Chicago Blackhawks News

Slaggert was a third-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. The 22-year-old Indiana native made his NHL debut last season, scoring four points (1G / 3A) in 16 games with Chicago.

Knight struggled in his first outing this season, allowing four goals on 26 shots (.846 SV%) in a 5-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres last week, but will return to the crease for the Panthers for a second time in their first five games. With Sergei Bobrovsky in his age 36 season, coming off consecutive long playoff runs, this could be an indication Knight's workload going forward this season. The Panthers, still without Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, enter action as -153 road favourites on the road against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Knight struggled in his first outing this season, allowing four goals on 26 shots (.846 SV%) in a 5-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres last week, but will return to the crease for the Panthers for a second time in their first five games. With Sergei Bobrovsky in his age 36 season, coming off consecutive long playoff runs, this could be an indication Knight's workload going forward this season. The Panthers, still without Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, enter action as -153 road favourites on the road against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Knight spent the entire 2023-24 season in the AHL, where he was 25-14-5 with a 2.41 GAA and .905 SV%. The 2019 No.13 overall pick has appeared in 57 career NHL games, going 32-17-6 with a 2.91 GAA and .906 SV%. Tonight he faces the Sabres as -110 road favourites.

Nolan Allan will be a healthy scratch on Friday, allowing Kaiser to make his season debut. The 22-year-old Kaiser played 32 games with the Blackhawks last season, tallying seven points (0G / 7A), 46 blocks, and 22 hits.

Petr Mrazek struggled in the Blackhawks season-opening 5-2 loss to the Utah Hockey Club, allowing four goals on 26 shots (.846 SV%). As such, the Blackhawks will turn to Soderblom for their second game of the the season, a tilt against the Winnipeg Jets, who steamrolled to a 6-0 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday. The 25-year-old Soderblom appeared in 32 games last season (5-22-2), posting a pedestrian 3.92 GAA and .879 SV%.

Kaiser was absent from the first game of the season for the Blackhawks due to an illness but will likely be inserted back into the lineup shortly. The 22-year-old defenseman played 32 games with the Blackhawks last season, tallying seven points (0G / 7A), 46 blocks, and 22 hits.

Petr Mrazek struggled in the Blackhawks season-opening 5-2 loss to the Utah Hockey Club, allowing four goals on 26 shots (.846 SV%). As such, the Blackhawks will turn to Soderblom for their second game of the the season, a tilt against the Winnipeg Jets, who steamrolled to a 6-0 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday. The 25-year-old Soderblom appeared in 32 games last season (5-22-2), posting a pedestrian 3.92 GAA and .879 SV%.

Knight played 53 games for the Panthers between the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons (28-17-6), posting a 2.95 GAA and .905 SV% but spent the entirety of last in the AHL. The 23-year-old Knight posted a 2.41 GAA and .905 SV% in 45 games with the Charlotte Checkers (25-14-5). He will likely see a more prominent NHL role this season, serving as the backup to Sergei Bobrovsky.

Entering training camp, it seemed as if Nazar had a chance to make the Blackhawks roster after appearing in three games with them at the end of last season. He had a disappointing preseason, though, and will get his first taste of AHL action with Rockford to begin 2024-25.

After appearing in 76 NHL games a season ago, Korchinski had a disappointing training camp and will begin the 2024-25 season in Rockford. With Korchinski off the roster, look for Alex Vlasic to quarterback the Blackhawks' second power-play unit.

Vanacker was Chicago's 2024 1st round pick (27th overall) and signed a three-year, entry-level contract on Monday with the Blackhawks. The 18-year-old left-winger took a massive step forward in the OHL in 2023-24 with Brantford, collecting 36 goals and 82 points in 68 games played.

Crevier made his NHL debut in 2023-24 with Chicago, picking up three assists and a -16 plus/minus in 24 games played and has earned himself a one-year, two-way contract on Monday. The 23-year-old towering 6'8" defensemen was Chicago's 2020 7th round pick (188th overall) and will look to carve a full time role on Chicago's back end in 2024-25.

Levshunov went No.2 overall in this summer's NHL Draft after posting nine goals and 26 assists (35 points) in 38 games at Michigan State University. Levshunov was second among NCAA freshmen defensemen in points and was a Big-10 Defensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year.

Journeyman Derrick Pouliot will join his eighth different organization in eight years after he agreed to sign a one-year, two-way contract with Tampa Bay on Tuesday. The 30-year-old appeared in five games for Dallas in 2023-24 but has eight goals and 54 points in 226 career NHL games.

Teravainen will return to Chicago, where he spent the first three seasons of his 11-year career after he agreed to a three-year deal worth $16.2 million ($5.4M AAV) on Monday. The 29-year-old left-winger surpassed his career high in goals in 2023-24 (25) and had 53 points, 142 SOG and a +15 plus/minus in 76 games played.

Bertuzzi had a very slow start in Toronto but finished the season with 43 points (21G / 22A) in 80 games. In Chicago, he'll be a candidate to skate with Connor Bedard and comes in with four career 20-plus goal and 20-plus assist seasons ('19, '20, '22, '24).

Mangiapane had a breakout campaign in 2022, scoring 35 goals with 55 points, earning him a three-year contract with a $5.8M AAV cap-hit. He failed to find that same success in 2023 and 2024, combining for less goals (31) and 52 assists (83 points) in 157 games. Entering the final year of that deal, the Capitals are banking on another big contract year season from the 28-year-old winger.