When it rains, it pours. And for the Blackhawks, it’s been a steady downpour for a couple months.
On Friday morning, the Rockford IceHogs announced defenseman Alex Vlasic is going to miss approximately six weeks with a fractured fibula.
Vlasic, 21, was the 43rd overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft and signed his entry-level contract at the end of his third season at Boston University in the spring. He appeared in 15 games with the Blackhawks down the stretch last season, scoring once with one assist.
During the preseason, Vlasic was skating a lot with Seth Jones during practice and was looking like a guy who could be an NHL player again this season. But the Blackhawks’ intentions to appropriately season prospects before throwing them into the fire at the NHL level pushed him into a prominent role in Rockford this year.
Scott Powers at The Athletic just wrote this about Vlasic on Friday in his comments about the optimism coming from the performance of the Rockford IceHogs this season:
Among the defensemen, there are even more brighter spots for the Blackhawks’ future. Like Reichel, Alex Vlasic probably could be in the NHL now if the Blackhawks needed him, but Davidson has been trying to give prospects more time to develop. Davidson brought on Jarred Tinordi once training camp began, so someone like Vlasic didn’t have to be accelerated. Vlasic has one goal, five assists and is a plus-13 in 21 games.
Here’s hoping Vlasic can come back and continue contributing at a high level in Rockford, if not seeing some NHL ice time after the trade deadline if there are departures on the blue line.