Three changes that must happen for the Blackhawks in 2022

The Chicago Blackhawks 2021-22 season has featured a lot of treading water right now. The team started off the year very poorly but has since built their way to an 11-15-4 record in the tough Central Division. The Blackhawks season has been flawed, but they are in a better position today than when the year started under Colliton.

Under Derek King the Blackhawks are 10-6-2, not bad for a team that was 1-9-2 under Jeremy Colliton. King might not be the long term answer, but he has done his best during the short term. The team still has a long way to go, so let's talk about three things that need to change for the Blackhawks in 2022. The first thing should not come as a surprise.

1. Kirby Dach Gets Going

Kirby Dach has done his best throjugh his first three season in the NHL. After a strong first season putting up eight goals and 15 assists in 2019-20, he went to the playoffs with the Hawks and was arguably the team's best forward during that time. The forward followed that season up with a wrist injury and only got in 18 games putting up ten points during that time.

This past season has seen Dach miss out on a lot of great opportunities. He has his heightist amount of ice time in his career averaging 19:20 a night and his lowest point total only registering 13 points through 30 games.

The young center still has a lot of time to get back on track, but one not so promising stat is the fact that his face off percentage is at a career low, he is averaging 32.7 percent of his face-offs coming back in a win, which is not great. For example during his last game he took ten face-offs against the Dallas Stars, he won just two of those draws.

Face-offs are often looked at as not that important, and while they might not directly determine a game they do decide who starts with possession, and Dach needs all the benefits he can get. He needs to win more draws for the team.