Blackhawks recall forward ahead of road trip

The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled forward Landon Slaggert from the AHL. Slaggert isn’t expected to play in the team’s Sunday game against the Minnesota Wild but will serve as an insurance forward for the team’s upcoming three-game road trip.

This marks the first formal call-up of Slaggert’s career. He made his NHL debut last season, joining the Blackhawks after the end of the University of Notre Dame’s season and scoring four points in 16 games. But, like many burgeoning Hawks prospects to debut last season, Slaggert was assigned to the minors to start the year. He’s since worked his way into a top-six role with the Rockford IceHogs. Slaggert ranks third on the team in scoring with 25 points in 39 games. He also boasts a team-best +9.

Slaggert may face a tough time cracking into the lineup during this road trip. For Chicago’s many faults, their bottom-six have been warming up as of late. All six players – Colton Dach, Lukas Reichel, Nick Foligno, Pat Maroon, Ryan Donato, and Philipp Kurashev – have multiple points in the team’s last 10 games, led by Donato’s seven points and 18 shots. Kurashev would likely be the first of the bunch to cede minutes, though. He snapped a 12-game scoring drought with two points on January 20th but has otherwise fallen more and more out of favor in the Hawks lineup. Kurashev has been a routine healthy scratch and even appeared in trade rumors. Calling up Slaggert for a multi-game trip could be a good chance to see who would likely succeed Kurashev in the fourth-line role.