NEWSLETTER
In an appearance on “Halford and Brough in the Morning” on Sportsnet Radio 650 in Vancouver Thursday, Frank Seravalli of Daily faceoff spoke on a wide range of important Blackhawks topics including the ongoing search for a full-time general manager (you can find the full segment here, with Seravalli’s Blackhawks segment coming around the 20-minute mark).
In regards to the search for a permanent GM to replace Stan Bowman, Seravalli says that he believes interim GM Kyle Davidson will control the team through the trade deadline and likely beyond.
Pretty sure Kyle Davidson is going to be the guy in the chair, at least at the deadline. I would be surprised if he’s not the general manager moving forward.
As far as Davidson goes, he hasn’t had a “major” move since firing Jeremy Colliton, but that move has worked out so far with Derek King replacing Colliton in the interim. If Davidson is going to control the team at this year’s NHL Trade Deadline, you might as well give him the 2022-23 season to oversee his own work. He’s been with the organization for ten years and has already shown no loyalties to Bowman’s previous projects (i.e. Alex Nylander), so maybe it’s worth seeing where he can take Chicago.
Also unlike Bowman, it has been pretty clear that the Blackhawks are going to split the GM and President of Hockey Operations positions. Seravalli went on to say that he believes the Blackhawks are moving forward with that search as well and that Chicago would not be afraid to “look outside the box” for their Hockey Ops hire, even to go so far as hiring someone from outside of the world of hockey.
We’ve known that the organization has already reached out to the Cubs for advice in their front office searches, and with the success that John McDonough had with the Blackhawks after his time with the Cubs, it’s not surprising to think that the Wirtz’s might again go outside of the hockey realm to find fresh eyes. I’m not opposed to the idea, but if I were calling the shots, I’m still steadfast that Kevin Weekes would be my first choice for the President of Hockey Operations role.
Chicago is taking their time to figure out these major decisions, and looking back now, giving Davidson and interim head coach Derek King the amount of leash necessary to do their jobs without fear of the rug being pulled out from under them mid-season has worked out to the tune of a 14-9-4 record (15th-best in the NHL) since November 7. It’s still not great, but it’s a lot better than where they were headed.
