The 2025 NHL Entry Draft and free agency frenzy have come and gone. For the Chicago Blackhawks, the draft involved eight selections in all, including three in the first round. At the time of this writing, the organization has been rather quiet surrounding free agency, acquiring two veteran forwards. Neither were big splashes, but they can certainly help improve the team. The organization also re-signed one of their restricted free agent defenseman to a two-year extension, and added a depth goaltender.
Related – Blackhawks 2025-26 Roster Projections 1.0: Pre-Draft & Free Agency
Last month I started a blueprint of the 2025-26 lineup (linked above). With the draft in the rearview mirror, and the assumption that the Blackhawks have completed most of their offseason additions, let’s revisit this blueprint. What more have we learned, and how might this affect the Blackhawks’ opening night roster?
Implications From the Draft & Development Camp
The Blackhawks selected center Anton Frondell third overall in the draft, along with right winger Vaclav Nestrasil at 25th and center Mason West as their 29th pick. Of these first-round picks, Nestrasil and West are both prospects the Blackhawks hope will eventually jump ahead of their peers in their development. But they both are rather raw and could take some time to progress to that level. The organization is willing to take a patient approach with these two prospects.
Frondell could see the NHL much sooner than Nestrasil and West. But despite signing an entry-level contract on Jul. 15, his agent reports he’ll spend one more season with his current Swedish club, Djurgarden. Their season starts on Sept. 13 and ends on March 14, as long as they’re not playoff bound. This means Frondell will miss the Blackhawk’s training camp, but he could potentially come over to play at the end of the season.
However, we did learn at this season’s development camp that a few of the Blackhawks’ draftees will be going pro this season. 2023 forward draftees Martin Misiak and Nick Lardis are expected to at least play with the Rockford IceHogs. They will both be at training camp pushing for a spot on the Blackhawks’ roster. I would expect Lardis to have the biggest chance of being on the Blackhawk’s opening night roster. Although, the newly signed veterans could get in the way of that.
Blackhawks’ Forwards
Let’s look at the Blackhawks’ forward depth chart. Please bear in mind I did reference the forward lines from the end of last season, but these are not line combination predictions. We’ll get to that later on during training camp.
Ryan Donato – Connor Bedard – Ilya Mikheyev
Teuvo Teravainen – Frank Nazar – Tyler Bertuzzi
Nick Foligno – Jason Dickinson – Andre Burakovsky
Landon Slaggert – Lukas Reichel – Sam Lafferty
Extras: Oliver Moore, Colton Dach, Ryan Greene, Lardis
Blackhawks Add Lafferty as Another Veteran Forward
The only difference here from my initial projections is Lafferty replacing Moore on the fourth line, and Moore now listed as one of the extras. The Blackhawks added 30-year-old Lafferty on the first day of free agency. He will join Foligno, Dickinson, Donato, Bertuzzi, Teravainen, Mikheyev and Burakovsky (traded for on Jun. 21) as veterans to support the young, up-and-coming players. We also now know Philipp Kurashev was NOT extended a qualifying offer with the Blackhawks. He was consequently picked up by the San Jose Sharks.
Lafferty is a gritty depth forward who will almost certainly play among the bottom-six forwards. As a matter of fact, he could easily find himself the odd man out if some of the youngsters prove they’re ready to be a part of the lineup. This will all make for healthy competition, and push everyone to be better. It’s a good problem to have.
Projections for the Blackhawks’ Younger Forwards
Bedard and Nazar are really the only younger players who are locks to start the season in the lineup, although Slaggert is very much in the mix as well (played 33 games last season). 23-year-old Reichel, on the other hand, is quite the conundrum.
There’s been some talk of Reichel getting traded, and it’s true the German native hasn’t lived up to expectations in his first four seasons with the Blackhawks. But some players take longer to develop. If Reichel remains with the team, he’ll definitely have to prove he belongs in the lineup. Plenty of prospects are trying to take his spot.
Related – Lukas Reichel Embracing Hard Work, Practicing Patience While Developing for Blackhawks
In the above depth chart Lafferty knocks Moore out of the lineup. But would it be the worst thing if Moore spent some time with the Rockford IceHogs at the beginning of the season? After all, he only played in nine games for the Blackhawks at the end of last season.
Looking at the other extras, Greene only suited up for two contests. Dach played in 25 games and Lardis has yet to play an NHL game. While many of these young players might start in Rockford, the Blackhawks will have a balancing act on their hands all season long between the experience of the veterans and the talent of the youngsters.
Let’s also remember 14 forwards usually make up the team roster, so this is where the coaching staff can get creative. There will very likely be a rotation of players, especially among the bottom-six forwards, between veterans and youngsters. Injuries are always a factor as well. Expect the younger players to receive plenty of opportunities to show their stuff, and therefore be given more ice time. I would also expect an abundance of player movement between Rockford and Chicago throughout the campaign.
But by the end of the season, we could be looking at a much younger lineup. It will be very interesting to see how this all plays out, and who will step up.
Blackhawks’ Defense
Here’s the depth chart for the Blackhawks’ defense. Again, this is based on the pairings at the end of last season, but it’s not yet a prediction of the defensive pairings to start the 2025-26 campaign.
