The Chicago Blackhawks have completed their first week of training camp, which started with medicals on Wednesday, Sept. 17, and continued with four high-energy practices from Thursday through Sunday. The second week looms ahead, with the first preseason game on Tuesday, Sept. 23 against the Detroit Red Wings at 6 p.m. (Central Time).
We’ve learned a lot in these first few days. General manager Kyle Davidson gave his thoughts on what he wants to see with the team’s trajectory this season, as well as the impact new head coach Jeff Blashill will have. Blashill, for his part, wasn’t shy about getting straight to work, showing the team he means business and has high expectations for everyone. As we empty out the notebook, we also hear from a few of the senior players in Chicago, as well as a couple youngsters trying to make the team.
Davidson’s Idea of Success This Season
Davidson met with the media on Thursday, the first day of camp. He told us goaltender Laurent Brossoit had to have hip surgery in the offseason and he’s out long-term. He also said AJ Spellacy sustained a shoulder injury during rookie camp, but should only be out 7-10 days. Ty Henry, who also got hurt during rookie camp, is undergoing knee surgery.
While injuries are always unfortunate, this means there is really no goalie controversy in camp; Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom are slated as the 1A and 1B tandem to start the season. Hopefully Spellacy can participate in the tail end of training camp, and Henry and Brossoit have as speedy recoveries as possible.
In Davidson’s press conference, he was asked what success meant for him this season. After all, it’s not very realistic that the Blackhawks will compete for the playoffs. But, there certainly is room for growth. Here was Davidson’s response.
I think we’re watching for the continued development and growth of our young players, but now with that impacting the NHL roster. I think we’ve had some young players playing outside of the NHL the last couple years. We saw at the end of last year, we saw a little peak of it. But my expectation is that we will see that on a much more consistent basis. It’s our belief that quality is coming up into the NHL and that youth is going to start propelling us forward. There’s an element of growth involved in this, but we believe that we will see a step forward this year, both in quality of play and then hopefully in work total as well.
There will probably be some growing pains. But it’s obvious Davidson is putting his faith in the youth. He’s committed to them playing more this season, and becoming more experienced and consistent as they go. Davidson was then asked if the organization would need to be even more patient than they were last season. He had an interesting response.
The composition of our team is just so different from last year. Honestly, my expectation was that we would have performed better than we did, especially out of the gate last year. We had a veteran-laden team. We were one of the more veteran teams in the NHL, which was by design, which led us to believe that we would be a little bit further ahead in last year’s standings than we were. We made mid-season changes because of the results (they fired head coach Luke Richardson in December), but that veteran-laden team didn’t necessarily translate to where we are organizationally.
Now that we’ve seen this influx of young talent at the end of the season and coming into (this season), there will be a patience factor with young players in the NHL, but there’s also an excitement factor and a future impact that we should see throughout this season for some players that will be here for very, very long time.
A “patience factor” and an “excitement factor”. This should be the mantra for the season. Sure, things could get dicey at times as the youngsters make mistakes. But that will also entail them learning and finding their way, which could lead to a lot of excitement. These two “factors” are something we’ll revisit often as the season unfolds.
Related – 2025 Blackhawks Training Camp Q&A With Spencer Knight
Davidson was also asked about all the veterans on the team (especially at forward), and whether they might be taking spots from the young players. He responded,
I don’t think so. No, I think there’s a lot of opportunity for the young guys. You still have to have veterans in this league. You still have to have guys that are established and know the grind and know how to lead the way for some of these young players. Again, there’s no rush to have every single young player that’s in pro play in the NHL. There is going to be a lot of availability and a lot of spots open to them to fight amongst each other for.
And again, if there’s an opportunity or there’s a situation where a young player is outperforming a veteran, then that should merit a young player playing in the lineup. But they’ve got to earn that, and they’ve got to establish that over a course of time, too. It’s not you don’t, your career isn’t made in a weekend or a preseason. And so we’ll give them that runway. But the expectation is that we will see a lot more young players throughout the year and hopefully they established themselves as impact players in the NHL.
It’s good to hear that the organization will give the younger players every opportunity to play, even if it means a veteran will be benched. We shall see if that actually comes to fruition.
Captain Foligno‘s Stance
A good person to talk to get a pulse on the team and the impact of the new head coach is Blackhawks’ captain Nick Foligno. On the second day of camp, the team was put threw a rigorous conditioning stint. All the players (in two separate groups) had to complete four sets of sprints up and down the ice, with each being six lengths of ice, in 51 seconds or less. Furthermore, one player in each group had to complete the sprints in 45 seconds or less.
The players were clearly gassed at the end of this conditioning; they were gasping for breath and still feeling it in the locker room afterwards. Coach Blashill said he felt “the best bonding is when you go through struggle together”. Here was Foligno’s take on it.
I think he’s (Blashill) just trying to make sure we understand we’re going to be a skating team, so we need to be in great shape. I think he’s got to be impressed with how well we did on that. Guys have shown that we’re here to play, and we’ve got the message, and we’re excited about playing like that, too.
