The Chicago Blackhawks have not had stability in the goaltending position since the reign of Corey Crawford ended in 2020. In those five years, 13 different goalies have played at least one game. Rotating through that many goalies is not an ingredient for success. It certainly doesn’t help the rebuild progress any faster, even if it isn’t the only—or even primary—contributing factor to the team’s struggles.
When general manager Kyle Davidson traded Seth Jones to the Florida Panthers, he addressed the instability that plagued the Blackhawks for half a decade. The Panthers sent back 24-year-old goaltender Spencer Knight and suddenly the future didn’t look so uncertain. The 13th overall selection in the 2019 NHL Draft, Knight will be leaned on as the goaltender of the future.
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He’s not there yet, though. The Blackhawks need to improve in many areas, so expectations are tempered.
For now, Knight can still provide much-needed stability alongside Arvid Soderblom. Shutting down the carousel of goalies will only increase the team’s confidence and, if all proceeds according to plan, allow the players to push out of this rebuild.
What the Blackhawks Need in Goal
The Blackhawks, obviously, aren’t in win-now mode. As such, they don’t expect their goalies to perform at the caliber needed to win the Stanley Cup. Instead, Knight and Soderblom need to provide consistent, reliable performances that give the young players in front of them room to develop. What do I mean by that?
Well, what it comes down to is a healthy balance of making the saves you should and stopping a few you shouldn’t. I know that insight isn’t groundbreaking, but it’s essential for the Blackhawks because subpar goaltending could stop the momentum of this rebuild.
Davidson made it clear that next season the young players will have the opportunities to play without veterans taking ice time. That means there will continue to be growing pains, particularly defensive lapses, as they learn. The baseline for whatever goaltending rotation the team deploys must be good enough that forwards and defensemen won’t worry every mistake will end up in the back of the net. (And while we can’t ask Knight or Soderblom to bail the team out of every situation, mixing in a spectacular save every now and then doesn’t hurt!)
SPENCER KNIGHT!! 😱
— NHL (@NHL) March 8, 2025
How did he get that one!? pic.twitter.com/Y5NGE7m2PJ
What’s more, whoever is in net on any given night can’t allow weak goals because of how deflating it will be to young defensemen like Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel. I don’t mean that in a “young kids are too sensitive these days” kind of way. But no one plays their best hockey when it feels like you’re scored on every time you step on the ice.
Again, we can’t expect the Blackhawks goaltenders to put up numbers like Connor Hellebuyck. But we can ask them to play consistently enough for the team to know what they will get each and every night.
Knight and Soderblom Will Compete for Time
Next season, the Blackhawks will have the luxury of splitting the workload fairly evenly between Knight and Soderblom. Knight will be given the net more as he’s viewed as the higher-end talent, but we have watched some brilliant performances from Soderblom. Expect each to push the other to be better and compete for starts. I also wouldn’t be surprised if head coach Jeff Blashill elects to ride one more than the other over certain stretches if he’s playing well.
We also haven’t discussed Drew Commesso, the 22-year-old 46th overall pick from the 2020 Draft. He’s only started one game for the Blackhawks, but he’s put together back-to-back 18-win seasons for the Rockford IceHogs. He might be in the mix depending on how the season unfolds.
Regardless of who starts more games, together, Knight and Soderblom form the strongest tandem that the Blackhawks have boasted for some time. The competition should drive each to be better than they would if the job was simply theirs for the taking.
There’s plenty of motivation as well. Knight spent a couple seasons behind Sergei Bobrovsky, so he’s looking to establish himself as a number-one goaltender. Soderblom also wants to establish himself as a more reliable option after struggling for stretches last season. Overall, the team will benefit from uniting these two and letting the best man win the net.
Goaltending Stability Will Make the Rebuild Easier
The Blackhawks need both Knight and Soderblom to stop the puck. The more pucks the better. Shocking, I know.
But, in all seriousness, given the uncertainty surrounding this position the past several seasons, the team truly needs stabilizing performances if this rebuild is to progress. Knight and Soderblom should provide that. They have the individual talent, and, as a tandem, they will push each other to be even better. If it pans out as Davidson hopes, a large piece of this puzzle will fall into place next season.
