5 Negative Takeaways From the Chicago Blackhawks’ First Half of the Season

Arvid Soderblom failed to become the No. 1 goalie.

The hope coming into this season was Soderblom would secure the top goaltender position in his first full NHL campaign. There were four reasons for that.

The first reason was Petr Mrazek was likely to spend time on injured reserve. Second, Mrazek was set to be an unrestricted free agent and the Hawks could move him at the trade deadline to get some assets back. Third, Soderblom has the talent to be a top goalie. Finally, he is young and still has another year left before he hits restricted free agency.

Well, Mrazek has stayed healthy, and Soderblom has played like a goalie destined to be a backup goalie. His numbers are so bad, that his future forecasts him as just an organizational depth piece who goes back and forth between the AHL and the NHL.

He has -10.3 goals saved above expected which ranks him as one of the worst goalies in the NHL in that category. That is a simple stat that measures the number of goals a goalie can save over an average netminder. Think about that. Soderblom is ten goals worse than an average goalie.

Arvid's biggest issue is he is incapable of making key saves to keep the game from getting out of hand.

With the way the offense has struggled, the team needs a goalie to at least limit the opposition to three goals. Soderblom has had eight games where he has given up four or more goals. That is eight games in 18 starts.

Mrazek was given an extension recently for two years. That lines up when Drew Commesso will be ready for the NHL. It also means Soderblom's chances to be the long-term No. 1 goalie are not very good.