The team’s identity is to be fast and hard to play against. We know many of the players possess a lot of speed, so it makes sense to work towards that strength. But this concept carries even more weight than that. Blashill wants his players to be in great shape so they can outplay and outmaneuver their opponent. So they don’t run out of gas in the third period, or in overtime. Obviously, the conditioning drills was sending that message.
Dach’s Chances of Making the Team
For the first three days of camp, young forward Colton Dach skated on a line with Foligno and Sam Lafferty. This is the good trio to comprise a hard-working and tenacious fourth line for the Blackhawks. I asked Foligno what he thought of Dach’s play so far.
I’m really impressed as he’s gotten over here, and I’ve gotten to see him. Always had some injury trouble, but I think he can be an elite power forward. His gifts and his size and ability and skating, and he’s got really good hands. And he can understand that side of it, that he’s got to be physical all the time. You know, he can really be a presence out there. He reminds me a lot of Josh Anderson, who I played with in Columbus. Big body, skates extremely well, super physical. So if he can get to that kind of caliber, he’s going to be a hell of a player for this team for a long time.
Dach, for his part, said he liked the idea of skating with Foligno and Lafferty.
Yes, for a big line, we’re gonna cause a lot of havoc; speed with Laff (Lafferty) and hockey IQ with Fliggy (Foligno). So, I’m gonna try and round it out and get pucks and be creative where I can, but also be heavy on the forecheck.
The 22-year-old also said he knows exactly what he needs to do to make the team.
I know what I need to do. I’ve known what I need to do the last two years. I just gotta come into this camp and execute it. I’m gonna have to be physical, gonna have to play hard, and have to give it all every chance I get and just prove to them that I belong.
On the fourth day of camp, veteran forward Andre Burakovsky wasn’t available due to a minor lower body injury. In his absence, Dach was called upon to skate with Connor Bedard and Ryan Donato on the de facto “top line”. He certainly took advantage of his opportunity, flying around the ice and being a physical presence. I asked Blashill about him after practice.
I do think he’s a player who can potentially end up being a really good NHL player in different spots in the lineup. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if he ended up into a top six spot and a kind of a comp(lementary), a guy who goes out and helps a couple other really good players. Because he’s got enough skills to play with good players. Where I think his identity is and where he can separate himself more than anything else is by being a big power forward, by being physical on the fourcheck, by being hard at the net front, adding some team toughness.
We have a number of skilled, kind of smaller forwards. He’s (Dach) a big man. And I think as he came up through hockey, is a really talented player. But I think he’s learning that he can really make a name for himself as a big power forward who’s physical and brings some team toughness.
On his play with Bedard and Donato, Blashill said,
Small sample size. But he’s got a good enough brain and good enough ability to play with them. I think when you’re a big body; you can kind of go through history of guys that were that good complementary winger for a really good skilled (player), either one player or tandem. I think he could potentially do that, because he does have enough hockey smarts and he’s got enough ability to do it.
This is an encouraging assessment of Dach by the coach. He’s obviously made a good first impression. Dach has struggled so much with injuries and concussion issues in the past; one would hope this year he can stay healthy and finally put it all together. If he can, it sounds like he has a great chance of making the team and sticking there.
Murphy’s Role as Elder Statesman on the Blue Line
We’ve discussed a veteran forward and a forward who’s trying to make the team, so let’s do the same with the defense.
Related – Ramifications of Matt Grzelcyk’s PTO With Chicago Blackhawks
Connor Murphy is the most tenured member of the Blackhawks, headed into his ninth season in Chicago. Here’s his assessment of Coach Blashill so far,
He right away shows detail and shows accountability. I don’t know if that’s the right word, but he shows from Day 1 what he expects. Whether it’s in meetings, or whether it’s certain phrases or certain details or fundamentals he preaches, they hold weight the way he presents it to everyone, and the voice that he gives shows how serious he is about certain things and very detail-oriented, and very sure of the direction he wants us to head into.
It’s one of those qualities of any group for your coach to set a standard, and to be true to his word on what he praises and what he holds (us) accountable to. I think that’s what is going to create an identity of the team. It’s going to create a culture. Those are two things that were needing to get. So it’s going to be a big impact for us just to head in the direction of gaining an identity and gaining habits that we need to have to be good at in the NHL.
Identity, culture and winning habits. These seem to be the buzz words around camp. Everything we hear about Blashill lends towards him being clear and concise and detail-oriented. When he was hired, he was touted for his communication skills. So far that seems to be holding true with the players.
I also asked Murphy how he can balance being the best player that he can be, while also being tasked with being a mentor to all the young players on the blue line.
I think sometimes it’s over talks, about sometimes you just be yourself. As with any player, I think everyone is kind of a leader in their own way. Just a lot of it is just staying true to yourself by being focused on your game, and then there’s just natural things that come up in conversations. As a D-man, every guy seems to look after each other, whether guys are older or younger. It’s a group of six or eight that seems to look after how each other are holding up, or different areas to give each other pointers on. It’s something that just comes natural, that when you’re worried about your own game, you’re gonna pick up and see and bring along guys around you.
