How will Wyatt Kaiser's two-way game grow for the Blackhawks in 2026-27?

Wyatt Kaiser was a bright spot on the Chicago Blackhawks' defense last season. Some uncertainty surrounded how his season would play out as he entered a full-time role on the team.

But he delivered. He had 6 goals and 17 points in 77 games. His six goals were second on the Blackhawks' defense behind Louis Crevier (7), and his 19:37 minutes of ice time ranked third on the team.

His play throughout the year even garnered a hashtag from fans: #wkfc (Wyatt Kaiser Fan Club)

Going into 2026-27, his storyline is if he will keep up those results.

Kaiser's consistency and ability showed

When looking at Kaiser's fit on defense last year, he thrived in every situation. The 24 year old could support other young defensemen on the ice, like Sam Rinzel and Artyom Levshunov. He could play top-pair minutes, and he contributed to their successful penalty kill.

The big thing about him is that he was consistent. Of course, he had his challenging moments, but mainly, he was reliable every night.

The Blackhawks faced the Winnipeg Jets in March, when head coach Jeff Blashill said about Kaiser afterward, "Wyatt’s a bit of a gamer, man. He attacks the game. Love the way that he attacks it. And I thought he was excellent tonight.”

I spoke with Kaiser in January about his confidence, and he was very insightful: "I think… I'd say, the more games we play, and the more things go well or go wrong, there's that confidence in, like, as soon as you step on the ice, you're confident in the decisions you're making, regardless of what anybody tells you... As soon as you step on the ice, it's only you out there making the decisions, right? So, I think as long as you can be confident in that and the decisions that you're making, the reads that you're making, even if, you know, there's mistakes here and there; there's gonna be. But you still have that confidence. Like, even after a mistake, I think, is a big kind of step forward where it's like, okay... I'm still making plays. Like, I'm still confident in my game. So, I think that's the biggest part for me so far."

Kaiser is known for being a strong, fluid skater, and the 17 points he had were a good start, and there is reason to believe the points will grow for him over time.

How Kaiser's game can take the next step in 2026-27

General manager Kyle Davidson said this summer that he believes "offense starts from the back out." The Blackhawks have a lot of two-way ability on their defense next season, especially with the addition of Bowen Byram. So, Kaiser's game should evolve well in that surrounding.

I also spoke with Kaiser about his game: "I tend to say that I'm more of a two-way guy, or, like, I tend to lean towards the defensive side of the game... I mean, my philosophy is winning hockey is defense. Like, you have to shut down their players and then go on offense... And so for a defenseman, that's my role, is shutting down those rushes. You're breaking pucks out, defending first, and then you create the offense after that."

Furthermore, it's clear his skating is always going to be the bread and butter of what he can produce on both sides of the puck.

Blashill talked in March about witnessing what Kaiser learned throughout the season: "I think he's played excellent the last little bit. Back to where he was right before the break. He's done a really good job through the year of learning to use his feet to skate himself out of pressure, and then the balance of when to then make the next play and when to just live another day. And I think he's really learned that well. And if he does that, he's a real talented guy that can create offense without giving much up. And I think he's played pretty well here lately.”

His all-around skill set has strong potential as he grows more into that two-way game. Sometimes, young defensemen can go through up-and-down spurts, but if he carries the consistency he found last season, then the Blackhawks defense will be better for it.

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