Blackhawks Need to Be Patient With Young Core

The Chicago Blackhawks are one of the most interesting teams in the NHL. They have a ton of upside, but have more than a few guys with something to prove as well. They will be starting the season behind the eight ball thanks to another injury to franchise center Connor Bedard.

Though expectations are certainly higher than they were this time last offseason, this is a key season for the franchise. It is important to remember that young talent takes time to develop, and patience must be had if the Blackhawks don’t want to find themselves in another rebuild.

Patience With Defensemen Especially Important

The Blackhawks made a big splash by adding Bowen Byram via trade, but there are a lot of question marks that need to be answered. That said, the core, Wyatt Kaiser, Artyom Levshunov, Alex Vlasic, and Sam Rinzel, is still very young and in a critical point in their development.

That’s not even mentioning the situation with Kevin Korchinski. The seventh overall pick in 2024, Korchinski has struggled to find his footing and a regular place with the Blackhawks. But the old saying goes that defensemen take longer to develop in the NHL, and everyone involved is far too young to bail out on.

That being said, Korchinski and Levshunov need to show real development at both ends of the ice. If they feel stalled out at the end of this season, it may be time for the Blackhawks to have some very hard conversations.

Forwards Showing Progression

Bedard should be back before long and will immediately add a top-flight scoring presence to the top of the lineup. Who he plays with remains to be seen but if he slides in between Tyler Bertuzzi and Roman Kantserov, the Blackhawks could have a nice little top line.

Patrick Kane is back to provide a veteran scoring touch. Frank Nazar will be counted on to kick his game up a notch, Anton Frondell should be a Calder Trophy candidate, and the bottom six looks decent with Jordan Greenway, Ryan Donato, and Teuvo Teravainen filling roles.

The Blackhawks are counting on Nazar, Frondell, and Kantserov to play big roles this season. Bedard joining the elite scorers will go a long way as well. This feels like a group that could be deadly in 2027-28 but a jump forward would set the table for them.

Strength in Net

If the Blackhawks have one clear strength, it is in goal. The lead man is 25-year-old Spencer Knight, who came over in the Seth Jones trade with the Florida Panthers. In his first full season, he started 55 games and posted a very solid .902 save percentage and 2.82 goals against average.

Though his numbers may not look great, he was top five in shots faced and saved. There were many games in which things would have gotten much worse if not for the performance of Knight.

Behind Knight is Arvid Soderblom. The 27-year-old netminder is entering his sixth season in Chicago and has been an okay backup but had a very bad 2025-26: in 24 starts, he went 8-13-3 with a .880 save percentage and 3.80 goals against average. Knight will carry the load but Soderblom has to improve.

The Playoffs Would Be Nice, But Progress Is Critical

The Western Conference feels like it has an established guard right now, making it tougher to crack through the glass ceiling. Making the playoffs would certainly be a boon for this young core, but it feels like it may be shooting for the moon.

In reality, a significant improvement over their 72 points from last season would be the best bet. Getting into the 85-90-point range would be a big step up, giving the young core the confidence it needs to really hit its stride in 2027-28.