the fans who answered this question flipped from an A to a C on the grading scale for the offseason as a whole. Which is interesting.

Yes, trades can impact the overall outlook of the offseason, but how many trades or significance have happened since the end of the Stanley Cup Final this summer? And how many of those were “dang, the Blackhawks should have been in on that deal” trades?

What’s clear from the overall results of the survey is that fans are employing a little more patience than previously. And the number of people who voted give us a pretty good idea of the wider fan base than the loudest comments on social media might indicate.

The results of our annual Blackhawks fan survey are in. How many of you are on board with the rebuild? And how many of you won't be able to watch anyway?https://t.co/sU7DSuk2MA

— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) July 29, 2025

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blackhawks/2025/07/29/blackhawks-fan-survey-kyle-davidson/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Is Marek Vanacker the Next Blackhawks Lottery Ticket to Hit?

In three of the four drafts since Kyle Davidson took over as the general manager of the Chicago Blackhawks, he’s made a pick late in the first round that has felt like a bit of a reach based on the rankings from the analysts all over the interwebs.

When the Blackhawks traded up into the first round and took Sam Rinzel at No. 25 in 2022, it was a “lottery ticket.” Two summers later, he traded two second-round picks to Carolina to move up to take Marek Vanacker at No. 27. And, just a little more than one month ago, Davidson traded up once again and took Mason West at No. 29 in the 2025 NHL Draft.

All three players had second-round grades/rankings/projections. The Blackhawks’ scouting staff saw enough to value the players a great deal — and heard enough whispers to believe they would need to move up to get the player before their next pick was on the clock.

West, like Rinzel, will play his post-draft season in the USHL before joining a Big Ten program; Rinzel went to Minnesota, while West will head to Michigan State. The difference between the two: Rinzel needed to put on weight. West is playing quarterback this fall.

However, the early returns have been exciting from Rinzel. His two seasons at Minnesota showed incredible growth and he looked every bit of a top-pair defenseman in his brief stint with the Blackhawks after signing is entry-level contract.

The question now is if the other two “lottery ticket” picks Davidson will develop and prove the picks to be brilliant as well. The next player in line to make that step is Vanacker, and he might be on his way.

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Vanacker’s Next​

Unfortunately for Vanacker and the Blackhawks, his post-draft season got off to a late start because he needed shoulder surgery over the summer. But even last summer after he was drafted, the organization was extremely high on him.

One person high in the organization told me they felt Vanacker could be “a poor man’s version of Mikko Rantanen” because of his strength and how he skates. At the time, I filed that away because obviously Rantanen is one of the elite players in the game today — and because Vanacker had just held a Blackhawks jersey for the first time.

Fast forward to this summer. Vanacker had a modest season that he told us at development camp he wasn’t necessarily thrilled with, but saw progress in his game after the injury. He scored 24 goals and had 42 points in 45 regular-season games — but then added 11 points in 11 postseason games for the Brantford Bulldogs.

“I think it was alright,” Vanacker said of his 2024-25 season during development camp. “It was a slow start just from coming off of injury, not having the summer and training that I expected and stuff like that but coming near the end of the season I started to pick it up and our team did fairly well.”

His performance was overshadowed by fellow Blackhawks prospect Nick Lardis shattering scoring records and 2025 draft-eligible center Jake O’Brien playing himself into an early first round selection (Seattle selected him at No. 8 this summer).

I’ve had a few people on social media ask why I have Vanacker ranked higher than most other analysts in my Blackhawks prospect rankings (he’s No. 8 in my post-draft update). Part of my rationale is his power forward game; the other is hope that the guy who was dominant at times in the postseason can translate that play into a full, healthy season in the OHL this coming year.

Based on the other available talent and Vanacker coming off a fairly pedestrian regular season in Brantford, I was slightly disappointed but not shocked that his name was not initially on the reported list of invited prospects for Canada at the World Junior Summer Showcase. But injuries opened a door for Vanacker to get an opportunity, and it appears he’s taking advantage.

After Canada’s intrasquad scrimmage on Tuesday, Steven Ellis at Daily Faceoff wrote about some players who stood out. Vanacker, who scored a goal in the game, was mentioned. Here’s what Ellis had to say:

Vanacker was one of the more noticeable 200-foot players today. I loved his energy, and even though nobody was trying too hard physically, Vanacker did an excellent job of chasing after pucks, winning battles along the boards, and stealing the disk any time he could. Vanacker loves spending time near the crease, and it was his perfect placement that allowed for the 2-0 power-play goal.

And then on Wednesday morning, after his strong performance in the scrimmage in Minnesota, Scott Wheeler at The Athletic wrote a terrific piece about Vanacker that had a couple quote that really grabbed my attention Brantford Bulldogs general manager Spencer Hyman, brother of Oilers’ power forward Zach Hyman.

“It’s an interesting situation for me because I’ve been so close to this type of lineup formation my whole life, because how I view Marek is what my brother means to Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl,” Hyman said.

and

“I think he’s the best power forward in the CHL, and there were games last year where you could tell he was himself again. He’s going to have a massive year, and we’re really excited.”

Hello!

Comps to Zach Hyman and his own brother touting Vanacker as “the best power forward in the CHL” is some pretty lofty praise — from someone with a very unique perspective on the role and position. So there’s weight to those words considering the source.

Bulldogs head coach Jay McKee also had some great things to say about Vanacker in the Wheeler piece, talking about traits that have become the calling cards of draft picks under Davidson’s front office: “breakaway speed” and “good culture player/good teammate” came up multiple times. McKee believes Vanacker can be an impactful top-six forward and penalty killer in the NHL because of his speed and work ethic. All things we love to see.

Vanacker already signed his entry-level contract, but his age will send him back to the OHL for the coming season. He’ll ride shotgun with O’Brien again this year, but they’ll now be tasked with carrying the offense in Brantford with Lardis going pro. O’Brien also told Wheeler he thinks Vanacker is primed to have a huge season.

I’ll wrap things up with a quote from another individual who knows a thing or two about developing NHL prospects and traits that translate well to the pros, London Knights (and Canada’s World Juniors) head coach Dale Hunter.

“He’s a power forward, he’s hard to play against, he plays heavy, and he brings that with skill and driving the net,” Hunter told Wheeler. “When he’s going, he’s hard to stop.”

For the Blackhawks fans out there who are still desperately searching for power forwards to help take some pressure off Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar into the future, the combination of Vanacker and Anton Frondell might be the two names to circle on your future rosters. And Vanacker might be ready to show the OHL (and, hopefully, Canada) that he’s a first round lottery ticket that’s ready to cash big.