Well. While Murphy might be very humble about his leadership role, his coach seems to understand that the veteran defenseman is a very important member of this team. Said Blashill,
I think it’s an important role for him and any of our vet players. To use the verb “Papa bears”. Be guys that can really help guide, or be an extension of our coaching staff, but just in a guiding way, not in a, “Oh, I’ll be the disciplinarian”. Their role is to help put an arm around them, help guide them, kind of teach them the little nuances, in his case, the little nuances of defense.
Obviously, Murphy is a shutdown defenseman, and Blashill was very complimentary of his game.
He’s been a good defender for his career. I coached him at the World Championships, my first world championship a number of years ago. I walked away and really liked him. I think he’s smart. He’s got really, really good defensive habits. He knows his limitations in a sense that he doesn’t try to do more than he should. He moves the puck to the open guy and defends well. So that will be the expectation for him.
At 32 years old, Murphy has struggled to stay healthy over the last few seasons. He actually took a maintenance day on Sunday, and Blashill indicated that’s something they will be doing with Murphy throughout the season. Hopefully this will help maintain Murphy’s overall health.
Allan’s Adaptation
Defenseman Nolan Allan made the team out of training camp last year, suiting up for 43 games before being sent down to the Rockford IceHogs at the end of February. One advantage Allan might have over others is that he can play on both the left and the right side.
In camp so far he’s been on his off-side (right) next to Kevin Korchinski. In this scenario, Korchinski is the more offensively-minded defenseman, while Allan is the stay-at-home defenseman to back him up. Allan expounded on the difference of playing on his off side,
It’s different, I’d say, in breakouts. Like breaking the puck out, and sometimes in the neutral zone, it’s a little bit different. They’re kind of always going to take pinches looking ahead, because you don’t have your puck on your forehand all the time. Sometimes you’re skating up your backhand in the middle, so you kind of got to know where your outs are, constantly scanning. I played both sides over the last couple years, so I think I’m fairly comfortable being on the right.
On what he needs to do to make the team out of camp, Allan said,
I just have to play my game. Obviously, play to my identity. I got to be a hard guy to play against, play with an edge, and just control what I can control. Focus on the things I could be working on.
Blashill made a very perceptive analogy of Allan’s game, and how it translates. Here, he was speaking about both Allan and fellow depth blueliner Louis Crevier.
I think they’re both solid players. They’re both probably some of their attributes are going to be better once you get them into games. They’re not going to be the guy who stands out to you because of their skill in practice, necessarily. They have good skill sets, but not like flashy skill…they’ve both played good; it’s not that they haven’t done a good job within their own skillsets.
Specifically on Allan, Blashill said,
With Nolan, he brings a physical presence and an edge that you might not see in practice, but you’ll eventually see in games.
It will be interesting to watch Allan in the preseason games to see what kind of impact he can make. He could easily be a sleeper to make the team.
Blashill on Collaboration Between Chicago & Rockford
We’ve already talked about Coach Blashill a lot in this notebook. Rightfully so; his leadership is imperative to team success. To round out our first impressions, let’s touch on Blashill and how he wants to stay in touch with Rockford’s new head coach Jared Nightingale. After all, there will very likely be lots of opportunities for young players from the IceHogs to be called up to the Blackhawks throughout the season. I asked about Blashill how he plans on keeping the lines of communication open.
I was pumped when we hired Jared. I think he’s a great coach, I think he’s a great human, I think he’s the type of guy that can get the most out of young players. Not just young players, but players, period. Because I think he understands how to connect with them. He understands how to drive them, but still be in their corner. We will have constant communication. I think it’s real beneficial for the staff in Chicago the staff in Rockford to make sure we’re constantly on the same page in a lot of different areas.
One, systematically, is there anything they’re doing that we might want to steal and vice versa. I want him to watch our games and give me his perspective. I like to get different perspectives of people that aren’t necessarily in our coaching room every day. Because there might be something fresh that we hadn’t thought of. I’m sure he’ll pick my brain on stuff, so we’ll have constant communication.
It turns out the two grew up about an hour away from each other in Michigan, and their families have known each other for a long time. Blashill even coached Nightingale for a couple of games with the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins. It’s clear there is a mutual respect there. Having this sort of collaboration should be incredibly helpful, considering many young IceHogs will be on track to be Blackhawks in fairly short order.
Related – 4 Blackhawks Storylines to Follow Heading Into Training Camp
The tone has certainly been set in the first handful of days of the Blackhawks training camp. GM Davidson has made it clear he has high expectations for this team, but we also have to be cognizant of some growing pains. The veterans are in place and ready to play their role, both on and off the ice. The young players are putting their best foot forward in an attempt to make the team. While everyone won’t make the opening night roster, there should be chances for call ups from the IceHogs throughout the season. Communication will be key between Chicago and Rockford, so everyone is on the same page and has the best chance for success.
The second week of camp will entail three exhibition games on the road; against the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday (Sept. 23), the St. Louis Blues on Saturday and the Minnesota Wild on Sunday. This is only just the beginning of what should be a fun and fruitful 2025-26 campaign for the Blackhawks. We’ll keep you updated here at The Hockey Writers on all the latest, as we continue our coverage of an exciting Blackhawks training camp.
