Blackhawks Look To Build Upon Strong Bond Going Into 2026-27 Season

The Chicago Blackhawks‘ season ended on April 15 with a 5-2 win over the San Jose Sharks. That game showed what the team could be: a young, hungry group with potential.

The performance also showed another side. Resilience- snapping a four-game losing streak. Wanting to win that game for each other and the fans. In exit interviews, a similar message kept popping up- how much the team loves each other and how much they want to win together.

The Blackhawks have been a close group all season, despite the results. This offseason, remaining close will be a major emphasis for them.

Blackhawks Bond: A Highlight of Their Season

It was only my first season as a credentialed journalist, but the Blackhawks locker room felt different. No matter the game results, the energy in the room didn’t feel dreary. Players always came to practices eager to get better, as head coach Jeff Blashill often mentioned. Furthermore, they enjoyed doing so.

André Burakovsky told me in March, “I think that’s what makes us so tight- that we always have fun together. I think it’s important, too, when things haven’t gone the way we wanted to this year, that you can keep coming to the rink with a smile and have fun. And not just like come here and be upset and grumpy. I think that’s been one of the good things this year. That even though things haven’t gone our way, we stick with each other, and always lean on each other, and help each other out, and have fun with each other. So, I think that’s important.”

They spent a lot of time on the road, especially in March, when 10 of their 16 games were away. When talking to Landon Slaggert in February about the advantage of the team bond and the travel, “100 percent. Yeah, we do have such a tight-knit group. A lot of older guys to lean on, too. And it’s fun… just that fun mix of youthful energy and some experience, and just, you know, just a great group of guys at the end of the day.

“So, it’s fun for me when you go on the road, and it’s funny, we’ll go to, like… I think when we were in Anaheim last year, we went to Disneyland, or just different things, trying to find. We would go bowling or go play darts. So honestly, just finding different little games. We’re all super competitive, too. So, even pool…

“We actually, in Washington, went bowling, and then in Columbus, we went and played darts. So, we kind of have a little series going with some of the guys.”

Now, the players have gone their separate ways for the summer… but not for long. Burakovsky had posted a photo on his Instagram story recently of himself and his Blackhawks teammates embarking on a trip. Something that will probably be one of many get-togethers this offseason.

Connor Bedard said in his exit interviews, “It was great. You know, we have such a close room. Everyone says that, but, you know, like Mooresy (Oliver Moore) was saying that… I think every single guy… like, I’ll be like, ‘Guys, you gotta come to Van (Vancouver).’ And then someone from Toronto will be like, ‘You got to come to Toronto.’ So, it’s like we got like 10 trips lined up to go see everyone. I don’t know if we’ll make all of them, but, you know, we’ll definitely get together in the summer and keep growing that.

But it’s a special group. I don’t think there was a day this year where (we) just left the rink and chilled alone. Guys would always be getting together. Me and Moorsey live in the same building. So, I think he’s got an imprint on my couch, you know, from all the time he’s spent there…”

Even on the ice, defenseman Alex Vlasic expressed his excitement about seeing more players looking to spend more time in Chicago this summer to train. Talking about the benefits of helping to build team camaraderie and helping to push each other, too.

This side of the Blackhawks is a wholesome story.

And there is the second side to this. How will that translate on the ice next season?

Blackhawks Hunger to Start Winning

In the exit interviews, while the players expressed confidence going forward, they also expressed their desire to take another step. They want to push for the playoffs. As Vlasic said on the team’s last month,

“Yeah, definitely some ups and downs. I think we didn’t perform as well as we would have liked to. I think we took a lot of steps as a team. I think that was kind of a big thing for us this year was, you know, with a young roster, we were learning a lot. We were making mistakes, but we’re learning from those mistakes.

And going into next season. It’s, you know, playoffs are the expectation. We’re not here to do this again. And we all know that in the locker room. We have confidence in our group. So I think going into the summer, you know, we’re all excited about coming back here next year and really making a push.”

They had to learn a lot on the fly in the NHL all season with their youth, and, as Blashill noted, they wanted to take steps now, rather than needing to do so next year and so on.

We won’t know until the puck drops again how everything will come together in the standings, and a lot can happen between now and the fall. However, the Blackhawks wanted to start building a winning culture, and in a significant offseason, they have already established the unity pillar.

As Bedard said, “But it’s just a lot of fun. Like, every day at the rink, it was a blast. So, you know, that’s kind of step one, I feel like, to being a really good team.”