10 Thoughts on the Blackhawks’ 2024-25 Season

Donato definitely took advantage of his opportunities this season, playing up and down in the lineup but often-times being deployed with Connor Bedard on the top line and on the top power play unit. He’s now an unrestricted free agent, but he and the Blackhawks are exploring what an extension could look like.

Bedard’s Sophomore Slump?

Can we really call it a sophomore slump? Sure, the expectations were higher for Bedard this season. But he ended the campaign with a bang, notching three goals and seven points in the last four games.

Bedard’s season totals were 23 goals and 44 assists for 67 points in 82 games. His rookie stats were 22 goals, 39 assists and 61 points. That was in 14 less games because of a broken jaw, so technically he under-achieved.

But those stats are still pretty impressive! Bedard tied Tyler Bertuzzi for second on the team in goals, and led the team in assists and points. As a matter of fact, he’s become quite the distributor, which will just be another facet of his game moving forward.

Plus, the 19-year-old dealt with questionable coaching and a ludicrous rotation of linemates. Sure, the entire team dealt with that too, but Bedard is only 19! He now has a better idea of what works and what doesn’t work in this league, and I’m sure he has a laundry list of things to work on in the offseason. This young man is just getting started.

Nazar Looks Legit

Wow, Frank Nazar sure did make a statement this season, didn’t he?! He was called up in mid-December and never looked back. The 21-year-old got off to a bit of a slow start, but he just kept learning and growing and building, and it paid off.

Nazar ended the campaign with an impressive 12 goals and 26 points in 53 games. In his last eight games, he boasted five goals and nine points, including the overtime winner to end the season.

The Michigan native contributed not just on 5-on-5 but on the power play and penalty kill (and overtime!) as well. Plus, he had a respectable 45.4% success rate in the faceoff circle, and his energy, quickness and great instincts stood out above the rest pretty much on every shift. This kid is just dynamic, and is going to be really fun to watch!  

Blackhawks’ Defensive Depth is Strong

The Blackhawks have been known for a while now as having one of the best defensive prospect pools in the NHL, and it’s finally showing up at the NHL level. Surprisingly, the Blackhawks didn’t feel the loss of Seth Jones as expected. Instead, Alex Vlasic stepped up admirably and others fell in right behind him to do their part.

Ethan Del Mastro was the first to be sent back to the Rockford IceHogs in April, but that’s presumably because the organization already knows what they’re getting with him. People also tend to forget about Nolan Allan, who made the team out of training camp and basically played the first half of the season up with the big club.

Then there’s Wyatt Kaiser, who’s becoming more and more consistent with experience. Kevin Korchinski and Artyom Levshunov are both young and need some work, but their ceilings are incredibly high.

Louis Crevier; well his time with the Blackhawks might be limited now that other right-handed D-men Levshunov and Sam Rinzel have arrived on the scene. Crevier is a restricted free agent the Blackhawks might not re-sign.    

The point is the future looks awfully bright on the blue line, and I haven’t even gotten to Rinzel yet!

Rinzel’s Impact Felt Early

The organization was high on their 2022 first round (25^th overall) draft pick, but I’m not sure anyone expected Rinzel to have the impact he did so early on. Making his NHL debut on Mar. 30, he was promoted to the top defensive pairing alongside Vlasic in his second game, and was quarterbacking the top power play unit by his fourth game.

Sure, it’s the end of the season and the Blackhawks want to see what they have in their prospects. So, one could argue this is more of an experiment of sorts. But Rinzel hasn’t just held his own with this deployment; he’s excelled at it. The 20-year-old has essentially become the Blackhawks’ top defenseman overnight!

Rinzel contributed five assists in his first nine NHL games. His average ice time was 23:22 minutes, just under Jones (24:30) and just ahead of Vlasic (23:16) for second place on the team. He’s also one of only two players who finished the season with a positive plus/minus rating; as a plus-1. Forward Ilya Mikheyev was the other with a plus-4. Rinzel has shown that he’s extremely responsible defensively, he distributes the puck well and is calm and poised under pressure. In short, Rinzel’s early impact has been extremely positive.

