While the hockey world focuses on the Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers, the Chicago Blackhawks are laying relatively low. That is at least until the end of June and the 2024 NHL Draft, where they hold the No. 2 overall pick. But there’s always news in the hockey world, even in the offseason. Let’s touch on some of the latest tidbits coming out of Chicago.
Davidson on Draft Pick Swap
The Chicago Tribune’s Phil Thompson recently spoke with Blackhawks’ general manager Kyle Davidson about a number of things, the upcoming draft being one of them. The Blackhawks and New York Islanders announced a draft-pick trade over a month before the draft, on May 24. This entailed the Blackhawks giving up a second-round pick (61st) to the Islanders, but they then upgraded from the 20th overall selection to the 18th, and from the 54th pick to the 50th.
Usually this kind of trade doesn’t happen until the day of the draft, so it created some noise when it was announced. What could be the reasoning behind this? Do the Blackhawks have someone particular in mind they feel won’t be available at the 20th pick? Is another big trade package a possibility? Davidson admitted he’s found it rather humorous to hear all the speculation. But it doesn’t sound like there’s anything too secretive going on. Said Davidson,
To us it was just our internal information indicated that it was an improvement in value, and so we did it. You’re correct, a second(-rounder), no matter how late a pick, is not nothing. Having said that, we do have a lot of picks. … We just felt that the picks we’re receiving have a better asset value package than the ones we were sending out.
(from ‘What’s the real reason behind the draft-pick trade? 4 things we learned from Chicago Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson’, The Chicago Tribune – 6/1/24)
It truly was a matter of quality versus quantity. To the organization, it made sense to give up a pick in order to move up two spots in the first round and four spots in the second round. But the GM admitted he didn’t have a specific player in mind for either selection.
It was just strictly, in our opinion, we were more likely to improve our chances of finding legit NHL players at 18 and 50 than (at) 20, 54 and 61.
You never know how the drafts are going to go. Whether you’re three minutes from someone making a pick or we’re 30 days from someone making a pick, I don’t know who anyone’s going to pick. I don’t know how it’s going to fall. … I’d be lying if I said that I knew what was going to be there at 18 versus 20.
While it’s a lot more fun to think Davidson has something up his sleeve, it sounds like this was simply the smart and logical thing to do. Now we wait to see what players these picks turn out to be.
Could Patrick Kane Return to the Blackhawks?
While we’re on the subject of conspiracy theories, a report came out from The Athletic that the Blackhawks could consider re-signing franchise icon Patrick Kane. Brooke actually wrote about this last week, but I wanted to give my two cents about this very interesting report.
There was a question about Kane possibly returning posed by a few readers, leading one to believe this is just wishful thinking by the fans. But senior staff writer Scott Powers didn’t discredit the idea. In fact, he thinks the Blackhawks will certainly do their due diligence and reach out to Kane. (from ‘Any chance of a Patrick Kane return to the Blackhawks? Mailbag, Part 2’, The AthleticCHI – 5/23/24)
Powers added he thinks Kane would be open to the idea, since he’s so comfortable both on and off the ice in Chicago. Plus, he’d certainly like to try to beat Stan Mikita’s franchise point record (he’d need 243 more points).
The real sticking point seems to be whether the Blackhawks’ brass and Kane could agree on a timetable for Kane to retire. How much longer does he want to play? Would it be just one or two more seasons? The Blackhawks certainly wouldn’t want to be pushing Kane out, or be stuck in a waiting game (like they were in the 2022-23 season) for Kane to make a decision. As Powers stated, they would want it to be “a mutual and fair timetable for his last dance.”
Plus, there’s still the concern that the younger players would defer to Kane too much, or that he would be taking the place of a prospect who’s ready to step into an NHL role.
Related – Blackhawks’ Latest Signings Misiak & Sanford Can Have an Impact in 2024-25
I personally think there are too many variables in play here for this to come to fruition. If anything, Kane will retire a Blackhawk on a one-day contract upon his retirement. But it’s interesting to hear that a more impactful reunion could even be a possibility. Stranger things have happened. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Kendall Coyne Schofield Is a Champion!
There’s some big news coming out of the women’s hockey world, with Blackhawks’ Development Coach Kendall Coyne Schofield at the forefront. Schofield is also the captain of PWHL Minnesota, one of six teams that formed the Professional Women’s Hockey League in August of 2023.
This new professional women’s hockey league enjoyed a very successful first season, culminating in Schofield and Team Minnesota raising the Walter Cup for the first time.
Kendall Coyne Schofield is the first player to ever lift the Walter Cup. She was a key pillar in the foundation of the league and fought so hard to make it happen. What a great full-circle moment. pic.twitter.com/5OTwVWvCg2
— Bridgette Proulx (@bridgetteproulx) May 30, 2024
My THW colleague, Mariah Stark (Holland), has covered this inaugural season for the PWHL. In her own words, she describes the importance of this newly developed league for women’s hockey.
One of the reasons this league was created was to provide a future for women in hockey. After college, if they didn’t make an Olympic or National-level team, there often was little for them to do, at least in North America. However, now those players have somewhere to play, and young girls have a chance to chase a dream.
Personally, I’ve been a fan of Coyne-Schofield ever since I saw her play at a charity event near my home in August of 2017. I’ve followed the Palos Heights native on her path as a member of Team USA, becoming a development coach for the Blackhawks, having a baby, and now being captain of PWHL Minnesota.
It just goes to show you that good things happen to people that work hard and follow their dreams!
Bedard’s Experience at the Worlds
Which is a suitable segue to the newest face of the Blackhawks’ franchise, Connor Bedard. Interestingly enough, after starting the 2024 IIHF World Championships with an impressive five goals in the first three games (representing Team Canada), the 18-year-old was humbled a little bit as the tournament progressed.
The Worlds is, after all, a men’s tournament, and there was a level of intensity and physicality that is more similar to the NHL playoffs. This is something Bedard hasn’t experienced before.
He handled it admirably, not shying away from contact, but his offensive skills were somewhat neutralized in this environment. He also accumulated a number of penalties, leading head coach André Tourigny to go with more experienced players down the stretch. Bedard found himself deployed as the 13th forward.
Nonetheless, the North Vancouver, British Columbia native did manage a couple of primary assists in the playoff round, and was the only player to score in a shootout against netminder Leonardo Genoni of Team Switzerland. It’s safe to say Bedard learned from the experience. Said Coach Tourigny after the team played Finland,
It was a good learning experience, I will say, for him (Bedard). He didn’t have a lot of time and space. They were on top. It’s a team that really closes the middle. There’s no seam play. It’s really ‘dig in and go at the net and get a rebound and body position and be physical’ against those kinds of teams. It’s a little bit like playoff hockey for the NHL, so that’s a different game.
(from ‘How Connor Bedard handled his first worlds: Bright Spotlight, hard hockey and awkward questions’, The AthleticCHI – 5/27/24)
While some may be disappointed in Bedard’s rather unspectacular performance at the Worlds, he still finished fourth on the team in scoring, with eight points in 10 games. This was while averaging less than 13 minutes of ice time. Not bad for one of the youngest players at the tournament, experiencing it for the first time.
It most certainly will give the youngster experience to draw on moving forward. This, of course, will also help the Blackhawks.
Related – Blackhawks Offseason Looks to Have Big Changes for 2024-24
It’s a long wait until September and training camp for the Blackhawks. But the draft and free agency will be exciting, and give us a better idea of what the 2024-25 roster will look like. While we wait, we’ll keep you updated on all the latest news and rumors. Keep it here at The Hockey Writers, and we hope you’re enjoying your summer!
