Blackhawks Recall Drew Commesso, Place Patrick Kane On IR

With Arvid Soderblom on waivers today, it was clear that the Blackhawks would be bringing up a new backup goalie before long.  They’re not waiting for the waiver period to end before making that move, as they announced that they’ve recalled Drew Commesso from AHL Rockford.  To make room on the active roster, winger Patrick Kane was placed on injured reserve retroactive to November 2nd.

The 24-year-old was a second-round pick by Chicago back in 2020, going 46th overall.  The hope was that he’d become their goalie of the future and while that could still happen, he hasn’t played well enough to maintain that billing at the moment.

Commesso left Boston University after his junior year and has been in the pros since 2022-23, playing primarily with the IceHogs.  His save percentage went down 10 points last season, going from .911 to .901 in 37 games.  In the early going this season, it’s down again, as he has a 2.74 GAA and an .890 SV% in seven outings thus far.  He has five career NHL appearances under his belt over the last two seasons, with a 2.61 GAA and a .901 SV%.

Chicago has leaned heavily on Spencer Knight in the early going this season as he leads the league in goals allowed and shots faced while being on pace to make 65 starts, a number that’s unsustainable.  Soderblom’s struggles led to that so they’ll be hoping that Commesso can be a bit more reliable and allow them not to have to turn to Knight quite as often, especially in the short term.

As for Kane, he’s dealing with an upper-body injury.  The veteran is in his first season back with the Blackhawks after inking a two-year, $16MM contract this past summer.  He has a goal and eight assists in 15 games so far in a little over 18 minutes per night of playing time.  With the backdated placement, he’ll be eligible to be activated in time for their next game on Thursday against Buffalo.