Goaltending Shows Promise

I’m not sure how general manager Kyle Davidson managed to acquire netminder Spencer Knight from the Florida Panthers while unloading Jones. But he did, and the Blackhawks have made it clear the No. 1 goaltending job is his to lose. Knight comes to the Blackhawks with solid fundamentals; he’s technically sound, he tracks pucks well and he has strong lateral movement. (from ‘Why the Blackhawks are so optimistic about new goalie Spencer Knight’, The AthleticCHI – 3/3/2025)

Plus, Knight seems to have the fortitude and mature mindset to take the reins as a leader for this young team. Here’s a save by Knight from the Blackhawks’ last game of the season versus the Ottawa Senators.

Meanwhile, Arvid Soderblom has had a bounce-back campaign, making a case to be extended (he’s currently a restricted free agent) and serve as the team’s No. 2 guy behind Knight. Veteran goalie Laurent Brossoit is signed for one more season with the Hawks, so that could be a potential issue. We shall see how it all plays out.

Reichel, Kurashev Disappointments This Season

We talked about some breakout players up above, but that can’t be said for Lukas Reichel or Philipp Kurashev. Expectations were definitely higher for these two forwards. Reichel, the 17^th overall pick in the 2020 draft, registered eight goals and 22 points in 70 games. Granted, this is better than last season (5G, 11A, 16P in 65 games), but that wasn’t a very high benchmark to begin with.

Reichel was often-times a healthy scratch, and when he was in the lineup he couldn’t seem to move past the fourth line. The 22-year-old is signed with the Blackhawks through next season, and not all development is linear. I would guess Reichel will have one more campaign to prove himself to the Blackhawks.

Kurashev, on the other hand, is now a restricted free agent, and his seven goals and 14 points in 51 games did nothing to give the organization a reason to re-sign him. The 25-year-old enjoyed a standout 2023-24 campaign (18G, 36A, 54P) flanking the rookie Bedard, but now more capable players have taken his place in that regard, essentially pushing him out of the future lineup.

Maroon & Martinez Retire

Not one, but two players decided to hang up their skates at the conclusion of this season (on Apr. 12 at the Blackhawks’ last home game). Forward Pat Maroon and defenseman Alec Martinez are both legends of the game, each with three Stanley Cup championships to their name!

It’s always tough to say goodbye, and these two hockey players will be remembered fondly. The younger Blackhawks were lucky these two consummate professionals landed with the organization in the last season of their careers, to be role models and impart their leadership and knowledge to the future generation.  

Coaching Questions for the Blackhawks

The Blackhawks fired head coach Luke Richardson in early December and replaced him with Anders Sorensen, the Rockford IceHogs head coach and long-time member of the organization. The team committed to sticking with Sorensen through the remainder of the season, but it’s become clear Sorensen is not the long-term answer.

The organization will begin its search in the offseason for a coach to lead the Blackhawks in the next step of their rebuild. Highly discussed candidates include Mike Sullivan, currently coaching the Pittsburg Penguins, or David Carle, head coach of the University of Denver. This will be a BIG storyline during the offseason.

The Youth Movement Is Here!

Six players made their NHL debuts this season (Drew Commesso, Colton Dach, Levshunov, Oliver Moore, Rinzel and Ryan Greene). In the last game of the season against the Senators, 12 of the Blackhawks’ 19 starters were 23 years old or younger. Seven of their 11 total points in that same game came from players 21 years old or younger. It’s the younger players that are leading the way now. I’d say the youth movement is definitely here.

Two other key words to go along with youth for the Blackhawks is speed and talent. There is so much speed on this roster, and so much raw talent. Plus, this young squad is hungry to make a name for themselves. All those things combined make for a great formula moving forward. With Bedard, Nazar and Moore leading the way on offense and Vlasic, Rinzel and Levshunov holding down the fort on defense, just to name a few, the building blocks are all falling into place.

Yes, 2024-25 was another rough season for the Blackhawks and their rebuild. But with the up-and-coming young core, the Blackhawks will look to add some talented veteran depth during free agency, and find the right coaching staff to lead the Blackhawks back to contention. The future looks pretty bright.

Gosh, is it October yet?!

Keep it right here at The Hockey Writers for plenty of offseason material. Our THW crew is set to give you player grades and prospect profiles, as well as draft and free agency coverage and much more. Never a dull moment with the Blackhawks!