FanSided

Chicago Blackhawks Player Preview: Teuvo Teravainen makes his return to the Windy City

This is a player that the former GM should have kept but sadly had to trade to get Bryan Bickell's bad contract off the books.

By Ethan Gawronski |
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Chicago Blackhawks v Nashville Predators / Ronald C. Modra/GettyImages
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Among all of the moves the Chicago Blackhawks made this offseason, one of the most anticipated arrivals is the return of forward Teuvo Teravainen.

The Finnish winger was inked to a 3-year deal worth $5.4 million per year back in July, making him a major addition to a young Blackhawks' roster.

Teravainen was drafted 18th overall in the 2012 NHL Draft by the Blackhawks. He would play two seasons for Jokerit in the Finnish professional league (Liiga) before coming to North America full-time during the 2014-15 season.

As a 20-year-old, Teravainen split time between the Blackhawks and the Rockford IceHogs (AHL) as he worked on developing and adapting his skillset to the North American ice surface. His debut season saw him post nine points in 34 games, but Teravainen took off in the 2015 playoffs where he tallied 10 points in 18 games.

After playing in 78 games for the Blackhawks in 2015-16, Teravainen was traded alongside Bryan Bickell to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a second-round pick in 2016 and a third-round pick in 2017.

This move was made so the Blackhawks to clear up Bryan Bickell's $4 million dollar contract which had one year left on the deal. The fan response to this trade left many wondering why the team would give up one of their promising young forwards to clear up a contract with one season remaining.

Teravainen has been gone for quite some time.

To put it into perspective, the last time he was a member of the Blackhawks; Patrick Kane won the Hart and Art Ross trophies, Artemi Panarin had just won the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie, Corey Crawford led the team with a 35-18-5 record and .924 save percentage, and the Blackhawks were one season removed from their third Stanley Cup in six seasons.

During his time in Carolina, Teravainen became a core member of a roster looking to turn a corner when he was acquired in 2016. In eight seasons with the Hurricanes, Teravainen surpassed 60 points four different times, with 76 points being his career-high in the 2018-19 season.

Teravainen returns with even more playoff experience than when he left. After missing the playoffs during his first two seasons in Carolina, the team has made the postseason for six consecutive seasons.

During those six seasons, Teravainen accumulated 65 playoff games where he totaled 39 points.

Teravainen returns to Chicago in a different position than before. He is now the veteran who will help to guide the young players.

The Blackhawks have an influx of young talent waiting to have their chance in the NHL, and some may get that opportunity this season. Adding an experienced player like Teravainen will provide value to the team on and off the ice.

It is no surprise that Teravainen will be a member of the Blackhawks' top-six this season. A player with his skill is a much needed addition to a roster that was decimated by injuries last season, resulting in one of the NHL's lowest scoring offenses.

Despite being more of a pass-first player, Teravainen is coming off a career-high 25 goals, the fourth time in his career he's surpassed the 20-goal plateau. His playmaking abilities have always been prevalent in his game as he possesses a high hockey IQ and has strong vision on the ice to complement that.

In addition to his 20-goal seasons, Teravainen has also eclipsed 40 assists and 60 points four times in his career.

Aside from being a strong point producer, Teravainen also brings consistent two-way play to the Blackhawks. He is a defeensively responsible forward who could find himself becoming a top penalty-killer this season in Chicago.

Teravainen not only fills a void for the Blackhawks currently but also showcases a play style that they are implementing for the future.

In Carolina, Head Coach Rod Brind 'Amour's teams are hard-working, relentless, and forecheck hard. Teravainen spent six seasons under Brind 'Amour and succeeded in his system as a strong forechecking forward despite not having record-breaking speed.

Blackhawks' Head Coach Luke Richardson has been adamant on his players being tenacious and tough to play against, reminiscent of the philosophies of Brind 'Amour. This should make Teravainen fit in nicely with the roster.

Whether Teravainen will play alongside Connor Bedard is yet to be known, but training camp and preseason will give more clarity to that.

Bedard spent a lot of last season with Philipp Kurashev on his wing, leading to a breakout performance from the Swiss winger. Adding Teravainen gives the Blackhawks many more options with their lines, as the depth up-front is a lot stronger than last season.

Teravainen at 5-on-5 is going to bring more stability on both ends of the ice, whether that be on the first line or elsewhere. He will also be an added presence on the special teams units, especially the powerplay.

He should be on the first unit to start the season, giving the Blackhawks a much-needed addition to their man advantage.

Given that Teravainen will be given a lot of opportunities in his return to the Blackhawks, we project him with 21 goals and 43 assists for 64 points.

Last season, the Blackhawks were in desperate need of another goal scorer on their roster. Teravainen is going to be in a position where he can be a dual-threat offensively and can replicate his 25-goal performance from last season, or come close to it.

It should be a very exciting season for Blackhawks' fans, and adding a former fan-favorite to help propel the team into a new era is giving the city of Chicago even more to look forward to.

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