Early projection Blackhawks’ 2024-25 Opening Night lineup after busy Day 1 of NHL free agency originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Presented by Nationwide Insurance Agent Jeff Vukovich
The Chicago Blackhawks are ready to take the next step in the rebuild, and Monday’s moves on Day 1 of NHL free agency backed up just how serious GM Kyle Davidson was about surrounding his younger players with more talent to help accomplish that.
The Blackhawks signed a pair of top-six forwards in Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen, a couple of depth forwards in three-time Stanley Cup champion Pat Maroon and winger Craig Smith, a three-time Stanley Cup champion defenseman who can still log top-four minutes in Alec Martinez, and a reliable backup goaltender in Laurent Brossoit. They also acquired middle-six winger Ilya Mikheyev a few days prior in a trade with Vancouver.
Chicago’s roster on paper has significantly improved, and it’s going to make for a competitive training camp. So let’s get right to it.
Here’s an early Opening Night roster projection for the Blackhawks in 2024-25:
Forwards
Tyler Bertuzzi — Connor Bedard — Philipp Kurashev
Taylor Hall — Andreas Athanasiou — Teuvo Teravainen
Lukas Reichel — Jason Dickinson — Ilya Mikheyev
Nick Foligno — Ryan Donato — Pat Maroon
Extras: Joey Anderson, Craig Smith
Defensemen
Alex Vlasic — Seth Jones
Kevin Korchinski — Alec Martinez
Wyatt Kaiser — Connor Murphy
Extras: Isaak Phillips
Goaltenders:
Petr Mrazek
Laurent Brossoit
Thoughts
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Bertuzzi will almost certainly start the season on Bedard’s line. He’s the exact kind of player you want your young franchise cornerstone to play with. Someone who’s an agitator, goes to the dirty areas, can finish around the net, and has the offensive skillset and potential to score 30 goals and 60 points.
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Teravainen will probably find his way on Bedard’s line at some point — perhaps even on the power play — but no reason to separate Bedard and Kurashev after they developed strong chemistry together. Makes more sense to slot Teravainen into the second line and help Hall find his form again after he missed almost all of last season with an ACL injury.
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I wouldn’t be surprised if Dickinson starts on the second line, but he’s better suited on the third, where he can be in more of a checking role. I put Athanasiou at center on the second because it seems like Hall and Teravainen would benefit from playing with a speed-type player up the middle.
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Reichel is going to have his work cut out for him. Hard to imagine him starting inside the top-six with all the additions. It’s more likely he’ll be in a bottom-six role and be forced to earn his way up the lineup, assuming he doesn’t start in Rockford. The fourth line doesn’t seem like it would be putting him in the best position to succeed, so the third line is a fair compromise where he can play with Dickinson and newcomer Mikheyev and prove himself.
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Not a lot of footspeed on the fourth line with Donato, Foligno and Maroon but it’s a much better and more experienced fourth line than last season. Smith is the ideal candidate to be the 13th forward along with Anderson, who could start the season in Rockford if there isn’t room for him on the NHL roster and be one of the first forward call-ups if/when there’s a spot that opens due to injury.
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I expect Frank Nazar and Landon Slaggert to start the season in Rockford, given how crowded the roster looks at this point. Also, they could use a little bit of grooming as they get acclimated to the grind of an 82-game season, both physically and mentally. The NHL taste they got last season gives them something to work on specifically.
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On defense, Vlasic and Jones work best when they’re together. I wouldn’t touch that pairing.
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I don’t think you sign Martinez to a $4 million cap hit if the goal is to stash him on the third pairing. He averaged 19:02 of ice time last season when healthy, so pairing him with a younger defenseman like Korchinski makes the most sense. Martinez has no problem playing the right side.
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I should also say this: Korchinski, at times, looked like he could have used some AHL time last season but obviously he wasn’t eligible to play there. Next season, he will be allowed to. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Blackhawks utilized that option if he gets off to a tough start and it’s beneficial for him to hone his game in Rockford.
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Kaiser has taken impressive strides and feels ready to be a full-time NHL player. Matching him with Murphy, who’s a right-handed shot, isn’t a bad third pairing.
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I imagine the Blackhawks would like to add one or two more depth defensemen for insurance reasons. I don’t think you want a young blue liner like Phillips to be the seventh guy every night.
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At the goaltending position, Mrazek is the sure-fire No. 1. He kept the Blackhawks in it every night last season. Securing a reliable backup in Brossoit for the next two years was an important move to help mask the mistakes from some of their younger players as they figure out the NHL and the Blackhawks look to take the next step in their rebuild.
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That brings us to Söderblom. The Blackhawks like his upside, but they had no choice but to seek an upgrade at the position. They just couldn’t roll it back with the same tandem. Söderblom will have to re-prove himself and try to recapture the form he had in Rockford.
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