Schedule Notes as the Blackhawks' Season Winds Down

The 32nd ranked team in the league, the Chicago Blackhawks now have just 25 games remaining in for the 2023-2024 campaign. With Connor Bedard back, at the very least, these matchups should at least be entertaining. Let's dive into the residual:

First off there is almost a clear split as the Blackhawks have 13 home games and 12 road games to finish out the season. Of note is this Sunday's game against the Detroit Redwings as not only will Patrick Kane make his United Center return, but the Chicago Blackhawks will retire Chris Chelios' jersey. Said ceremony will have Blackhawks greats gracing the telecast along with possibly Michael Jordan in attendance.

Bookending this monumental night will be two matchups against some of the league's best in Colorado and Winnipeg. Each team surely has Stanley Cup aspirations and will quickly look to dispatch the league's worst team.

March not only holds the trade deadline, on the 8th of the month, but also some winnable games for Chicago. It begins with a home matchup against Columbus and continues later in the month with the Sharks, Ducks, Coyotes, and Flames all visiting the United Center. Overall, the month of March could potentially be one of the most successful (in the win-loss column) for head coach Luke Richardson and the Blackhawks.

To end the season, the Blackhawks will see contenders in the Golden Knights, Hurricanes, and Kings all look to strengthen their positioning for the playoffs to end the regular season. While an upset is always an option, especially with Connor Bedard on the roster, it looks like the Blackhawks will be selecting in the top 5 of the draft yet again.

March will be an inetersting month to determine this year's draft order. Many of the bottom dwelling teams play eachtoher multiple times in this month and that could go a long way into determining whom drafts Macklin Celebrini (the perceived #1 pick this year). In fact, of current playoff seeded teams, the Blackhawks will play 10 of the 14 matchups in March against teams not currently in the playoffs. Nine of ten against teams currently picking in the top 9 odds of the draft. March may be one of those months that go a long way into a ripple affect for many franchises...