“I think he’s the best power forward in the CHL.”

My @TheAthletic feature on Blackhawks first-rounder Marek Vanacker, who “hasn’t even scraped the surface.”https://t.co/mERJlgg98f pic.twitter.com/mHVUnQX6xm

— Scott Wheeler (@scottcwheeler) July 30, 2025

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...er-the-next-blackhawks-lottery-ticket-to-hit/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Respect the Dagger, Spellacy’s Strong Showcase, College UFAs, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

Happy MLB Trade Deadline Day! The NHL Trade Deadline is always a busy day for me, but the NHL’s version is nowhere close to the crazy MLB produces. Which I’m okay with as someone who covers the Blackhawks. I can sit back today and be a fan of the crazy moves that are going on all over baseball and hope the Cubs make the right trades to put them in position to win big in October — without having to write about it.

Big shoutout to Brett for his ongoing Blogothon. It’s a tradition unlike any other and, most importantly, makes a huge impact for some special kids.

• Canada put together a single roster to face Finland yesterday as well. Blackhawks prospect Sacha Boisvert was back on the left wing on the third line. Marek Vanacker wasn’t in the lineup. It was not a good game for Canada, who got thumped 6-3.

• After rolling with under-manned split squads in the first four games (two each for “White” and “Blue”), the USA put what appeared to be pretty close to their “A” group on the ice against Sweden at the World Junior Summer Showcase on Wednesday. Blackhawks prospect AJ Spellacy was at center on a big fourth line that had Will Horcoff on his left and Shane Vansaghi on his right. The USA lost 6-3.

• Spellacy didn’t impact the score sheet in the loss, but he continues to draw eyeballs for his play. Here’s what Steven Ellis at Daily Faceoff wrote about his performance on Wednesday:

Spellacy won’t wow you with his offense, but you’ll always love his work ethic. He shoved anyone who got near him, won a ton of battles and created havoc around the net. I could see Spellacy fitting in as a perfect fourth-liner for USA – he’s built like a tank, and you need guys like that to get aggressive and make noise. It’s been a good week for Spellacy overall.

2025 World Junior Summer Showcase: Berglund, Koivu among standouts on Day 4 https://t.co/lGzD0WWylF

— Daily Faceoff (@DailyFaceoff) July 30, 2025

• Good list here from PuckPedia of the former college players who will become UFAs on August 15, a list that includes soon-to-be former Blackhawks prospect Dominic James. Keep in mind the Blackhawks signed Cole Guttman this way back in 2022. One name that’s somewhat intriguing to me — not because he shares it with a superstar — is former Kings second-round pick (No. 51 overall in 2022) Jack Hughes. He played with Ryan Greene at Boston University. Not a big player (6-0, 170) but plays the game the way the Blackhawks like. He also played with Frank Nazar with the US Development Program team in 2020-21.

Over 25 drafted players that played NCAA will be UFA's on Aug 15 if they are not signed to NHL contracts.

Full list:https://t.co/BAeaKM4MhS pic.twitter.com/mya9jFvp30

— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) July 24, 2025

• This is a fun question and we’re obviously biased… but I’ll ask the most important question: has an opposing goaltender every complained about any of the other songs on this list? Because Roberto Luongo had some thoughts about “Chelsea Dagger” back in the day when he was in town.

• If they played his employer’s goal song at Da Beauty League, Sam Rinzel would have asked the DJ for “Chelsea Dagger” twice last night. Oliver Moore joined Wyatt Kaiser in the other game last night as well.

• We ultimately did not get arbitration drama from the Winnipeg Jets and defenseman Dylan Samberg. He signed a three-year deal with a $5.75M cap hit before heading to his hearing on Wednesday.

• A big media deal for the NHL was announced on Wednesday. The league signed a multi-year streaming deal with DAZN to broadcast games all over the globe (outside the US and Canada). Good for business — great for the game.

NHL announces multiyear streaming deal with DAZN https://t.co/IbxUC6OXUa

— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) July 30, 2025

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• One of the hot names in Cubs trade rumors took a top pitching prospect deep yesterday.

• The Bears new defensive coordinator said one of the cornerback spots is “up for grabs.”

• The NBA made waves on Wednesday, announcing there will be six (6) overseas games this coming season.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...se-college-ufas-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Fan Survey Thoughts, Best Value Contracts, Fantasy Rankings, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

I shared some thoughts on the annual Blackhawks fan survey at The Athletic yesterday that were specifically focused on the job of general manager Kyle Davidson. There were a few others questions/answers that were noteworthy as well, though.

• 50.2% of fans said the last few weeks of the regular season (when Rinzel, Moore, Greene joined the team) boosted their confidence “a little.” 22.4% said “a lot.” 23.0% said “not at all.”

• 44.0% of fans think Connor Bedard will score between 31-40 goals this season. 51.5% think he’ll be between 21-30.

• 41.4% said Bedard should be the next captain of the Blackhawks. I was surprised to see Alex Vlasic receiving 25.7% of the vote as well.

• The overwhelming majority of 2,544 votes (50%) said the next non-Bedard jersey they’ll buy is Frank Nazar.

• 83.9% of Blackhawks fans said the Blackhawks made the right choice when they picks Anton Frondell at No. 3 overall in the 2025 NHL Draft.

• Finally, 40% of fans said Duncan Keith‘s No. 2 should be the next jersey retired by the Blackhawks. 20% said Steve Larmer. Both should be up there.

The results of our annual Blackhawks fan survey are in. How many of you are on board with the rebuild? And how many of you won't be able to watch anyway?https://t.co/sU7DSuk2MA

— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) July 29, 2025

• Matt Larkin checked in with his top 300 player rankings for fantasy hockey in the 2025-26 season at Daily Faceoff. I share not only for those of us who participate in fantasy hockey leagues each year, but also because it’s interesting to consider that perspective on the Blackhawks’ players. Connor Bedard checked in at No. 45 on Larkin’s list. Here’s what he wrote about Bedard:

I still believe in the sublime talent – look how many years it took MacKinnon to take off – but the Chicago Blackhawks haven’t added much to help Bedard going into 2025-26. I hope to see him improve into a 40-40-80 type of player this year, but I can’t rank him above the guys who post those numbers in their sleep.

• FWIW: Macklin Celebrini was ranked No. 52 on Larkin’s list.

