The Chicago Blackhawks have an important season ahead of them. The organization has committed to building through the draft, and a plethora of draft picks are NHL-ready, or on the cusp of being NHL-ready. Many young players will have a chance to make their mark this season; some becoming everyday players while many others will make their NHL debuts. Meanwhile, a small group of veterans will be tasked with helping the youngsters find their way.
In this series headed into the 2025-26 campaign, we’ll preview each player projected to make the roster, and what their role will be with the team. Today we highlight Blackhawks’ captain Nick Foligno.
Foligno by the Numbers
Drafted: 28th Overall (1st Round) in 2006 by the Ottawa Senators
Position: Left Wing (shoots left)
Height/Weight: 6-foot-0, 210 pounds
Age/Birthdate: 37 years old (10/31/1987)
Country: United States
2024-25 Stats: 15 goals, 20 assists, 35 points in 78 games
Career Stats: 247 goals, 350 assists, 597 points in 1233 games
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How He Got Here
Foligno had already enjoyed a very fruitful hockey career well before he even landed in Chicago. He was drafted in the first round (28th overall) by the Senators in the 2006 Draft, and spent the first five seasons of his NHL career in Ottawa.
In the summer before the 2012-13 season, Foligno was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets for defenseman Marc Methot. It was a situation where the Senators needed defensemen and had to sacrifice a forward get one. This was the beginning of a nine-year tenure with the Blue Jackets, Foligno’s longest with any team in his 18-year career.
In May 2015, Foligno was named captain of the Blue Jackets, becoming the sixth captain in franchise history. This was the season after he posted career-highs with 31 goals and 73 points in the 2014-15 campaign. He remained their captain for six more seasons.
Other accolades with the Blue Jackets include Foligno being named to the NHL All-Star Game in 2015, and winning both the Mark Messier Leadership Award and the King Clancy Trophy in the 2016-17 season.
Unfortunately, the Blue Jackets’ captain became a victim of a struggling team that needed to make changes. In Apr. 2021, Foligno was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs, with the key factor in the trade being the Blue Jackets receiving a first-round pick in the upcoming draft. Foligno would be a free agent at the end of the season, so it made sense to move him for draft capital.
Things didn’t work out in Toronto, but Foligno struck a two-year deal with the Boston Bruins starting in the 2021-22 season. He was relegated to a depth position on a stacked roster, but continued to play a leadership role among the bottom-six forwards.
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Ah, but then there was the opportunity to come to Chicago, to be a true veteran leader on a rebuilding team. Foligno signed a one-year deal, and we all know how that turned out. He immediately became the team’s biggest supporter and de facto captain, before officially being given the title at the onset of the 2024-25 season. This was after the organization rewarded him with a two-year extension in January 2024.
Foligno’s Role in 2025-26
At 37 years old, Foligno doesn’t contribute production-wise like he used to. But last season he ranked second on the team in faceoffs taken (704), faceoff percentage (48.4%) and shorthanded time on the ice (174 minutes). He also led the team with 200 hits. This was all while averaging 15:55 minutes of ice time.
It’s obvious from these stats that Foligno still plays an important role on the ice; over-and-above contributing both on and off the ice mentoring the young players and providing that leadership role.
However, this is the kids’ team now, and Foligno knows that better than anybody. He said as much in his end of season exit interview this past April. True Foligno style, he made it a motivational speech as well.
And that’s the challenge, I kind of said to these guys, I’m like, you have an opportunity here to be part of what turns this entire franchise around. And I said that’s really exciting, that you guys can all grow together and find your own leadership roles within that, and have people there to mentor you along as you go, but learn and do it together, right? Like find your voice or your way you’re going to impact the game. And, you know, I’m watching guys do that, and it’s pretty neat…
But that’s the cool part of sports; when you have an opportunity to really build it from the ground up, and these guys, I think, have realized that, and I hope they take it to heart this summer, and come in with that attitude, a little bit of swagger, like, this is their team. You know, as much as I’m the captain, this is their team, and I know that, and I think it’s exciting for me to hand it off to whoever, and know it’s going to be in great hands.
Foligno played on the third or the fourth line most of last season, and I would expect much of the same this season. His contributions and ice time will likely diminish as younger players step into bigger roles.
This is also the last season of Foligno’s contract. Would the Blackhawks possibly re-sign him? Will he be traded to a contender at the trade deadline to chase the Stanley Cup he’s never won in his illustrious career? Will he retire?
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These are questions nobody knows the answers to yet, including Foligno himself. Because that’s not important right now. What is important is getting off to the right start to this season, and building from there. Despite all the uncertainty about his future, I have no doubt Foligno will be all-in for at least one more campaign with the Blackhawks!
