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Which former Chicago Blackhawks should the team sign or who to avoid in free agency?

This years free agency class is considered to be weaker compared to past and future classes. So is it possible that Kyle Davidson may opt to resign a former Hawk to improve the team this fall?

By Kyle Bokota |
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The Chicago Blackhawks were notorious under their previous general manager for bringing back former players and attempting to rekindle past success.

It sometimes worked out alright, and other times was a disaster. I'm pretty positive that Brandon Saad played here and was traded 17 times. But this is a new front office and they shouldn't avoid doing something that may benefit the team simply because they fear the public perception of such a move. In this article I will examine a few former Blackhawks that I think would make sense to resign this offseason.

Former Blackhawks to avoid

Dominik Kubalik

Look, I may be one of the few people who still actually really likes this player. He is a former 30 goal scorer and those don't grow on trees.

The issue for Kubalik is that the trajectory of his career has steadily been pointing downward since he had the truly magical rookie season alongside Jonathan Toews and Brandon Saad. He is a pure goal-scorer who has struggled mightily to score any goals the past few seasons across multiple different teams.

And while the Hawks desperately need goal-scoring, (and part of me is curious to see a sniper like Kubalik alongside Connor Bedard) I think that at a certain point you have to believe what your eyes are telling you. Sadly I think Kubalik's regression is real. I would avoid bringing him back to Chicago.

Teuvo Teravainen

Teuvo is in an opposite situation to Kubalik. Teravainen has been on an upward trajectory since being traded away from the Hawks back in 2016. Since leaving the Hawks Teravainen has posted four separate 20-goal seasons and he has been an integral part of the highly successful Carolina Hurricanes.

He is a very solid two-way forward who would no doubt substantially improve the Hawks roster for next season. And last season was arguably his best offensive season thus far in his career.

The issue is that he is 29 years old and is no doubt looking for a long-term contract this offseason. For the Hawks to bring him into a rebuilding team in which he would be required to do a bulk of the heavy lifting offensively and defensively for the first several seasons, it would likely be necessary to overpay him as well.

I'm not an expert on these things, but that contract could look something like 7 years at somewhere between $6-$8 million per season. I base that number on the average salaries that borderline elite players like Teuvo have been earning in free agency the past few off-seasons.

Given the Hawks stated intention to avoid giving out long term contracts this offseason, I think that bring Teuvo back simply won't make sense. Again, it isn't a knock on his skill or his fit with the team, simply a calculation based on Davidson's comments about this free agency cycle and the future free agency classes in 2025 and 2026 which have truly elite talent for the Hawks to target.

Kevin Lankinen, Malcolm Subban, and Colin Delia

This coming offseason I do expect the Hawks to be in on a veteran goaltender to challenge Arvid Soderblom for the backup position. With so many former Blackhawks goalies, it may make some sense to go with a player that you know and avoid the potential headache of swinging and missing on a different free-agent goaltender.

However, the fact that we know exactly what each of these three netminders can do is the reason I would avoid them. We know that at their apex these are either AHL starting goalies (Subban and Delia) or NHL backup goalies (Lankinen).

I would rather the Hawks spend their money trying someone new to fill their backup spot so that we may be pleasantly surprised with their play and potentially turn them into an asset down the road.

Furthermore, Davidson has shown the ability to scout good quality goaltending from the rubbage pile before. Remember, Petr Mrazek was viewed as an unplayable goaltender when Toronto traded him to the Hawks along with a first-round pick which was necessary just to get rid of him!

Now, Mrazek is the obvious starter in Chicago and a fan favorite. remember also how well Alex Stalock played in Chicago. Speaking of which...

Former Blackhawks to bring back

Alex Stalock

I know that I just said that we should get a new face in the goalie room to see if we can turn that player into a future asset. However, if the Hawks were to go with a former Blackhawks goalie to add to their rotation next season, Stalock would be my choice. He was excellent in Chicago, and while I don't think a GM should always operate in this manner, he would be a wonderful locker-room guy.

Teammates of his adore him, and fans do as well. He was even nominated for the Masterton trophy in 2023, which is an award given to, "The player that best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey."

Last season Stalock played 15 games for the San Diego Gulls (The Anaheim Ducks AHL affiliate team) and he posted a .888 save percentage..

Yikes. But listen, that would be an upgrade over Arvid Soderblom from last season. So, if you resign Stalock he is a goalie that Soderblom can compete with and very likely beat out for the primary backup position.

But in a pinch, he can start NHL games for you. In 2022-2023 with the Blackhawks, he played 27 games and posted a .908 Save percentage which is right around the league average. With Mrazek as the clear starter and Soderblom slated to factor into the rotation as well, Stalock would likely only need to give the Hawks 10-15 games next season maximum. I think he would be a good signing as a third-string goalie.

Patrick Kane

I have gone back and forth on this, and back and forth some more. I sincerely see both sides of the argument.

On the one hand, he would potentially make things awkward for a young core of players who have been trying to establish their own post-dynasty identity within Chicago. Bringing Kane in would no doubt lead to many of those young players feeling that the talk of moving on to something new and leaving the past behind was just talk.

On the other hand, Kane is an aging superstar but still an elite NHL winger, who would be a massive upgrade to this roster and could teach Bedard a lot about the responsibility of carrying a franchise to Stanley Cups. Remember that Kane was essentially a point-per-game player last season on a very good Detroit team with serious playoff aspirations. Teams still view Kane as a legitimate top-line player and I think that the Blackhawks should at least consider him.

While Kyle Davidson has again shut these rumors down and it now seems highly unlikely that Kane will be making a return to the Hawks, I think that if Kane has a desire to return they should let him. It would likely fit Davidson's timeline perfectly, and Kane also represents exactly what Davidson said he would be looking for in the offseason.

Davidson should not be such a strict adherent to his philosophy that he blindly rejects the prospect of reuniting with Kane, even if such a reunion would equate to a substantial improvement in the team. If the goal is short-term improvement without handing out long-term contracts so as not to hamper the future salary cap, then signing Kane would make a lot of business sense.

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