• Other Blackhawks to make his list: Spencer Knight (200), Teuvo Teräväinen (212), Ryan Donato (215), Frank Nazar (217), Sam Rinzel (224), Tyler Bertuzzi (276), André Burakovsky (282) and Anton Frondell (286). Alex Vlasic, Artyom Levshunov, Nick Foligno and Ilya Mikheyev were honorable mentions. As was Jonathan Toews.

• My thoughts: Nazar’s too low. And I would have ranked Mikheyev before Bertuzzi and probably included Levshunov over Frondell (who’s going to be in Sweden this season).

Matt Larkin’s fantasy hockey top 300 player rankings for 2025-26https://t.co/XNLiLMfBbP

— Daily Faceoff (@DailyFaceoff) July 29, 2025

• Dom Luszczyszyn at The Athletic ranked the ten best contracts in the NHL based on projected value over the duration of the deal. The Blackhawks do not receive a mention, which isn’t a huge shock because (as I wrote about earlier this week) so many players who should be the future of the franchise are still on rookie contracts. But I would love to know how his grading system views Alex Vlasic over the rest of his deal ($4.6M thru 2030).

NHL’s 10 best contracts, 2025 edition: Jack Hughes, Brandon Hagel and more https://t.co/Dz31i6d71m

— The Athletic NHL (@TheAthleticNHL) July 29, 2025

• Hey, it looks like Lukas Reichel spent some time on the ice with Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka. That’s neat!

• His USA “Blue” team has lost both games thus far at the World Junior Summer Showcase, but Steven Ellis at Daily Faceoff had some good things to say about AJ Spellacy‘s performance in the second game of the event.

Spellacy was in the running to make the team a year ago and he’ll definitely get some serious consideration this year, too. He’s a hard-hitting forward who loves to do whatever it takes to win a puck battle. He had a great chance near the end of the first period, and then did a good job of getting his stick into passing lanes to break up plays.

• Mike Morreale from NHL.com tweeted the lineups for Canada’s intrasquad scrimmage at the WJSS on Wednesday. And yes, I’m intrigued by both Sacha Boisvert on the wing (again) and Marek Vanacker at center.

• How about this assist from Boisvert on a goal from Michael Hage?

Michael Hage takes a feed and makes it 1-0. Big week for Montreal Canadiens prospects.

Porter Martone and Sacha Boisvert with the assists. #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/PR8kzvFOrE

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) July 29, 2025

• How about a goal from Vanacker (set up by Hage)? (clips from Steven Ellis on Twitter)

Michael Hage finds Marek Vanacker near the crease and Canada Red leads 2-0. #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/TUgIvRbbt7

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) July 29, 2025

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• Brett did a great job of keeping up with the tributes to Ryne Sandberg.

• How about some more updates from Bears training camp?

• So, how much do NBA execs think the Bulls should pay Josh Giddey?

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...antasy-rankings-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Connor Bedard Invited to Canada’s Olympic Camp

On Friday afternoon, Connor Bedard was one of 42 NHL players invited to Hockey Canada’s National Teams Orientation Camp, which will help determine the roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

The camp, which will take place between Aug. 26-28 in Calgary, will include 26 forwards, 13 defensemen and three goaltenders selected by a management group led by St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong.

This is going to be an incredibly competitive roster to try to make for Bedard. All 24 skaters who were on Canada’s roster for the 4 Nation’s Face-Off will be there. Bedard will be one of 13 players who have a gold medal from the World Junior Championship tournament. And, though Bedard played for Canada at the Men’s World Championship last year, he declined an invitation this year to focus on training for the upcoming NHL season.

This is also going to be a camp full of older players. Of the 26 forwards on the camp roster, only five were born after the year 2000. Bedard will be the second-youngest player in camp; Macklin Celebrini is the youngest. Noah Dobson and Thomas Harley are the only defensemen or goaltenders born after the turn of the century, meaning seven of the 42 players are 25 or younger.

Shoutout to Sidney Crosby, Drew Doughty and Brad Marchand for getting invites with birthdays in the 1980s.

Predictably, Bedard is the only Blackhawks skater invited to Canada’s camp this year.

9⃣2⃣ players from 's men's, women's and para hockey programs have earned invites to National Teams Orientation Camp in Calgary.

9⃣2⃣ athlètes de hockey masculin, de hockey féminin et de parahockey du iront au camp d’orientation des équipes nationales à Calgary.

— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) August 1, 2025

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blackhawks/2025/08/01/connor-bedard-invited-to-canadas-olympic-camp/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Dickinson’s Impact, Connor’s Canada Invite, Boisvert Impresses, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

Since it’s the first weekend in August and the Blackhawks haven’t done anything in weeks, let’s take a moment to look forward to training camp to start our Saturday morning. One of the players that we really haven’t talked about much/at all with regards to impacting the roster is Jason Dickinson, who is entering the final year of his contract.

Dickinson finished the 2023-24 season with a career high in goals (22) and points (35). He was placed 12th in Selke Trophy voting with a 2.3 Defensive Point Share — the same as Dallas’ Roope Hintz. I made the case after that season that Dickinson may have been the Blackhawks’ MVP in Connor Bedard‘s rookie season. He’s an exceptional defensive center who can also provide some offense while still taking care of his own end.

Unfortunately, his 2024-25 season was limited to 59 games, in which he scored seven goals with nine assists. Dickinson had a couple runs on the Blackhawks’ injured list, and they came at bad times when the team needed him.

While expecting/hoping for Dickinson to chip in 20+ goals again in the coming season may feel slightly aggressive — that’s his only season with more than nine — he should have better players on his wings this coming season than he has had in previous years. And his defensive impact is undeniable. A full season of a healthy Dickinson would be a huge lift for the Blackhawks.

• Let’s talk Olympics, eh? Connor Bedard got an official invite to Canada’s camp to start preparing for the 2026 Winter Olympics. He’s one of 42 skaters in camp; it’s going to be a hard roster to make. But he’s there, which is great experience for the 20-year-old.

Connor Bedard Invited to Canada’s Olympic Camphttps://t.co/KIcl8cbBcK

— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) August 1, 2025

• At the World Junior Summer Showcase, Canada showed up … kinda … and got their butts whipped 8-4 by Sweden. However, Blackhawks prospect Sacha Boisvert — who started on Canada’s top line — was credited with two assists and had a strong overall game. He was the only skater on Canada’s roster with more than a single point. Marek Vanacker did not register a point in the loss.

• Here’s Boisvert’s second assist of the game:

Michael Hage makes it 8-4 with a last-minute goal for the Canadiens.

