Blackhawks officially eliminated from 2026 Stanley Cup playoff contention

It’s going to be another long summer for fans in the Windy City.

On Thursday night, the Chicago Blackhawks were officially eliminated from contention for the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

It marks the sixth year in a row that the Blackhawks have missed the postseason. While there is still a bright future ahead with a number of young stars and solid veterans, the team has not quite been able to put together a full 82-game season to be true contenders to play into the spring.

Chicago had a promising start to the year when Connor Bedard was playing at an MVP level, and a seemingly rejuvenated Spencer Knight was playing exceptionally between the pipes. However, after Bedard went down with a shoulder injury back in December, the Hawks went on a tough stretch of games, undergoing a pair of five-game losing streaks in December and January.

Even when Bedard returned to the lineup, the Blackhawks seemed to have lost their luster and were floundering back to the bottom of the Central Division and the Western Conference.

Despite missing 13 games this season, the third-year center has still been Chicago’s top offensive weapon. In 62 games, he has scored 30 goals and 38 assists for 68 points, leading the team in assists and points, while sitting second to Tyler Bertuzzi (31) in goals.

Knight has less-than-average numbers in goal, going 18-21-11 with a 2.74 goals-against average, a .906 save percentage with three shutouts. His backup, Arvid Soderblom, hasn’t been any better, going 7-12-3 in 23 games, with a 3.79 GAA, a .881 SV% and a shutout.

The team will once again have another opportunity to pick a solid prospect in this year’s NHL Draft. As of now, they have a 13.5 percent chance to pick first overall, second only to the Vancouver Canucks, and are almost a lock to get a top-five spot.

As of Thursday, the Blackhawks (27-34-14) are last in the Central, 16 points ahead of the Canucks for the worst record in the NHL.