Chicago Blackhawks 2025-26 Player Grades: Oliver Moore

The Chicago Blackhawks finished their 2025-26 campaign 31st in the league, with a record of 29-39-14 and 72 points. It was an improvement from last season’s totals of 25-46-11 (61 points), but the organization had more progress in mind when they embarked on this campaign. The good news is the Blackhawks finished with more wins and more points than the previous season. They also feel they’ve taken positive strides in the growth and development of a plethora of young players, who could be a big part of a more successful future.

In this summer series, we’ll hand out individual grades to every player on the team. Today we highlight rookie forward Oliver Moore.

Moore’s Season Stats

5 goals, 14 assists, 19 points, minus-15 in 51 games played. Average time on ice (ATOI) of 12:51 minutes

47.0 Corsi For Percentage (at Even Strength) (CF%), 13 blocked shots, 25 hits, 15 takeaways, 41 giveaways, 19 penalty minutes

48.3 Faceoff Percentage (FO%)

Contract Status: Entry-Level Contract (ELC) runs through the 2026-27 season, $941,667 cap hit

Season Overview

Moore started the 2025-26 season with the Rockford IceHogs. He gained some confidence there, logging six goals and nine points in nine games. His goal count led all AHL rookies at the time of his call up to the Blackhawks on Nov. 3.  

In Chicago, Moore was deployed as a winger, and there were mixed results. After two goals and five points in his first seven games, things kind of dried up for the Minnesota native. He’s known for his speed, and head coach Jeff Blashill tried deploying him with a fellow speedster in Frank Nazar. But that didn’t really seem to click. Finally, Blashill inserted Moore at center (where’s he’s played most of his life) on Dec. 30 versus the New York Islanders. The youngster won 8-of-11 faceoffs, recorded two primary assists and looked like a completely different player.

“It was the best game Ollie’s played, for sure,” said Blashill after the game. “Hands down. Was it because we moved him to center? Maybe. He looked like a real confident, kind of almost different player out there to me. His speed in the middle. He’s had a hard time on the wing, finding how to use the speed, like when to slow down and then hit the hole with speed. At center, it’s a little bit easier. It’s a little more natural to him. He’s played a lot of center his whole life, and played center in Minnesota. So as we kind of talked through some things we were talking about, learning how to hit holes as a winger, and honestly, it just made me think, let’s give him a shot at center there. And I thought he did a real good job overall.”

It was a bit of an “ah, ha!” moment for the coaching staff, and Moore ended up playing mostly at center (usually in the bottom-six) for the rest of the season. His 48.3% faceoff success rate was rather respectable as well.

One of my favorite games of Moore’s was a 4-3 shootout win versus the Carolina Hurricanes on Jan. 22. It also happened to be his 21^st birthday.

In this contest, he recorded the secondary assist on a goal by Nick Lardis. But he also engaged in his first NHL fight, sticking up for his buddy Lardis because of a hit he received from Hurricanes’ Alexander Nikishin. Plus, he won the game for the Blackhawks with his goal in the sixth round of the shootout. We could dub this the “Oliver Moore hat trick”!

you're invited to Moorsey's bday celebration🎁👇 pic.twitter.com/ef0alE3vcy

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) January 23, 2026

Coach Blashill referred to Moore’s tenacity more and more as the season went along. At practice on Feb. 1 he said,

I think with Oliver, none of us know what his ceiling is at this level, and we’re gonna all watch and see. But I think for sure he’s got that speed, tenacity. I think as he learns his strength and gets stronger, he’s going to win even more battles. That you could foresee him being a guy who can be on a momentum line, play against the other team’s best.

When shutdown center Jason Dickinson was traded to the Edmonton Oilers on Mar. 6, Moore was immediately slotted into that role. Unfortunately, he sustained a lower body injury on Mar. 8, which resulted in him missing the last five weeks of the season. Because of that, the Blackhawks weren’t able to determine how Moore would fare as the shutdown center.

Nevertheless, he certainly showed potential at center, and will likely be looked at in that role at training camp in October. While he was sidelined at the end of the season, he also worked hard on studying the game to play more intelligently. Moore is participating in the World Championships this offseason that started on May 15 and runs through May 31. This will hopefully be another positive learning experience for the young forward to add to his tool belt.  

Quotable Quotes

I selected two quotes for Moore, the first coming from Blashill in early February on Moore’s attributes.

I definitely think his speed, tenacity, with skill, and a good brain. Those are qualities that he has, that they’re going to be applied in some fashion.

The second comes from Moore himself. He bring lots of energy and is well-liked in the locker room for his infectious and positive personality. But he’s also a bit of a philosopher. He imparted us with these words of wisdom during the team’s exit interviews.  

Words are momentary, intent is momentous, I like to say. It’s going to be a big summer in that way.

Here’s hoping Moore has that “big summer” he’s talking about.

Moore’s Final Grade: B

Moore didn’t really have the opportunity to shine this past season. He struggled when deployed as a winger, and then was sidelined before he could find his groove at the center position. Could he be the shutdown center of the future, or will he potentially fit in at wing farther up in the lineup? It’s unfortunate Moore’s season was cut short, but a lot of signs point towards him having a breakout campaign next season.