Sacha Boisvert with another assist. #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/CGlKgduThA

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) August 1, 2025

• Keep in mind: Canada sent most of their returning WJC players home already, so this was a big opportunity for Boisvert and Vanacker to show well. Based on what I’ve heard and read about the Showcase, both Boisvert and Vanacker had a good week in Minnesota. We’ll see if either/both of them make the roster for the tournament after Christmas. Here’s what Steven Ellis wrote about Boisvert’s game for Daily Faceoff, where he had the Blackhawks’ prospect as a standout for Canada yesterday:

Boisvert had a solid two-point performance tonight. He is a skilled distributor who plays well under pressure and rarely gives the puck away. I liked his direct chemistry with Hage – it felt like they kept finding each other quite easily all game long. We’ll see if Boisvert makes it to the main team in a few months, but he has enough skill and hockey sense to be in the conversation.

• In the late afternoon game between the USA and Finland, Blackhawks prospect AJ Spellacy was in the lineup again. This time, he was on the wing on the fourth line — again, a big, physical line with Will Horcoff and Jack Murtagh. He did not register a point in a 6-3 loss.

• Frank Seravalli reported yesterday that the LA Kings and RFA forward Alex Laferriere agreed on a three-year deal that has a $4.1M cap hit.

• And then what happened?

The Seattle Kraken mascot almost got attacked by a bear pic.twitter.com/BCn8tukMpQ

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) August 1, 2025

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• The Cubs didn’t get the impact starter they wanted/needed, but they did improve more than fans might think.

• Holy **** did you see what Micah Parsons posted yesterday?

• It sounds like Ayo Dosunmu isn’t getting traded (for now).

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...svert-impresses-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Blackhawks Takeaways from the Cubs’ Disappointing Trade Deadline

Yesterday, there was a lot of angst in our midst as the MLB Trade Deadline came and went without the Cubs making the big move everyone wanted. There are some issues that cropped up that are worth discussing from a Blackhawks perspective as the hockey team in town moves into a new phase of its building process.

I tweeted my initial thoughts on the Cubs’ activity after the deadline yesterday (which seems to have picked up a little traction on that platform overnight). Overall, I think the Cubs were able to check probably three of the four boxes they needed to get done before the deadline. The problem: the biggest need went unfulfilled. And that’s not good enough.

Ken Rosenthal spoke on behalf of every fan of every team in every sport when he said these words:

Ken Rosenthal reacts to the MLB Trade Deadline.

"The goal of every team should be to win the World Series. And the teams that didn't go all out, that's the question I have for them, the contenders."

"Are you trying to win the World Series?"pic.twitter.com/cJ85R9pvG3

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 1, 2025

It’s almost a Herm Edwards level “you play to win the game” rant. And it’s spot on.

But here’s the rock and the hard place in the conversation. When Jed Hoyer spoke with the media yesterday, his/the Cubs’ rationale for not making the big move for a starting pitcher was that the market was inefficient. The prices were too high. And they want to have organizational depth to sustain winning.

Okay… I can buy that. But only so far. And that’s where things will eventually get complicated for the Blackhawks’ front office.

When I write about the Blackhawks’ current stage of the rebuild process and about how I agree with most of what Kyle Davidson has done (in theory, not always in practice — cough, TJ Brodie, cough), there are folks here and on our social channels who will call me out for being a Davidson apologist.

To a point, I can agree with and appreciate that sentiment. I do support the direction the Blackhawks are going; maybe not the how when it comes to moving on from a couple franchise icons, but I understand the why. And, at this point in the process, the Blackhawks staying on plan is commendable.

But there’s going to come a time when draft and develop is going to be ready for the big move.

The Blackhawks organizational depth tells us already that there is a surplus in some areas — right now, it’s on the blue line — and the NHL isn’t going to magically allow the Hawks to dress 21 guys just because they have too many guys to sit/send to Rockford.

Which means Davidson and Co. are going to have to make some hard choices with young players they’ve invested time and energy in developing at some point. And that isn’t easy.

The Cubs held the line with the top shelf of their pipeline because their rationale is they want to be able to sustain the winning they’re enjoying right now. Okay, fine. But the problem with hoarding prospects is they can’t — and won’t — all turn into stars at the highest level. And, as the saying goes, parades are better than prospects.

Major League Baseball teams can’t trade their draft picks, so there are some elements of trades that can be made in other sports that doesn’t fully translate. The Blackhawks have made moves with draft capital in the past that have worked out far better than expected. Lots of Blackhawks fans were not happy when the Hawks traded picks in the second and third rounds of the 2013 NHL Draft for Johnny Oduya. We can agree now that was a smart deal that paid big dividends.

The problem with having good prospects is your internal evaluation of the pipeline needs to be good. And your pro scouts need to do a good job of identifying the right targets for when someone calls about one of your prospects. And, most importantly, the organization needs to be able to gauge when it’s time to go for it — and what cost they’re willing to pay to push all of their chips in.

When the Cubs traded Gleyber Torres to get Aroldis Chapman in 2016, it worked. Chapman became a big part of the bullpen that ended the Cubs’ World Series nightmare. Torres went on to have a very good career; he was an all-star in Detroit this season. But, again, parades are better than prospects.

The flipside of that argument is when you seemingly overpay for the wrong guy(s) and it doesn’t work out. Remember when the Blackhawks traded Phillip Danault to the Canadiens for for Tomas Fleischmann and Dale Weise? I’m sorry if that’s a triggering event for lots of Blackhawks fans, but it happened. And it backfired like an ’87 Camaro.

Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

A lot of Blackhawks fans are clamoring for the team to make a big swing to bring in a bona fide star to ride shotgun with Connor Bedard and help him take his game to another level. And I’m totally on board with the Blackhawks looking to add the right player if that opportunity presents itself. But it takes two organizations to make a trade / it takes a free agent to want to sign with the Blackhawks in the stage of the rebuild to a contract that makes sense to all parties. And, at this point, that hasn’t been an option (even if the Blackhawks made a significant push for Jake Guentzel last summer).

The Cubs went all-in to get Kyle Tucker in the offseason. And, again, they made four trades that will help the roster depth down the stretch and into October. But, if they were willing to move Cam Smith — easily the best bat in the system at the time — to get Tucker, nobody should have been “untouchable” at this point. You can’t push most of your chips in at the table and then check when the next card comes on the flop.

The Blackhawks aren’t there yet. But the time is coming. We all can’t wait for the day to arrive when the Blackhawks are approaching a trade deadline with as much energy and excitement for the team to potentially add as the Cubs had this summer.

