There's some reasons to feel good about the future. If even half of these guys pan out, it'll be a contender in 3-4 years.

In trying to temper expectations, i'll say 3-4 years might be a bit ambitious to become a cup contender. I'd be more comfortable saying they will be getting back into the playoff picture by then. But, it is certainly possible things could start gelling together that quickly. I'm definitely excited to watch these guys develop. Regardless, they will be a ton of fun to watch.

Do you think Nazar's future is on the wing? Also, don't forget Ludwinski in the mix at C. He's not producing points but there's still a lot to like about his skills.

Well, he also was dealing with injury last year. But, I feel like Dach, Green, and Safonov's futures in the NHL are clearer to me, and I didn't want to add too many players.

I'm excited for the future. I'm curious what happens next year in the UFA market. Not just Matthews...obviously a big player, but if KD starts to target players. They have a TON of cap space and I don't think they'll be a cap floor team for long.

Very similar to what I put together.

https://www.capfriendly.com/armchair-gm/team/4344486

Rinzel is going to be good, flying a bit under the radar but he's exciting for sure.

Nazar is fast, really fast. For that reason, he may play with Moore so someone can give and go with him.

Bedard and Reichel seem quite interesting together.

Where is Soderblom?

I think we are two more seasons of building and then we sneak into the playoffs 3 seasons from now. The cap space the Hawks will have then also makes it quite interesting. If they decide to spend at this time 3 years from now, they certainly can do some damage in the playoffs. In 4 years a legitimate cup contender.

Love it. Artyom Levshunov is also looking like a stud defenseman the Hawks should take if they get a top five pick in 2024.

The reason I threw out 3-4 years as a window to be a contender is that one might expect in 2-3 years, when this group of young guys arrives, the team will be in pretty good shape to go after some meaningful veteran FA / trade targets. The cap is clean. I'm not saying they're going to sign Auston Matthews right away, but if Bedard and Nazar and Moore look like the real deal, one or two big acquisitions could make this team dangerous real fast.

Korchinski as well. He's a huge piece to making this work. If he doesn't live up to a top line player 2 seasons from now, we are back another year.

I forgot to address your Nazar question in my response. I think one of Nazar or Moore's futures is on the wing. I believe they will both be top 6 forwards and there is only room for two centers in the top 6, obviously. And I believe Moore is more of a true center, comparatively. We'll see, though. That is all a long way away. Either of them could end up being good 3rd line forwards too. I also think all the speculation about Bedard maybe not being a center is wrong. He is a center. Hands down, IMO.

Yeah. He's certainly interesting. But I think he is overblown because of his size. I honestly don't see there being as much to like about him as there is with Mews, outside of his size. To me, Mews SCREAMS #1 modern defenseman. I went back and compared his D -1 year to guys like Jiricek, Nemec, and even Makar, etc., and no one touches his production, reliability, and poise at such a young age. We'll see how his draft year goes, though.

Idk. That is a lot of pressure on him. Even some of the best players can take a year or two (or more, especially defensemen) to acclimate to the NHL, and I doubt he is even in the NHL full time until the 24-25 season. He needs to go back next season and work on honing his defensive game, mature some, and probably put on more muscle, IMO. If he could go to the AHL, I would say that is the better option, but he can't because of the transfer agreement with the CHL, unless Seattle agree's that is best for his development and is willing to come to an agreement with CHI, which I doubt will happen.

Ya know, before the draft, I was thinking CHI might need to target one of the big free agent centers next year or the year after. But now, I don't think they do. I think if they dip into free agency, they can focus elsewhere. Center is probably something we can wait longer to address if it becomes apparent that none of Bedard, Moore, Nazar, or any of the other centers we have, can play a top 6 role.

Yeah. Rinzel was not on my radar at all at last years draft. But after watching him in dev camp, I was more than convinced. He's gonna be good. And being at Minnesota should only serve to reinforce that, considering their development program.

Nazar is definitely fast. Which is why I thought separating the two might be more efficient and add some speed to the top line with Bedard. Not that Bedard is "slow", be he isn't quite like Moore, Korchinski, or Nazar, in the skating department.

Bedard and Reichel could be interesting. We'll see. I like the idea of it, but I think the natural evolution of the roster will end up with those two sort of leading their own lines.

I'd be willing to bet Soderblom is traded as soon as he hits his stride in the NHL, or he bottoms out and is forgotten and goes back to Europe or something along those lines. I think Commesso and Gajan are the future in goal for CHI.

