Morning Chirps: Chelios talks Blackhawks expectations, Price's contract on the block

Good morning and welcome to the first batch of Morning Chirps here on Blackhawk Up! Some of you might already be familiar with this daily feature. Every single morning, I’ll keep you abreast of all the Chicago Blackhawks news and top National Hockey League stories with some quick hits. In addition to news, I like to throw in some fun things from social media, cool stats and highlights, and some Blackhawks history. If you don’t spend all day refreshing your social media feed looking for stories, Morning Chirps will be your go-to source for everything you need to know about what’s going on in the world of hockey. Without further ado, here are your Monday Chirps!

Blackhawks Chirps

• This morning, I introduced myself to those of you who may not be familiar with my work. I am excited to get started and help bring you the best Blackhawks coverage every single day.

• Todd Welter gives us five players who will matter just as much as Connor Bedard during the 2025-26 Blackhawks season. When Alex Vlasic is the veteran of his five players, that should get you excited about the youth movement on the roster.

• Did the Blackhawks draft a 4000-yard passer before the Chicago Bears did? Mason West, the Blackhawks' third first-round pick last June, threw four touchdown passes in his season debut for Edina High School. While it’s great to see him succeed, maybe turn it down a bit. We don’t want any of those pesky college football programs sniffing around with their scholarships!

• Speaking of prospects, Todd Matthews thinks Sacha Boisvert will give Blackhawks fans reasons to celebrate this season. The 2024 first-round pick transferred to Boston University after a successful freshman season at the University of North Dakota. He could take the same path that guys like Sam Rinzel, Oliver Moore, and Ryan Greene took last year and make his NHL debut before the regular season concludes.

• Did you watch Happy Gilmore 2 this summer? If you did, you likely noticed the cameo by Blackhawks Hall of Famer Chris Chelios. Ben Pop of the Chicago Sun-Times spoke with Chelios about his big-screen debut and his expectations for the upcoming season.

• Blackhawks Birthday Roll Call, September 1: Norm Maciver.

NHL Chirps

• According to Marco D’Amico of RG.org, the Montreal Canadiens might be close to trading goaltender Carey Price’s contract. He has one year left on his deal with a $10.5 million salary cap hit. The Canadiens aim to clear cap space so they can maintain flexibility during the season. D’Amico lists the Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks, and Blackhawks as potential trade partners. That makes sense, as they are three young teams that have a ton of space. The Blackhawks acquired the contract of defenseman Shea Weber last March, so it’s unlikely they will add another expiring contract for a player who will never suit up.

• Former Blackhawks defenseman Calvin De Haan hasn’t secured an NHL contract this summer and could be heading overseas to continue his playing career. Johan Svensson of Expressen reports that Brynäs IF of the Swedish Hockey League is aggressively pursuing the veteran blueliner. De Haan was acquired by the Blackhawks in 2019 from the Carolina Hurricanes for Anton Forsberg and Gustav Forsling. He scored six goals and 24 points in his 142 games over three seasons with Chicago.

• Winnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey told Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Free Press that he has fully recovered from the left knee injury he suffered during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He revealed that he will not have any restrictions heading into training camp later this month.

• NHL Birthday Roll Call, September 1: Didier Pitre, Jimmy Ward, Alan Haworth, Brian Bellows, Mats Zuccarello, Gustav Nyqvist, Tomas Nosek, and Nathan MacKinnon