Someone, at some point, is going to call the Blackhawks and ask about certain prospects. Davidson and his staff are going to have to have a strong idea of the value of their prospects, be confident in projecting them to the NHL, and be able to calculate if the risk is worth the reward to go for it.

As Kenny Rogers once told us, you’ve gotta know when to hold ’em and know when to fold ’em. The Blackhawks biggest decisions will come. And the trajectory of the rebuild might hang in the balance.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...s-from-the-cubs-disappointing-trade-deadline/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

WJ Summer Showcase Ends, Vanacker, Boisvert, Spellacy, HOF Debate, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

The World Junior Summer Showcase came to a close on Saturday afternoon with two final games. The last event on the schedule for the event could have included all three Blackhawks prospects who were in attendance. Unfortunately, it did not. But that doesn’t take away from a strong week for all three players.

The USA played Canada in the final game for both teams on Saturday afternoon. Blackhawks prospects Sacha Boisvert and Marek Vanacker dressed for Canada in the game. Boisvert was once again on the left wing on Canada’s top line with Cole Reschny and Michael Hage. That’s been arguably the best line for Canada in the camp — a camp that’s been pretty underwhelming (maybe disappointing) for Canada.

Vanacker was listed at the 13th forward after being a late addition, replacing Cayden Lindstrom after the initial roster reported was published. And nobody took advantage of their opportunity for one last look from the decision makers as much as he did. Vanacker scored the first goal of the game for Canada and picked up an assist on the last goal — from his Brantford teammate Jake O’Brien — in a 6-2 win for Canada. Here’s what Steven Ellis wrote about Vanacker’s performance for Daily Faceoff on Saturday:

Vanacker had a goal and an assist today – and both came after some excellent work to gain possession of the puck. Like [Malcolm] Spence, I could see Vanacker in the running for a bottom-line role. He mostly played deep in Canada’s lineup, but that’s because he’ll grind you down until there’s nothing left. What a week for the underrated forward.

Here’s Vanacker’s goal:

Marek Vanacker scores off a bit of a scramble around the American net.

1-0 Canada. #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/wFVaCHbEYs

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) August 2, 2025

And here’s Vanacker’s assist:

It's almost like these two know each other.

Marek Vanacker to Jake O'Brien. 6-2 Canada. #WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/QJ3AP3tfgc

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) August 2, 2025

• Unfortunately, AJ Spellacy didn’t get run in the last game of the Showcase after having a good camp in a depth role. I think Spellacy has a decent shot of making the US roster for the World Juniors. He was one of the final cuts for a veteran US team that won the event last year and stood out again this summer.

• It looks like Blackhawks prospects John Mustard and Julius Sumpf could have a pretty big addition to their roster at Providence this coming season. Cam Robinson reported on Saturday that Roger McQueen, the tenth overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft by Anaheim, is headed to join the Friars.

According to sources, @eliteprospects can confirm that Roger McQueen will commit to Providence College for the 2025-26 season.

More details below: https://t.co/U5H6nSvsb8 pic.twitter.com/JN2oCTl3Pa

— Cam Robinson (@Hockey_Robinson) August 2, 2025

• You know I have an axe to grind when it comes to how the Blackhawks are represented in the Hockey Hall of Fame. So I was interested to see what Peter Baugh at The Athletic had to say when he put active NHL players into tiers of likelihood to be inducted into the Hall. He had Patrick Kane as a no-brainer. Okay, good. But Jonathan Toews, who is once again active with his contract in Winnipeg, was in “Tier 1.5 — Almost there — if not already a lock.” Respectfully, Mr. Baugh, no. Toews is a no-brainer lock. Like Duncan Keith this year, Kane and Toews will go in as soon as they’re eligible.

• The Toronto Maple Leafs and Nick Robertson got a deal done, so there will officially be zero arbitration hearings in the NHL this summer. Robertson agreed to a one-year deal with a $1.825M cap hit.

• The event itself wasn’t what Major League Baseball, the fans or Fox wanted (hours and hours of rain), but the look of a baseball diamond on the infield at Bristol Motor Speedway was pretty cool. And it sounds like the NHL was there taking notes for a potential future hockey game.

After the MLB Speedway Classic, Bristol Motor Speedway wants to host an NHL game at the track

(via @A_S12) pic.twitter.com/hOKx7nMjeK

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) August 2, 2025

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• If the Bears wanted to make a trade for Micah Parsons, what would it potentially cost?

• Luka Doncic signed a massive contract with the Lakers.

• Even if they didn’t win the game, the Cubs did a terrific job honoring Ryne Sandberg again on Saturday.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...lacy-hof-debate-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Blogathon Props, History Lessons, Bad Contracts, WJ Summer Showcase Games, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

Welcome to August, Blackhawks fans! While it’s not September — which brings us both hockey and a mandated reason to listen to Earth, Wind & Fire — we’re one step closer to hockey season, which is nice. And there will be Bears football this month, so we’ve got that going for us, which is nice.

Before we jump into some hockey stuff, a standing ovation for Brett for staying awake and blogging for 40 consecutive hours in this year’s Blogathon. This morning, his efforts have raised more than $33,000 for Make-A-Wish, which is amazing.

Why We Do the Blogathon to Support Make-A-Wishhttps://t.co/efX0Hj4lwo

— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) July 31, 2025

• Now, about the whole MLB trade deadline… I’m going to have more thoughts on that later today. My Ted Talk is in progress… stay tuned.

The Cubs came into this week with a case to be considered the best team in the NL

The Mets, Phillies, Padres have all sprinted past them in the past 48 hours. The Dodgers aren’t going anywhere.

In the ONE year of control they got of Kyle Tucker, that’s not good enough

— Tab Bamford (@The1Tab) July 31, 2025

• Now that we’re in August, officially the most deadest of all the months from a hockey perspective, I’m going to spend some time looking back at Blackhawks history with the organ-I-zation celebrating its centennial this coming season. If there’s anything you’d like to read about or discuss, please let me know in the comments (or fire off an email to me). This morning I wrote about some of the Blackhawks’ rookie records the next wave of kids will be chasing.

Blackhawks History: Franchise Rookie Recordshttps://t.co/comWdkkLwe

— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) August 1, 2025

• NHL.com has been doing their offseason resets for all 32 teams and got to the Winnipeg Jets. They have Jonathan Toews penciled in at the second-line center in the projected lineup. The Jets had a magnificent regular season last year, but had a few interesting losses in free agency — specifically Nikolaj Ehlers — and Adam Lowry’s return to the lineup is TBD because of injury.