I agree with your anticipating two more seasons of building. I definitely think 3 years is when CHI starts to rise. Although, I doubt that cap space is used in free agency as much as people are anticipating. They want to build from within. I think they will continue this trajectory of bringing in veterans on short term deals to get to the cap floor and save as much space as possible for guys like Bedard, Korchinski, Reichel, Nazar, Moore, etc. There might even be a few surprises in there that require decent pay days too, like Del Mastro, Dach, Misiak, Kantserov, plus whoever else we draft between now and then and everyone else in the system that could pop off in the right situation. They really can't afford to get wrapped up in the UFA game like so many teams do. I could see them going after one or two long term KEY pieces in free agency at some point, though. Like a Hossa type of acquisition, or an Oduya type of deal. Otherwise it'll be mostly short term role players, unless they get a good role player from within and can get them locked in at a reasonable cap hit with term, like an Engvall type of contract.

I agree but I also think KK has the least uncertainty of all the prospects except Bedard. It'll be more of a surprise if he *doesn't* turn into a top pairing guy than if he does.

Maxim Shalunov!!!

I doubt he goes back to Seattle. I believe, because he is outplaying the juniors and can't go to the AHL, they will bring him up and shelter him for now in the NHL. It isn't a bad move if he's sheltered and will have a couple years adjusting during a tanking rebuild so the pressure isn't on him to perform.

It will be fun to watch now that we have a clear direction. I'm not high on Dach, just to throw that out there. Maybe he's a bottom 6 contributor, but watching him, I think he's got a lot to do to bring his game into a smooth all around game. Seems to much like he's forcing situations and things not coming naturally in the juniors. Just throwing that out there.

He is outplaying the juniors offensively. He needs to hone his defensive game, though. And next year will probably be the perfect opportunity to do so, considering everyone that is leaving Seattle. Bringing him to the NHL and sheltering him seems like a bad idea to me. He needs to be playing big minutes in all situations and focusing on the defensive side of the game. Plus, he is almost a sure thing, this year sending him back gives CHI an opportunity to figure out what they have in all these other LHD, Kaiser, Vlasic, Phillips, Roos, Del Mastro, Allan, etc., and then they should be able to plug him in immediately.

There is no reason to rush Korchinski, he still has plenty he can work on, IMO. But, we'll see in camp, if he's ready, he is ready, I guess. I noticed a lot of risky plays and passes that won't fly in the NHL, a lot of him putting himself in vulnerable situations that also won't fly in the NHL, a lot of rushed exits, etc. Part of playing with speed and pace is knowing when to use it and seeing ahead of the play. I know everyone is looking for excitement, but rushing these guys is the worst thing we can do for them and the future of the Blackhawks. They could always try to negotiate with Seattle and see if they will let him go to the AHL for the betterment of his development, but that is probably a long shot.

I think that is a poor assessment of Dach. But to each their own. After watching him in the last couple Hawks camps and with Kelowna before he was traded, got hurt, and got hurt again, he was a beast to play against and all over the ice. I think maybe what you were seeing was him trying to jump right back in and make a difference on a team with championship and memorial cup aspirations, after missing all that time. I think he has a real shot at being an important piece for CHI, or at least having himself a great NHL career wherever he ends up.

Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't end up being a #1 or top pairing d-man. I might be a little disappointed if he isn't a top 4 d-man, though. The high octane offense can only get you so far. He has a lot to work on in terms of his defensive game. Zadina was just put on waivers today, if that tells you anything about the upside of NHL prospects. Not quite the same, but the uncertainty is always there. I think there are more sure things than KK, in terms of having clearer floors for their development. KK is kind of boom or bust in that, he needs to be a big minutes top pairing defender or, sad to say, he probably won't have much of a career otherwise. Gustafsson, for example, could contribute all the offense in the world and still hasn't been able to carve out a real long term role with any team he has been with, or get himself a decent pay day.

I think he projects like Thomas Chabot at worst, a guy who you think "Wow he's pretty good" and "He's not as good as he could be" in equal measures.

Yeah, maybe. We'll see. He seems like a great kid and I definitely have high hopes for him. I think he could become a superstar defenseman. So maybe that picture in my head skews my perception of the gap between his ceiling and his floor.

We'll see of course, but Dach needs to be a lot more physical then he is to be a successful two way guy which is what he at least should become. I project him to be a bottom 6 player which is fine, but again, not high on him playing a big role or being able to play effectively in a top 6 role.