Projecting which Blackhawks players will receive contract extensions in the 2024 offseason

The Chicago Blackhawks have enough cap space for general manager Kyle Davidson to take the organization in the direction of his choosing. There are a lot of Blackhawks players due to be re-signed this offseason, a blend of restricted and unrestricted free agents, but come July 1st, a few more players will become eligible to receive extensions. 

Since the Blackhawks weren’t a good team in 2023-24, you may ask whether anyone deserves to sign a new deal this summer or if Davidson would be better off making them prove themselves during the season. For most players who made this list, the latter will be the case, but there may be one mentioned who shouldn’t surprise fans if they landed an extension between July 1st and mid-October. 

So, which players will become eligible for a new contract when roughly the three-month mark before the preseason begins? Let’s explore five names and whether it’s worth Davidson’s time and effort to hand them a new deal.

Ryan Donato

The middle-six and, ideally, the lower lines should suit Ryan Donato better than anything else, and players like him typically don’t receive extensions right when they become eligible. The winger did attain a career-high in assists with 18 this past season and snagged 30-plus points for just the second time in his career. But heading into his age-28 season and likely moving down the lineup at some point, it’s hard to see Donato signing a new deal this summer. 

Instead, look for the hard-hitting forward to either earn a new contract during the season or, more likely, at some point thereafter. Although he’s neither a big-time scorer nor a game-changer, Donato is still young and physical enough of a player to be part of this team’s core for the rest of the decade. It’s an underrated notion, but he would provide value to the team’s lower lines. 

Landon Slaggert

Landon Slaggert saw just 16 games with the Blackhawks, averaging 11:16 of average total ice time, scoring one goal, and logging four points. He proved to be physical with 16 hits, and he was a pest defensively with a sound six takeaways, but Slaggert didn’t do anything of worth for Kyle Davidson to rush a potential extension. 

Instead, look for Slaggert to see more time with the Blackhawks for 2024-25, and he will likely get a qualifying offer as a restricted free agent. The only way he would sign an extension during the season would be if he spent most of his time with the Blackhawks and made an incredible jump in production. 

Andreas Athanasiou

If Andreas Athanasiou hadn’t spent most of the 2023-24 season battling hip and groin injuries, he could have been a strong candidate to sign an extension this summer or in the early fall. Looking at his 2022-23 numbers, Athanasiou recorded 58 takeaways, 16 minutes of average total ice time, and he finished the year with 20 goals and 40 points, setting the stage for a bigger 2023-24.

This past season, he saw time in 28 games and could never get going offensively, though he was still stealing pucks and serving as a decent asset at even strength, where his on-ice save percentage was a respectable 91.0. If Athanasiou stays healthy and plays the way he did in 2022-23, he will sign a new, likely short-term deal with the Blackhawks at some point following the 2024-25 season. 

Arvid Soderblom

Arvid Soderblom is one player on this list you may scoff and shake your head at, and it’s understandable: He finished the year with five wins, an 0.879 save percentage, and a 3.92 GAA, regressing from what we saw last season. 

Soderblom isn’t signing an extension this summer or even before the puck drops in October, and he’s the one player on this list who could find himself in a different organization when the 2024-25 NHL season begins.