• There were no games at the World Junior Summer Showcase yesterday. Today we’ll get Canada vs. Sweden at 1 PM CT and the USA vs. Finland at 4:30 PM CT. Canada sent a few players home on Thursday as well. There are two more days of games left in the Showcase.

Canada also sent its 8 returning players home:
Jack Ivankovic (NSH)
Carter George (LAK)
Sam Dickinson (SJS)
Matthew Schaefer (NYI)
Gavin McKenna
Berkly Catton (SEA)
Porter Martone (PHI)
Cole Beaudoin (UTA)

— Adam Kimelman (@NHLAdamK) July 31, 2025

• Dom Luszczyszyn at The Athletic broke down his ten worst contracts in the NHL. No longer on the list: Seth Jones. In fact, there isn’t a Blackhawks contract even in the honorable mentions; I was at least slightly surprised Tyler Bertuzzi wasn’t in the honorable mentions.

• The Buffalo Sabres announced they signed goaltender Devon Levi to a two-year contract with a $812,500 AAV.

• There is one remaining arbitration case in the league. We’ll see if the Leafs and Nick Robertson’s camp can work something out before Sunday.

There is one arbitration case remaining, set for Sunday

Nick Robertson (TOR)

Team: $1.2M

Player: $2.25M

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) August 1, 2025

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• So… how did Jed Hoyer explain the Cubs not making a move for a starting pitcher?

• A really good wide receiver reportedly requested to be traded yesterday.

• Two Bulls made the NBA’s top 50 handles list.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...-showcase-games-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

One and Done, Roster Projections (NHL and USA), Remaining RFAs, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

A couple random nuggets from Blackhawks history to start out first full week of August: in the history of the organ-I-zation, 35 skaters have appeared in exactly one game. Only two — Jim McBurney and Michael Paliotta — registered a point in their single appearance. McBurney had one assist (on a Sid Abel goal) in a 4-2 win over the Maple Leafs on Feb. 7, 1953. Paliotta, a third-round pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, picked up his one assist (on a Patrick Sharp goal) in 3-2 loss at the Colorado Avalanche on April 11, 2015.

In the history of the Blackhawks, 15 goalies have appeared in exactly one game, a list that includes such legends as Anton Khudobin, Carter Hutton and, yes, Scott Foster. The only netminder to earn a win in his only appearance for the Blackhawks is Bill Dickie, who got a 4-3 decision at the Montreal Forum against the Canadiens on Feb. 5, 1942.

• In the history of the Blackhawks, 19 players have worn the jersey number 1. It was retired for Glenn Hall — on the same night as Tony Esposito’s No. 35 — on Nov. 20, 1988. However, since Hall retired, eight other Blackhawks wore No. 1 before it was retired. The last to wear it: Ed Belfour, during the same 1988-89 season that it was retired. The Eagle changed numbers when it was placed in the rafters. Fun write-up on Belfour’s number history from my guy Sal Barry at PuckJunk here.

• Ben Pope over that the Chicago Sun-Times took a run at a lineup for the Blackhawks to start the regular season. It’s quite different from the lines and pairs I threw out there almost a full month ago. He does not have Sam Lafferty, Lukas Reichel or Oliver Moore in his forward lines. And he does not have Kevin Korchinski or Nolan Allan among the six defensemen making up his three pairs. Again, things will be a work-in-progress until the regular season roster is officially set, but a fun lineup to consider.

The Blackhawks are going to be a young team this season, especially on defense.

New story projecting what the lines and pairings might look like come Opening Night: https://t.co/tQiE0Sz5cQ

— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) August 3, 2025

• While we’re on the subject of projecting rosters, Chris Peters did just that for the USA roster that will try to defend their championship(s) at the World Juniors this winter. After the World Junior Summer Showcase in Minnesota over the past week, there was an opportunity to see some guys for the US and Canada who might have been fighting for roster spots either show well or not necessarily help their case.

• The good news for Blackhawks fans is Peters thinks the US will keep together a fourth line that was pretty good at the Showcase this past week. That line was Blackhawks prospect AJ Spellacy with Shane Vansaghi and Will Horcoff — a big, physical line with Spellacy skating with a couple Big Ten guys. I like it. Hopefully the USA decision makers will see it the same way.

There is a long way to go to the World Juniors, but I thought the WJSS left more questions than answers for Team USA. Here's my projected 2026 WJC roster based on WJSS and body of work to date: https://t.co/adbNEoz8DQ

— Chris Peters (@chrismpeters) August 3, 2025

• There are nine remaining restricted free agents in the NHL, including Blackhawks defenseman Wyatt Kaiser. Now that the calendar has flipped to August, it’s starting to get close enough to training camps opening that something has to give. While I’m not saying we’re going to have a flurry of trades this week, I do expect there to be some action around the league this month as teams continue to sort out their rosters.

• There are a couple forwards on the list — Mason McTavish and Alexander Holtz — who I would at least check in with at some point if I was in the Blackhawks’ front office. McTavish would cost more than Holtz, who might not be in the long-term plans in Vegas after getting traded out of Jersey.

With all the NHL’s arbitration-eligible players reaching resolution with prior to a hearing, only nine RFA cases remain unsolved heading into August.@lukefoxjukebox takes a look at the names to watch in the coming weeks. https://t.co/NQx6yg7ujs

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) August 4, 2025

• Happy birthday wishes today to Ilya Sorokin and the late, great Maurice “Rocket” Richard.

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• The Cubs gave up a lead in the top of the ninth yesterday. Then Justin Turner WALKED IT OFF.

Hang it in the Louvre. #CubsWin pic.twitter.com/9PYRJzofAP

— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 3, 2025

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...-remaining-rfas-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Blackhawks Hall of Fame Voting, Engagement “Exceeding Expectations”

Blackhawks fans have been begging for a way to formally recognize players who made terrific contributions in the history of the organ-I-zation for years. The first time I advocated for the Blackhawks to create a team Hall of Fame here was back in September of 2022. Less than one month later, Danny Wirtz confirmed that a Blackhawks Hall of Fame was indeed in the works.

Fast forward three years and the Blackhawks Hall of Fame is now just months from becoming a reality.

At the end of this week, voting will close for the first induction class for the Chicago Blackhawks Hall of Fame. With ballots that split players into pre-2000 and post-2000, fans and media members have been tasked with identifying the first two players who will be recognized during the coming season

I spoke with Blackhawks President of Business Operations Jamie Faulkner about the Blackhawks Hall of Fame launching in the coming year. Recognizing 100 years of the franchise during the Centennial Season made this a logical time to do something formal. Even with the excitement around this being the 100th anniversary of the franchise, Faulkner said the engagement and voting has “far exceeded our expectations.”

