Kurashev goal showcases what this season is all about for the Blackhawks

One of the Chicago Blackhawks new faces got on the scoreboard during their last game against the Florida Panthers. Philipp Kurashev played in his third NHL game a few nights ago and finally notched his first NHL goal.

The Chicago Blackhawks drafted Philipp Kurashev with the 120th NHL pick in the 2018 draft, which was in the fourth round. Kurashev is an example of the drafting Stan Bowman missed out on to keep this team successful.

In the past, Bowman has said this team is missing the kids in their 20s that are taking this team to the next level. Well, Kurashev was drafted in the fourth round and has now just broken into the NHL. If some of those fourth through sixth-round picks Bowman had from 2014 to the present, maybe this team would be a little more competitive.

Seeing Kurashev notch his first NHL goal is a great thing for the future of this team. Hopefully, he will get on the board more often now. His goal is a reminder of what this season is all about for Chicago.

This season is all about the youth for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Stan Bowman called for a rebuild, which is precisely what he will get this season. The Kurashev goal helped remind me that this season is not about the ‘Hawks beating opponents every night or making the playoffs, this is a rebuild, and the roster does reflect it.

The two oldest players on the active roster are Keith and Kane. Let that sink in… obviously, Keith has been an older player on this roster for a while now, but Kane is the second oldest player on the active roster. Chicago’s average age is 26.9 according to hockey reference, but if you take out Keith and Kane, the number changes to about 25.09, which is actually a significant drop in the average age.

So moving forward, the Blackhawks will continue to struggle, but as long as the team continues to play these young players, they should be alright in the long run. DeBrincat is averaging 18:33 minutes of ice time thus far, and Boqvist, who has struggled greatly, has three assists.

This season has been frustrating, but with this team being so young, they definitely could still turn the corner and play some good hockey down the line. That is the fantastic thing about young teams with potential. All Chicago needs is one of their three goalies to start making saves.