Blackhawks: Collin Delia should get another chance in the net

The Chicago Blackhawks have ten games to go this season, and during that time, they might want to consider giving Collin Delia another crack in the lineup. Fans have not seen Delia with the team since January 17th, when he gave up five goals to the Florida Panthers.

The Hawks eventually gave Subban another crack in the lineup after he started the year off the same way Delia did. Delia, on the other hand, has not been seen in the lineup since January. He spent some time in the AHL on a conditioning stint and served as the backup in a game a while back, but besides that, it has just been practice time for the third Hawks netminder.

I understand why Jeremy Colliton is hesitant to play Delia. The team has two goalies capable of playing well on any given night, minus a bad goal here or there, so why even put Delia out there again?

If the Hawks do not play Delia again then they go into next season possibly keeping him around another opportunity if one of the other goalies gets hurt. If they play him now and he does struggle then the team knows the door is closed on Delia and the Hawks, but if they play him and he puts up a good performance then his confidence is up if the team does need him again.

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Going into this season, this was supposed to be a goalie race. We were supposed to see a competition all year long to see who the next Blackhawks starter would be, but after ten games, it wasn’t a competition anymore – the net was Kevin Lankinen’s and no one else’s.

Lankinen definitely deserves to be the Hawks starter as he has been by far the best goalie this season. Still, there is very little Delia can do without another opportunity. Lankinen had a bad game a few days ago, and he still got back in the net against Nashville. He was pulled in that game and probably will still get another opportunity this weekend.

The Blackhawks most likely will not make the playoffs for a multitude of reasons, and honestly, I think that the team needs to assess where all their assets are at now. That means giving Delia another opportunity in the net against a team like Dallas and see what he is made of.

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It would be one thing if Delia had no experience in the NHL, but he does have some. He played in 16 games during 2018-19 and posted a .908 save percentage. If the Hawks miss out on the playoffs this season, then it does no harm playing Delia again and seeing how he plays during another NHL game.