She also said the goal isn’t for this season to be a stand along experience for the fans or Blackhawks alumni.

“Our goal, even for the Centennial Season, is not just to bring back and celebrate our alumni for this year and connect them with our fans, but it’s also to connect them with each other,” Faulkner said. “And … the goal is that this is the first of many years now going forward where we continue to bring our alumni back both to connect with each other and with our fans. So, this isn’t intended to be a one-time thing.”

The Blackhawks hope the Centennial Season is just the starting point to have more alumni around the team, the fans and each other for years to come.

Faulkner told me the Blackhawks spent a lot of time working on options for the Heritage and Modern Era ballots. The goal was to have two ballots that don’t have to change when fans vote into the future. The Modern Era ballot can and will continue to evolve as the future of the Blackhawks continues to roll forward. The Heritage Era ballot will include some new names each year as players get voted in. But the experience of voting should stay consistent into the future.

What About Retiring More Numbers?​

We’ve talked about this before, but the Blackhawks deciding to not retire any numbers during their Centennial Season was done in part because of the inaugural Hall of Fame class being inducted. I asked Faulkner if players being voted into the Blackhawks Hall of Fame could impact the potential for their number to be retired in the future.

She said yes.

While every player who is ultimately voted into the Blackhawks Hall of Fame won’t have their number retired by the organization, being inducted certainly will give the Blackhawks an opportunity to once again consider the players’ resume and how it aligns with the criteria they have established for retiring a number in the future.

cough… #Retire28 … cough

Faulkner shared that they hope to make an announcement about when the physical Hall of Fame space in the new expansion at Fifth Third Arena will open and a fan event to celebrate the first induction class closer to the start of the 2025-26 regular season. And that an induction ceremony will likely take place during the second half of the season.

Also Read​

How I Voted for the Blackhawks Hall of Fame Inaugural Induction Class

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...ame-voting-engagement-exceeding-expectations/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Blackhawks Centennial Promotional Schedule is Out! (Bobbleheads Galore!!)

On Tuesday, the Blackhawks announced the promotional schedule for their Centennial Celebration throughout the 2025-26 regular season. And, after a few years without them, I’m thrilled to share that there will be BOBBLEHEADS this year!!

According to Blackhawks President of Business Operations Jamie Faulkner, the organization started planning for this celebratory season three years ago. There was coordination with the NHL as well as the Detroit Red Wings and New York Rangers, the other two Original Six teams marking their 100th birthday this season, to make sure there were unique elements to all three teams while also incorporating the history of the league that each franchise represents.

“Our starting point really was we started asking ourselves a bunch of questions,” Faulkner said. “What do we want to celebrate in this a hundred years? What do our fans want us to celebrate? What do our alumni want us to celebrate and what stories do we want to tell?”

better start brushing up on your history

promo schedule ➡︎ https://t.co/HlBI4GJrxo pic.twitter.com/7Eer9uHxZS

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) August 5, 2025

There will be 17 games this coming season — five in the Atrium and 12 at the doors anywhere at the United Center — where fans will be able to pick up a giveaway. That’s almost half of the home slate. Faulkner said we will not see any white jerseys at home, however. That’s a decision that’s made by general managers apparently, and with some coordination with the opposing team but the Blackhawks are going to stick with their Centennial design on the red home sweaters this season.

The Blackhawks have 100 years of history to celebrate. So let’s talk about some pretty exciting promotions the Blackhawks have on the books for this year.

Bobbleheads!​

Here’s the schedule of Blackhawks bobbleheads (available to the first 8,000 fans entering the United Center) for the coming season:

• Oct. 17 vs. Vancouver — Stan Mikita
• Nov. 15 vs. Toronto — Tony Esposito
• Nov. 23 vs. Colorado — Denis Savard
• Dec. 13 vs. Detroit — Chris Chelios
• Jan. 4 vs. Vegas — Brent Seabrook
• Jan. 17 vs. Boston — Duncan Keith
• March 6 vs. Vancouver — Tommy Hawk

Player Pins​

The first 10,000 fans entering the United Center on these dates will get a player pin:

• Oct. 19 vs. Anaheim — Spencer Knight
• Nov. 30 vs. Anaheim — Alex Vlasic
• March 22 vs. Nashville — Frank Nazar

Other Celebrations​

• Friday Night Hockey — the Blackhawks will host five (5) games on Friday nights this season, including Black Friday. There will be a TBA giveaways every Friday night to the first 2,000 fans entering the United Center Atrium. Modelo is the presenting sponsor of Friday Night Hockey this season.

Here are the dates the Blackhawks will celebrate specific nights this year:

• Military Appreciation Night — Nov. 18 vs. Calgary
• Native American Heritage Night — Nov. 20 vs. Seattle
• Hockey Fights Cancer Night — Jan. 25 vs. Florida (beanie for the first 10,000 fans)
• Pride Night — Feb. 2 vs. San Jose
• St. Patrick’s Day — March 17 vs. Minnesota

And, as a reminder, there will be free goosebumps (and probably tears) for everyone at the United Center and viewing the game at home when Jonathan Toews and the Winnipeg Jets come to Chicago for the first time on Jan. 19.

Blackhawks Hall of Fame​

This is the final week to vote for the first ever induction class into the Chicago Blackhawks Hall of Fame. Voting officially closes on Friday, Aug. 8 at 11:59 PM.

The Blackhawks have not yet officially announced a date for announcing the elected members from the Modern Era and Heritage ballots.

Faulkner shared with me that they hope to make an announcement of the elected members closer to the start of the regular season, and hope to be able to announce the opening of the physical Hall of Fame space at Fifth Third Arena around that time as well.

Fan engagement and voting for the Blackhawks Hall of Fame has “far exceeded” the organizations expectations going into the process.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...omotional-schedule-is-out-bobbleheads-galore/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Frondell’s Decision, Schaefer Signs, NHL26 Cover, Projecting Canada’s WJC Roster, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

In yesterday’s bullets I shared Chris Peters’ projection for the USA roster at the World Junior Championship this winter with the World Junior Summer Showcase in the rearview mirror. The good news: he had AJ Spellacy on his forward lines.

The decisions could be tougher for Canada’s coaches, with a number of returning players and underagers ready to go (Gavin McKenna and Keaton Verhoeff, specifically). The Blackhawks had two prospects in their camp, and both Sacha Boisvert and Marek Vanacker had good camps by most accounts. Steven Ellis at Daily Faceoff put together his projected roster for Canada and had just one of them, Boisvert, making the cut. He has Boisvert as an extra forward, and Vanacker just not quite making the roster.

