1 Blackhawks player who shouldn't be with the team in November

With Lukas Reichel now in Vancouver, the Chicago Blackhawks have shown they're not opposed to making notable moves early in the season. There is one other player who they should also move at some point in November if they want to keep shaping the long-term outlook for what has been a much better Blackhawks team.

It's hard not to lose count of how many times Sam Lafferty has been in Chicago, only to end up going elsewhere. So far in 2025-26, Lafferty has, predictably, done next to nothing since rejoining the Hawks, except watching games from the press box for the most part.

He's seen action in three contests, posting just 7:47 of average total ice time. While he's mainly an extra and rotational forward at this point, a brewing team like the Hawks could use more than what has been a wasted roster spot. They could put him on waivers, and nobody would notice, or trade him, and likely get the same result.  

Sam Lafferty has struggled in the NHL following a so-called career year

In 2023-24, Sam Lafferty showed the NHL universe that maybe he could transform into a solid depth scorer, with 13 goals and 24 points for the Vancouver Canucks. Not bad, considering Lafferty logged just 11:53 of average ice time across 79 contests, and was still the physical specimen he had been known for since he entered the league with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2019-20.

He then went to the Buffalo Sabres, likely full of momentum from that successful 2023-24 campaign, but was never the same. Playing for a struggling Sabres team as opposed to a squad like the Vancouver Canucks that made the playoffs the previous season, Lafferty fell back to Earth. He saw time in 60 contests, logged four goals, seven points, and a minus-15 rating.

Overall, it wasn't a great outing for Lafferty, who then returned to the Blackhawks for what would be his third stint with the team. But after seeing time in three contests, the experiment has got to be ending soon.

Why is Sam Lafferty fading?

Lafferty doesn't fit the Blackhawks' youth movement. While the Hawks have seasoned veterans like Connor Murphy, Jason Dickinson, and Nick Foligno, they have been with the team and performing well throughout this long rebuilding process. Meanwhile, Lafferty has bounced around the league and never managed to stick around in Chicago during previous stops.

While youngsters like Colton Dach still needed to earn their spots, they have outperformed Lafferty or else they would be getting more seasoning in the AHL. Dach has more than shown that he can land body checks and contribute offensively. Lafferty hasn't.

Other lower-liners, like Ryan Greene, have proven they can play well in a defensive forward role, with a 92.9 on-ice save percentage at even strength. Greene has also been solid playing a supplementary role offensively, having been on the ice for five goals at even strength, good for a 12.2 on-ice save percentage.

We'll see if the Blackhawks look to move Lafferty, and right now, all signs point to him as the odd man out in the Windy City. Should the Blackhawks make another roster move this season, or at least before the new year, Lafferty is the only player they must seriously consider at the moment unless they make a surprise trade.