5 dark horse players to watch on this Blackhawks team

The Chicago Blackhawks have a luxury heading into this 2026-2027 season that they have not had in a long time: a logjam of options. There are a plethora of exciting players on this team that will be fun to watch this year. Jeff Blashill will have considerably more talented pieces to work with in his second campaign with the club compared to the previous season. Of course, Connor Bedard remains the Blackhawks' centerpiece. Much has also been made about the main summer additions of Bowen Byram and Patrick Kane. The rookies of Anton Frondell and Roman Kantserov have received their fair share of spotlight as well. Frank Nazar, Nick Lardis, Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel are among those who have been pegged as young players that can take major steps forward this year.

But what about those less obvious dark horse candidates on this team that could be primed for big seasons? These are some players who appear to be flying under the radar as the new season approaches.

Ryan Greene

If you were to poll Blackhawks fans on who would lead the way when it came to rookie production on last year's squad, Ryan Greene would probably have finished last on the list. In a first-year class that included Oliver Moore, Nick Lardis, Levshunov and Rinzel, Greene entered the season as a lesser-known piece. However, Greene placed first among all these players in scoring with 12 goals and 17 assists in 81 games. Granted, there were circumstances that played to his benefit. Oliver Moore had an injury that took him out of action for the last two months. Lardis spent half the year with the Rockford IceHogs. Levshunov also had an injury that caused him to be sidelined for a month. Rinzel bounced around between Rockford and Chicago.

With that said, Greene earned those advantages. There was the question of whether he would even make the team heading into the season. He grabbed a spot after impressing in training camp and never looked back. He earned Blashill's trust, having played nearly every game and made his mark as a Swiss-army knife type player.

It would be fair to expect a less-impressive sophomore year from Greene. He likely won't have to play on the top line with Bedard as much, considering all the additions that have been made to this team. But what if he does stick with Bedard? Most of the Blackhawks players ended the previous season poorly. Greene was not among those players; in fact, he found the back of the net in three straight games to conclude the season. If he is able to carry that momentum into this year and assert himself as the third player on a hypothetical line with Bedard and Kane, Greene could be in a position to thrive. Even if he drops lower in the rotation, who's to say he can't find chemistry with players like Lardis and Moore in the middle of the lineup?

Oliver Moore

Amongst all the noise that has been generated surrounding this Blackhawks team over the summer, Moore is a player that is easy to forget about. His rookie season had an anti-climactic conclusion as he was forced to sit out in the second half due to injury.

The reason to feel optimistic about Moore's chances heading into this upcoming season is the offseason he has had. He was one of the few players who stood out in the World Championships this past May for Team USA. Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk had high praise for Moore's game, calling him a "future stud player." In addition to his USA duties, Moore also trained with Bedard in Florida earlier in the summer.

Moore has clearly been putting in the work as he readies for his sophomore campaign. He had a decent rookie year with five goals and 14 assists in 51 games. Let's remind ourselves that this is a former 2023 first-round draft pick who was touted as a steal for Chicago by many prospect experts. Taking Moore's caliber into account, he can do much better than those totals. The speed at his disposal, coupled with his release and playmaking vision, shows that the offensive ceiling is there. Moore will probably draw in somewhere like a third-line role this season. Perhaps this could be good for him, as he may be a guy that teams overlook.

Wyatt Kaiser

Wyatt Kaiser was arguably the Blackhawks' best defenseman last season, as he was one of the few reliable players on a young D-core that struggled. He recorded six goals and 11 assists in 77 games on the backend. Somehow, Kaiser still remains underrated at this point. Byram and Alex Vlasic will be counted on the most on defense. Levshunov and Rinzel have more pressure based on their draft status. Amongst the field, Kaiser is easy to overlook once again.

This will be an important season for Kaiser as he heads into a contract year with a chance to earn the bag next summer. What kind of further strides can he make in his development? The defensive side of his game is on point. With the smooth-skating ability and wrister that he possesses, it feels like there is an untapped offensive side of his game that has not been reached yet.

Kevin Korchinski

Many in the Blackhawks fandom have written off Kevin Korchinski. The 2022 seventh overall selection's development has taken longer than expected. Count the writer of this article as someone who remains a skeptic of him. Having said that, it is hard to deny that Korchinski is the dictionary definition of a dark horse player. He still needs a new contract and is on the outside looking in when it comes to the defensive depth chart at number seven in the rotation.

There is the question of whether Korchinski will even feature on this team after two seasons that have mostly been spent in the minors. He also has Ethan Del Mastro to contend with for that last spot on the defense. But let's be optimistic for a moment and say Korchinski finally earns himself an everyday spot in the lineup. The motivation should be there in what could be a make-or-break season for him. If Korchinski wants to play a big part on this future core, the time is now or never.

Drew Commesso

Drew Commesso is another player who may not make the team out of camp. He is the current third-stringer in net behind Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom. It could be a fourth season in Rockford for Commesso, but there is a path for him to make the show this season. If Soderblom struggles, the team should not hesitate to call him up. Commesso has impressed in his brief showings at the NHL level. He looks ready to step up; how many more years of data do we need on Soderblom to show that he is not the team's backup of the future?

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