The good news is all three made a strong case to be there. And all three are healthy and looking forward to big seasons in their respective development. I hope the Hawks have at least two players heading to Minnesota after Christmas for the tournament.

The World Junior Summer Showcase is in the rearview mirror.

So here's my latest prediction for Canada's #WorldJuniors roster:https://t.co/xWRDprmRa6

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) August 4, 2025

• The Blackhawks will release their promotional schedule for their centennial season today. I’ve seen it. Y’all are gonna be very happy — and broke from buying tickets. I’ll have more details this morning so stay tuned.

• Anton Frondell is going to play this season in Sweden. And he won’t be at the Blackhawks’ training camp in September. Scott Powers at The Athletic shared a terrific piece on Monday detailing the decisions that went into Frondell being in Sweden again this year, including him not playing for Sweden at the World Junior Summer Showcase last week (he’ll still play for his country). Apparently Frondell spoke with Djurgården about staying there all the way back in October — before his pre-draft season got rolling.

• This quote from Djurgården general manager Niklas Wikegård makes the entire plan make a lot more sense:

“If we hadn’t talked to the junior team national coach, he would be with the junior national team now and then he would go to the camp with Chicago and then go back to us, then in November go to another camp with the international team and then the junior World Championship and so on and so on,” Wikegård said. “So that’s going to be like a wasted season for a guy like that. So we talked to his agent and Chicago too — I think they understand it — that this guy, this type of player in this age, he needs to go to the rink, put his physical clothes on, go to the gym, put his hockey gear on, practice day after day after day after day, play games.

“That’s going to be an incredibly important season for this guy, and that’s going to be extremely important for him in the coming 10 to 15 years.”

Why Blackhawks first-round pick Anton Frondell plans to stay in Sweden this season https://t.co/QxdlAdvUK6

— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) August 4, 2025

• The New York Islanders didn’t wait until Matthew Schaefer turned 18 to get his entry-level contract handled. They announced the No. 1 overall pick from the 2025 NHL Draft signed his ELC on Monday evening; he doesn’t turn 18 until Sept. 5. And how the Islanders made the deal official was pretty special, too.

• Good read here on the United States putting together a roster that wants to win gold at the Winter Olympics this coming February. I’ll be fascinated with the depth of available players to see if the strong performances from Blackhawks Frank Nazar and Alex Vlasic at the World Championship this summer helps their case to be part of the roster in Italy. Nazar led the US offensively in the tournament (playing the wing primarily).

United States GM Guerin says ‘we have to win’ at 2026 Olympicshttps://t.co/0eNYpvKgWa

— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) August 4, 2025

• Tony Androckitis broke the news on Monday morning that former Blackhawks interim and assistant coach Derek King is moving on to be the head coach of the Hershey Bears. He’ll replace Todd Nelson, who moved up to an assistant coach role with the Pittsburgh Penguins this summer.

• We’ve got a cover athlete for NHL26. Matthew Tkachuk, with the Stanley Cup above his head, will grace the game’s front. We’ll see more about the cover tomorrow!

He’s a tone-setter, a leader, and now a cover star.

Matthew Tkachuk is the face of #NHL26.

See the full reveal August 6th: https://t.co/gsLeVReKbu pic.twitter.com/S24tmSe834

— NHL (@NHL) August 4, 2025

MORE FROM BLEACHER NATION: Go Ad Free | Subscribe to the BN Newsletter

• Justin Turner’s walk-off home run was a big moment for the Cubs. He’s done quite well in his role.

• Ben Johnson isn’t happy with the lack of progress from the Bears’ offense.

• De’Aaron Fox got paid by the Spurs on Monday.

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...ter-nhl26-cover-and-other-blackhawks-bullets/

 

[Chicago Blackhawks]

Forecasting the Future: Are the Blackhawks Getting Short-Changed?

Paul Pidutti (aka AdjustedHockey) does some terrific work diving deep into the weeds, both historically and looking forward. His latest work at Daily Faceoff is projecting the top 30 players in the NHL in the year 2030. There are no age restrictions on the list, so there are a few guys in their mid-30s by the time these rankings are supposed to be playing out. I won’t disagree with the recipe that still has Connor McDavid at No. 1 on the list.

Pidutti has Blackhawks center Connor Bedard ranked sixth in the entire league. Pidutti has John Tavares as the comp for Bedard’s trajectory. San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini is ranked third. His comp for Celebrini’s trajectory: Jonathan Toews.

They’re joined by projected 2026 No. 1 overall pick Gavin McKenna as the youngest players in the top ten overall. Bedard is not joined by another Blackhawks player on the list, however.

Here’s what Pidutti wrote about Bedard:

Two years ago, this exercise would have almost certainly had Bedard at #1. It’s hardly a problem that a player that just turned 20 in July might not be the surefire best player on Earth by his 25th birthday. Tavares, to which his trajectory matches, was an MVP finalist at age 22 and 24. So, there is a lot of room for dominant, impactful play on Bedard’s timeline. As he and the young core around him marinate, the recognition will follow. I’m still betting on a future Hart Trophy for Bedard.

I can appreciate not over-hyping Frank Nazar in context like this after half of one season. But, if he continues to do that, I could argue he’ll be up there somewhere. Similarly, I think we might bookmark this one and look back in five years and say “man… what a swing and a miss excluding Sam Rinzel (and maybe Artyom Levshunov, too).” Neither Blackhawks defensemen received even an honorable mention.

I could also see a scenario where, if the Blackhawks’ young collection of defensemen take off in the next couple years, Spencer Knight is in the mix for a list like this by 2030. Knight got an honorable mention at least. He’ll still be 29 at the start of the 2030-31 season.

However, while I can appreciate the calculus that kept a few Blackhawks off the list because of small sample sizes at the NHL level, that kinda sorta gets thrown out when Pidutti includes Minnesota defenseman Zeev Buium — who has four career NHL appearances (all playoff games) on the back of his hockey cards right now.

The other unfortunate reality looking forward at these rankings is the number of Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild who are mentioned. With four each, they’re the leaders on this list.

As always, I love when Pidutti puts lists together like this because it’s marvelous for offseason conversation and angry dialogue over who got left off and who doesn’t deserve a spot.

Which Blackhawks do you think should have been on there? And which Blackhawks do you think could emerge as guys who are in this conversation in five years? Let us know in the comments!

Source: https://www.bleachernation.com/blac...ure-are-the-blackhawks-getting-short-changed/