FanSided

3 Reasons To Watch for the Rest of the Season for the Chicago Blackhawks

By Todd Welter |
/ Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
2 of 3
Next

This season is lost for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Injuries have ravaged this team and left it in last place in the Central Division. This season was not going to end with a playoff appearance, but the hope was to avoid having to monitor Tankathon.com every day to see what the team's NHL Draft Lottery odds were.

At this point, you might be better served trying to find out how to watch Boston University games and a chance to catch Macklin Celebrini. He is the prize for the team who wins the draft lottery, and the hope is the Blackhawks win it again.

Seriously, why continue to watch this team since a majority of the forward group is on injured reserve? Well, there are three reasons to tune in every night for the rest of the season.

Connor Bedard's march to win the Calder Trophy.

He has been everything and then some when it comes to living up to the hype. The phenom is must-see television. Even if you are not a Hawks fan, you should tune into a game to see what Connor will do next.

Last season the only reason to watch was to witness the Patrick Kane/Jonathan Toews farewell tour. There was a little bit of glum in doing that.

This season has excitement because of Bedard, even if the Hawks' chances of winning are not so great. He should be a shoo-in to win the Calder Trophy. Tune in to see how he gets there and how many points he finishes with.

Lukas Reichel and Arvid Soderblom trying to bounce back from terrible starts to the season.

The hope by now was Reichel would be playing at a high level and make everyone remember why he was the team's best prospect before Bedard showed up. Instead, he has played like a forgotten prospect.

He has just three goals and five assists through 36 games this season. He had 15 points in 23 games last season. This is a player that has lost his way.

Reichel went from being the second-line center to being moved back to wing. That did not get his game going so he was then a healthy scratch and then demoted to the fourth line. That did not work so he has been bouncing back between the first and fourth line. Aside from an outstanding game against Colorado, he is trending toward a player that is nothing more than a bottom-six forward.

It is going to cost him financially too if he does not get things turned around. He is set to be a restricted free agent after the season. While this poor start is not a reason to give up on a 21-year-old, it is not something you are going to pay beyond a minimum pump pay.

Soderblom has also been a major disappointment. The hope was he would have a firm grasp on the No. 1 goaltender spot, especially with Petr Mrazek set to be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Instead, he is one of the worst netminders in all of hockey.

He did have a solid game in his last start against Nashville. He is being afforded every chance to succeed because the Blackhawks do not have a young goalie ready to play in the NHL. Drew Commesso needs to finish out the season in the AHL and then probably needs another half of a season in Rockford before he is even ready for an emergency call-up.

The hope is the extra work with goaltender coach Jimmy Waite pays off and Soderblom can finish strong.

Alex Vlasic and Kevin Korchinski developing as the blue-line core of the next great Blackhawks team.

Seth Jones' contract is going to make him a part of the next good Hawks team whether we like it or not. The hope coming into this season was some of the team's young defensemen prospects showing they will join him.

Vlasic and Korchinski keep showing night after night that they will be blue-line anchors for years to come. Korchinski was only supposed to get a nine-game taste of the NHL before being sent back to the junior level. He played so well that he is in the NHL to stay.

Vlasic keeps showing that he can be a shutdown defenseman. He has immense size that you like to offset Korchinski and Jones being more slighted towards being better on offense.

Wyatt Kaiser also got a shot at the start of the season to prove he could be part of the future. The first go-around did not go so well. He is getting time in Rockford to refine his game. Isaak Phillips has played hard when he has gotten a chance to see the ice. He has also made his fair of mistakes. Now he is getting a healthy scratch in the last two games.

Vlasic is set to be a restricted free agent after the season, so it will be interesting to see how much he gets paid by the Chicago Blackhawks. One thing is for sure, Korchinski and him are proving they should be with the team for a long time.

manual

Next
Home / Analysis

Schedule