3 roster needs for the Blackhawks to address in the offseason

An Upgraded Backup Goaltender

Goaltending has been a topic of discussion all season for the Blackhawks, especially the backup position. Petr Mrazek has been one of the team's best players all season long which earned him his two-year extension. However, there has been a lot of debate on whether it is time to move on from Arvid Soderblom to bring in a new goaltender behind Mrazek.

Down the stretch, Soderblom showed some improvements in net after working with goaltending coach Jimmy Waite on his fundamentals, but has not had many games that leave Blackhawks fans hopeful for his future in Chicago. There has not been much indication that the Blackhawks are ready to move on from Soderblom, but the addition of another goalie would give the team more options for their backup position.

Jaxson Stauber has been an integral part in the Rockford IceHogs (AHL) clinching a playoff berth in the Calder Cup Playoffs, which could earn him a new contract this summer with the organization and a possibility of battling with Soderblom to be Mrazek's backup. This year's free agent class does not have much goaltending depth, but a netminder like Seattle's Chris Driedger could be an option for the Blackhawks. Driedger played the better part of the last two seasons in the AHL after a knee injury in 2022, but posted a .917 save percentage in two games with the Kraken this season and a .918 with Coachella Valley in the AHL.

The six-foot four inch goaltender could be a cheap option for the Blackhawks this summer to bring more depth to their pool of netminders behind Petr Mrazek who could all be fighting for the Blackhawks backup role next season.