Yes, the Blackhawks have only played one preseason game. And at least two of the forwards who skated on Wednesday night will be back with their junior clubs at some point. But the team has been together practicing for a full week now, and there are some roster battles that are taking shape and we have seen enough to consider the options.
While I’m not going to make broad statements about some guys who didn’t play against Detroit — especially Lukas Reichel, who I specifically need to see do it in game action — there are a lot of bodies battling for roles in the Blackhawks’ forward group right now that are making for some tough decisions in the coming couple weeks for the coaches and front office.
The Blackhawks brought in a handful of forwards this season to give them adequate depth and experience and buy time for their next wave of prospects to properly develop. We’ve talked since the start of July about the Blackhawks being very intentional with their plan to allow prospects to develop on an appropriate timeline. No rushes any more. No more Kirby Dachs. Please.
Blackhawks Top of the Lineup Forwards
I don’t think we’re worried about Teuvo Teräväinen being a top-six (top-line?) forward. The same can be said for Tyler Bertuzzi. They’re known commodities on multi-year contracts.
One question mark is Taylor Hall‘s health. He’s looked good in camp thus far, which is great. His speed and ability would be a big lift to the lineup. If he can remain a healthy top-six wing that’s a win for the Blackhawks. He’s in the final year of his contract. If we include Reichel in the discussion of top six wingers, that’s… four. And those four make an assumption that Philipp Kurashev is either the second-line center. If he goes back to the wing because someone like Frank Nazar shows he’s able to be the second-line center, that adds another dimension to the Blackhawks’ top nine group.
But that’s where things start to get very interesting.
The projected third line of Nick Foligno — Jason Dickinson — Ilya Mikheyev has looked good in training camp. We haven’t seen them in game action yet, but Mikheyev’s speed is visible on the ice and all three of those guys is capable of scoring 15-20 (maybe more?) goals this season. If the Blackhawks can get 55-60 goals from their third line, that would be tremendous.
So….
Blackhawks Fourth Line Battle
Who’s left to fight for a job on the Blackhawks’ fourth line? And how is that starting to sort itself out?
Pat Maroon — I’ll start this conversation with the Big Rig because we haven’t seen him in a game yet. We know who he is and what he brings. The question is if he’s a guy who plays most games or if he’s in a rotation of some sort on the wing. The Blackhawks don’t have many big bangers up front so his presence would be a good thing most nights.
Craig Smith — he’s looked terrific in camp and made a strong first impression against Detroit. Again, a known commodity; we know him very well from his nine years in Nashville (during which he had five 20-goal seasons). He scored 11 goals despite averaging a career-low 10:13 for Dallas last season. Now 35, he isn’t likely going to push for 25 goals he scored in 2017-18 but he’s a smart veteran who plays with pace and is physical. He can help both special teams. And he’s on a one-year deal.
Ryan Donato with the pass and Craig Smith puts home his own rebound with a backhander. pic.twitter.com/c5OBhM4WIO
— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) September 26, 2024
Ryan Donato — remember: Donato started last year on Connor Bedard‘s wing. He finished the season on the fourth line grinding for minutes and it felt like he was in the coaches doghouse at times. He’s in great shape and has looked good in camp and, most importantly, had a very good preseason debut on a line with Smith and AJ Spellacy. He can play center and has at times in camp but has looked better on the wing. Honestly, I don’t know how he fits on this team but I think he could be a solid option at 4C between Maroon and Smith. Smith was also complimentary of Donato’s performance on Wednesday night.
Joey Anderson — Scott Powers at The Athletic wrote a good piece about Anderson before the game on Wednesday in which he noted that analytics love Anderson as a defensive forward. He’s worked his ass off to prove he’s an NHL player and did that when finally given the opportunity last year. As much as it seems the coaches might be cool on Donato, they appear to really like Anderson (understandably so). This is part of Powers’ lead in his story and it stands out:
In Evolving-Hockey’s model, he had the 22nd-highest even-strength defensive metric of all forwards. The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn described Anderson as having a “shockingly high defensive rating” and projected only Teuvo Teräväinen to have a higher rating on the Blackhawks this season. According to Corey Sznajder’s tracking data, Anderson led the Blackhawks in forecheck pressures last season. That’s all notable regardless, but considering the Blackhawks were the second-worst defensive team last season, what he did seems even more impressive.
Anderson would be an ideal fourth line guy in the right role. I think with his speed he could fit very well on a line with Smith (and possibly Donato). But with Maroon in the room, the logjam makes for an even harder projection. He’s earned it and there’s value there, but we’re back to the numbers game.
Andreas Athanasiou — we haven’t talked about Double-A in a minute, but it’s time to address one of the elephants in the Blackhawks’ room right now. He’s one of the fastest skaters in the league, has been a 20-goal scorer as recently as a couple years ago (in Chicago) and the coaches like his speed and defensive recognition as a potential center. BUT his speed and skill package as a fourth-line center with Maroon and some combination of Smith/Donato/Anderson feels like a square peg meeting a round hole.
The coaches have five more games to sort things out up front before the regular season begins. There’s still a conversation to be had about the second-line center spot and how that might influence the rest of the wing positions, but the five bodies battling for three spots on the fourth line is as clear as mud after one preseason games.