The Chicago Blackhawks made plenty of high-octane moves in June to set the team’s foundation for this fall and beyond. General manager Kyle Davidson clarified where the roster stands in his last press conference before the long offseason.
The Blackhawks added veteran help at forward when they traded with the Boston Bruins to land former first-overall pick Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno. They added Corey Perry in a trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the same draft they took Connor Bedard number one overall. Ryan Donato is the Blackhawks’ only outside signing since free agency started July 1.
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According to Charlie Roumeliotis with NBC Sports, Davidson said next season’s roster is close to finished, and he didn’t see anything “coming down the pipe” for the Blackhawks at this point in free agency. The offense especially has been taken care of, most of which was done before free agency started. Davidson said the team might look to fortify the defense, but any move will likely come closer to the start of the season:
The defense, however, is a slightly different story. The Blackhawks will probably give more opportunities to their young players such as Alex Vlasic or Isaak Phillips or even Wyatt Kaiser, but they might not mind adding another player for insurance reasons.
“We might look at a spot or two for depth,” Davidson said. “But we may also just stay patient on that and wait until the fall. Nothing we’re chasing right now. We found Jarred Tinordi late in the process last year and could go down that road again with a depth player later on, but nothing we’re necessarily looking to move on anytime soon.”
The Blackhawks have made major improvements from last season’s 26-49-7 team. The team should be more competitive, but they won’t challenge for the Stanley Cup in 2023-24. They are still a few years away from being a serious playoff contender.
The Blackhawks will need Bedard to progress this season as he learns from the veterans Davidson has put around him. And this roster is perfect for that.
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