Alex Vlasic – Sam Rinzel
Kevin Korchinski – Connor Murphy
Nolan Allan – Louis Crevier
Extras: Artyom Levshunov, Ethan Del Mastro, Taige Harding, Wyatt Kaiser (RFA)
The Veterans on the Blue Line
It’s hard to believe this will only be Vlasic’s third full season in the league. The 24-year-old is already considered a “veteran” and also a core piece for the Blackhawks.
Unless the Blackhawks add another veteran defenseman before the season starts, Murphy will be the “old man” at 32 years of age. His experience and leadership will be valuable, but he’s probably seeing the writing on the wall. All these young defensemen are here to eventually take his spot on the roster. Murphy has also struggled to be completely healthy for an entire season for most of his career. We’ll see how this season works out for the veteran blueliner.
One more thing regarding the Blackhawks adding another veteran defenseman. If they don’t, that likely means they’re confident that most of their defensive prospects are NHL-ready. Sure, there will be mistakes and growing pains, but there are also plenty of prospects and plenty of options between all of them.
Breaking Down the Blackhawks’ Defensive Prospects
Rinzel and Vlasic developed some great chemistry in the last eight games of the season, as Rinzel was promoted to the top defensive pairing in just his second game with the club. Many pundits believe Rinzel will never see a day in the AHL, which is rather impressive. He just jumped right in, and it seems like this spot will be his to lose at training camp. I wouldn’t count on him losing it.
Yes, Korchinski has had his ups and downs. Playing an entire season in the NHL at 19 years old might’ve actually set him back a bit. But his defensive game has improved, and now he needs to gain his offensive confidence again. This season could do the trick in that regard.
Levshunov has such a high ceiling, but he’s still rather raw and needs to work on his consistency. Meanwhile, both Allan and Del Mastro have shown they can be viable mid to bottom-pairing defensemen. I plugged Allan into the lineup simply because he played 43 games with the Blackhawks last season versus Del Mastro’s 24 games.
23-year-old Harding is an older prospect that played in eight games for the IceHogs last season after four years at Providence College. I’m sure he’ll be gunning for a spot at training camp.
Related – Which Blackhawks CHL Prospect Could Play in the AHL at 19?
The Blackhawks signed restricted free agent Crevier to a two-year contract on July 17, meaning they see him as a good depth option. He would have to clear waivers to be sent down to the IceHogs, so they may lean on him more while they let the others develop in Rockford. For that reason, I plugged Crevier in on the third defensive pairing, replacing Levshunov (for now).
At the time of this writing, Kaiser remains a restricted free agent. While a deal hasn’t yet been agreed upon, it’s expected the two parties will work something out. If so, I believe Kaiser will be in the NHL lineup (he would also have to clear waivers to be sent to Rockford).
Of the above defensemen, Levshunov, Rinzel, Korchinski, Allan, Harding and Del Mastro are all waivers exempt. As with the forwards, I have a feeling we’re going to see a lot of movement between Chicago and Rockford with the defensemen.
Blackhawks’ Goaltending
One thing we do know is Spencer Knight will be the 1A goaltender for the Blackhawks this coming season. Since being acquired Mar. 1, the 24-year-old suited up for 15 of the final 22 games down the stretch. The Blackhawks have high hopes he will be the elite netminder the franchise needs for the future.
One thing we don’t know is the state of Laurent Brossoit’s health. The 32-year-old goalie was acquired last summer, but missed the entire season due to complications from a knee injury. There have been no updates on the veteran, except that the Blackhawks hope he can compete for a spot at training camp. Brossoit is signed with Chicago through the end of this season.
What we’re a little unclear on is where Arvid Soderblom fits in. Soderblom had a very disappointing 2023-24 season, which is why the Blackhawks acquired Brossoit in the first place. But Soderblom used the absence of Brossoit to redeem himself in the 2024-25 season, showing he could be a viable 1B tandem with Knight.
Soderblom was a restricted free agent at the end of the last season, but the Blackhawks did give him a qualifying offer of $1 million. The 25-year-old has since filed for arbitration, hoping to earn a bigger piece of the pie in his next contract. After all, general manager Kyle Davidson has plenty of cap dollars headed into the season. Soderblom’s arbitration hearing is set for July 28. However, both parties could come to an agreement before that.
My hunch is the Blackhawks have Soderblom penciled in behind Knight. Either Brossoit still won’t be healthy to start the season, or he’ll be healthy and then dealt to another team as their backup.
One final note on goaltending. On Jul. 16, the Blackhawks signed Russian netminder Stanislav Berezhnoy to a two-year, entry-level contract. The 22-year-old went undrafted, but has put up impressive numbers in the VHL and MHL, both Russian junior leagues. Berezhnoy is set to back up Drew Commesso with the IceHogs. This is something Davidson discussed at development camp in early July. It’s now another thing checked off his list.
Related – Blackhawks 20225-26 Season Schedule: 10 Games to Circle
Davidson could still make another move or two on the trade market before the offseason is complete. Will the organization look to deal Reichel at forward, or even package defenseman Kaiser to gain some other assets? While this is very possible, I could also see him standing pat if the right opportunity doesn’t present itself. Regardless, this season is mostly about seeing what the organization has in their youth. Once they have a better idea of what’s already in the fold, then they can build around it accordingly.
Thanks for reading this second installment of the Blackhawks’ roster projections for the 2025-26 season. We’ll revisit things again as we get closer to training camp to discuss any more adjustments that have been made. Until then, keep it here at The Hockey Writers for all the latest news, updates and analysis!
