Blackhawks placing Arvid Söderblom on waivers raises questions on what comes next

With the aftermath of a 9-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, and a 4-13-1 record that has them sitting at second-worst in the NHL, it was assumed that something was going to change before the Chicago Blackhawks next game against the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 12.

On Nov. 8, the Blackhawks placed backup goaltender Arvid Söderblom on waivers. It was first reported by Scott Powers of The Athletic.

This move is surprising and not at the same time. Of all the paths I thought they might decide to take, I was not expecting this move.

However, it felt like Söderblom had one foot out the door with the Blackhawks. He is in the final year of a two-year contract ($2.75 million cap hit), and after the Blackhawks gave Drew Commesso a two-year deal over the summer, it felt like it was setting up to be Soderblom's last season with the team.

But it didn't seem like that would maybe be looked at further until the trade deadline or the summer.

What putting Söderblom on waivers could mean

This move does bring new storylines. The Blackhawks have a lot of struggles throughout their lineup, and according to JFresh, their team goaltending currently ranks 30th in the NHL. Furthermore, their goals-against per game currently ranks second-worst (4.22).

However, it is hard to put much blame on goalies Spencer Knight and Söderblom, as the team's defensive struggles have them under siege on many nights.

Even captain Connor Bedard stood up for his goalies after the loss to the Hurricanes: "It's embarrassing to lose like that. I mean, we give up nine... especially when we leave our goalies to dry like that, and the way they play for us, battle for us, it's hard, and any guy would say the same that tonight was tough..."

As for Söderblom, he has been hot and cold. He has his moments when he looks excellent, but other nights have not been as strong. He has a 0-3-1 record this season with a 4.67 goals-against average and an .842 save percentage.

An example of the ups and downs came after the Blackhawks 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Nov. 5, head coach Jeff Blashill said about Söderblom: "At the end of the day, I think there's probably a few there that he'd like to have back, but as a group, we're going to win or lose as a team, and so, there's mistakes made throughout the game, and [we] got to stick together."

Again, the team in front of the goalies has struggled, but with putting Söderblom on waivers, it might signal the quickest way for them to help the team, depending on whether they have something up their sleeve.

Because he was placed on waivers, it makes me wonder if general manager Kyle Davidson was shopping him but wasn't finding much luck on the market. Insider Elliotte Friedman reported that Davidson has been active.

But the most interesting part of this, and it was something that Mario Tirabassi of CHGO pointed out, is that it clears up $1.875 million in cap space.

With the reports of Davidson exploring the trade market, and with the Söderblom news, it raises more questions about whether there will be a follow-up to this move.

And despite the fluctuations, Söderblom can be an effective backup. So, we'll see if he gets claimed. If not, he'll likely go to the Rockford IceHogs.

Overall, goaltending wasn't the team's biggest concern in the grand scheme of things. But it signals a quick way to clear cap space and create a path for Commesso, who they were likely going to give runway to as Knight's backup soon, anyway.

What comes next is to be determined.

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