1 of these 3 young defenders will be the odd man out in the Blackhawks' defensive pairings

When the Chicago Blackhawks first began their rebuild, many pointed toward their crop of young defenseman as having the most quantity in their prospect pool.

At the time, their top forward prospect was Lukas Reichel, and the only notable young goaltender in the system was Drew Commesso, as the team's draft focus had been on blue-liners. Even after Kyle Davidson took over as general manager, the Blackhawks added to their future defense core in the draft by adding the likes of Kevin Korchinski, Sam Rinzel, and Artyom Levshunov.

Discussions started a couple of years ago that the Blackhawks may eventually run into the issue of having too many young defensemen and too few roster spots, meaning someone would be left out. It seems that the issue has come about as most of these defenders have proven to be ready for an NHL roster spot full-time or have all but cemented themselves into the plans in Chicago.

There seems to be some debate at the moment about whether or not Kevin Korchinski will be a long-term option for the Blackhawks after showing his development requires more time than some of the other prospects in the organization. However, it doesn't seem as though the Blackhawks are too keen on moving on from their former seventh-overall pick just yet, unless there is an opportunity to bring in an impact player where Korchinski's value would move the needle in a potential trade.

It is not unreasonable to see either Ethan Del Mastro, Nolan Allan, or Wyatt Kaiser becoming the odd man out.

There could be a compelling argument for any of these three players to keep their spot in the Blackhawks' organization. Each one has seen stints of NHL play, and the one who experienced the most growing pains was Kaiser during the 2023-24 season, but he showed some much-needed improvement this past season.

Ethan Del Mastro's case for being a regular on the Blackhawks' roster is arguably the most compelling among the three. His consistently sound defensive and transition game made him very effective in the AHL, and those traits began to shine through at the NHL level in his 24 game stint this past season.

Del Mastro is a smooth skater who controls his gaps well and uses his size to his advantage. He has also shown great improvements as a puck-mover in recent seasons. Although one area that may set Del Mastro apart is that he is a left-handed defender who has no issue playing the right side, which opens up more possibilities for the Blackhawks.

While it may seem as though Del Mastro is a no-brainer to keep around, there is also a lot to like about Kaiser and Allan, respectively. Allan played 43 games with the Blackhawks this past season, and did not look out of place in most games he appeared in. He is not a flashy player and more often than not plays a game that goes unnoticed, which is a positive trait for any defenseman.

He is a good skater who plays a true shutdown style, as he is not afraid to get physical in the defensive zone or block shots. His potential isn't sky-high, but he shows signs of being a very reliable bottom-pair defender.

On the other hand, Wyatt Kaiser has been showing positive development recently and has shown he can compete in the NHL. While he is the smallest of the group (6'0 172 pounds), he has showcased sound defensive instincts since his days in the NCAA and is beginning to figure it out at the professional level.

His skating and puck-moving are probably the best among the three, but he has run into issues where he gets out-muscled by stronger opponents, which leads to him taking a penalty in an attempt to recover the puck.

Kaiser had some ups and downs throughout his 57 games in Chicago this season, but showed improvements and looked much stronger in transition toward the end of the season when the youth movement started to take over. He is a smart player who could easily push for a larger role this season in Chicago.

These three are all intriguing defensemen who play their style, which could be valuable to the Blackhawks' roster if developed correctly. If none are moved this summer, it will make for an interesting competition in training camp to see which of them earn a full-time roster spot in the NHL.