Latest On Blackhawks' Interest In Gavin McKenna
It’s been a whirlwind few weeks for top 2026 draft prospect Gavin McKenna. He began the month with some legal trouble as he was arrested, but later returned to the ice and scored eight points in a single game against Ohio State. McKenna’s season has been subject to quite a bit of conversation, with many speculating that the Canadian winger, who had long been considered this year’s top draft prospect, might be losing his grip on his status as the presumptive No. 1 overall pick. It’s unclear how the events of the past month – both the legal issue and the uptick in production – will impact McKenna’s draft stock, but at least one team appears to now hold an improved view of the player. Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reported today that the Chicago Blackhawks “have noticed McKenna improving his all-around game,” and that “they were skeptical about him earlier this season,” but “that’s no longer the case.”
In addition, Pope reports that McKenna’s “felony charge is unlikely to affect his NHL draft stock now that it has been dropped.” Whether the Blackhawks will be in a position to draft McKenna is, of course, not clear at this time. They are No. 27 in the league standings, and would likely need some lottery luck to have a shot at McKenna. Regarding other options for their top draft choice, Pope noted that the Blackhawks “have also long been interested in Canadian center Tynan Lawrence,” who is widely ranked as one of the top centers in this year’s class. While Pope’s reporting only relates to one team, it does shed some light on how other NHL scouts might view McKenna given the events of the past month, assuming the Blackhawks are not alone in their reported view of things.
Blackhawks Sign, Reassign Olivier Rodrigue
2/22: Chicago has officially assigned Rodrigue to the AHL after he cleared NHL waivers.
2/21: The Blackhawks have added some extra goaltending depth for the stretch run. The team announced that they’ve signed goaltender Olivier Rodrigue to a one-year, two-way contract for the remainder of the season. The deal will carry a $775K cap charge at the NHL level while the two-way salary was not disclosed.
The 25-year-old was a second-round pick of Edmonton back in 2018, going 62nd overall. However, he wasn’t able to make much of a push for NHL playing time over his five seasons in their system. Aside from a two-game stint with the Oilers last season, Rodrigue played exclusively in their minor league system between AHL Bakersfield and ECHL Wichita. Last season, Rodrigue posted a 3.12 GAA with a .897 SV% in 42 games with the Condors and became a Group Six unrestricted free agent back in the summer.
It took until mid-August for Rodrigue to find a team as he wound up signing a one-year deal with Barys Astana of the KHL. However, he suffered an injury less than a month later, leading to his release before he had even played a game for them. Since then, Rodrigue hasn’t played but this contract suggests that he’s now cleared to return to game action.
Presumably, Rodrigue’s signing comes in response to prospect goalie Stanislav Berezhnoy, who received a 20-game suspension from the AHL earlier this week for violating the terms of the AHL/PHPA Performance Enhancing Substance Program. Chicago’s intent is likely to have Rodrigue serve as the backup to Drew Commesso for the stretch run while evaluating his possibility as a fit for next season as well. With 131 career AHL regular season appearances under his belt where he has a 2.92 GAA and a .905 SV%, Rodrigue should be well-suited to fill that role.
To do so, Chicago will first have to successfully run Rodrigue through waivers before he can be assigned to the IceHogs. While the NHL is in a trade freeze at the moment, waivers are still allowable during this period and PuckPedia reports that he is indeed on waivers. Assuming he clears, he’ll be sent down on Sunday and will be eligible to play then.
Two Prospects Receive 20-Game Suspensions In AHL
A pair of NHL prospects will be waiting quite a while before they can play their next game. Earlier this week, the AHL announced that Rockford goalie Stanislav Berezhnoy and Coachella Valley forward David Goyette have received 20-game suspensions for violating the terms of the AHL/PHPA Performance Enhancing Substance Program. The program essentially replicates the NHL’s penalties for violations, meaning that this is a first-time offence for both players. They will be ineligible for recall to the NHL while serving their bans.
Berezhnoy is in his first season in North America after the Blackhawks signed him to a two-year, entry-level contract last summer. The 22-year-old has played in 15 games so far this season for the IceHogs, largely serving as Drew Commesso’s backup. Berezhnoy has a 5-9-1 record with a 3.18 GAA and a .888 SV% in those outings. He received a brief NHL recall in January when Chicago’s starting tandem was unavailable but didn’t see any game action.
As for Goyette, he’s in the second season of his entry-level deal. Drafted in the second round (61st overall) by the Kraken back in 2022, the 21-year-old was a productive scorer in junior but that has yet to translate to the pros. Goyette had 282 points in three OHL seasons (spanning 197 games) but had 18 points in 54 outings with the Firebirds last season and has just 10 in 47 appearances in 2025-26. He hasn’t seen any NHL action so far in his career.
Both players will be able to return before the playoffs. Berezhnoy is eligible to return on April 11th while Goyette can play one day sooner. At that point, there will be just over a week left in the AHL season and if either team is still fighting for a playoff spot since then, it could be risky to put them in after being off for so long.
Dickinson Leaves Practice Early Due To Illness
- Blackhawks center Jason Dickinson left practice today due to illness, notes Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). He’s likely to be one of Chicago’s more prominent trade chips heading into the trade deadline a couple of weeks from now. Dickinson only has 13 points in 43 games but his defensive reputation should help garner some interest from teams looking for bottom-six depth, especially if the Blackhawks retain part of his $4.25MM cap charge.
Blackhawks Recall Kevin Korchinski, Sam Rinzel
The Blackhawks announced Wednesday that they’ve recalled defense prospects Kevin Korchinski and Sam Rinzel from AHL Rockford. Defenseman Wyatt Kaiser was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Feb. 4 in the corresponding move.
Chicago doesn’t have any defensemen in Italy suiting up at the Olympics, so it’s likely these recalls will result in actual playing time for the two youngsters. Korchinski, the seventh overall pick in the 2022 draft, especially stands to benefit as a lefty, more directly replacing Kaiser’s slot on the depth chart. Since recording 15 points in 76 games for the Hawks as a rookie in 2023-24, Chicago has been much more restrictive with his development, leaving him mostly in the AHL to work on developing his all-around game.
His minor-league stats indicate the Hawks are still working to undo any damage they may have done by rushing him into the NHL lineup as a 19-year-old two years ago. He’s posted a respectable 5-45–50 scoring line in 101 games for Rockford over the last two years but that’s come with a -39 rating, including a team-worst -22 mark this year. He nonetheless leads Rockford in scoring from the blue line with 23 points in 45 games. For a Chicago blue line that’s struggled to get offense from anyone not named Artyom Levshunov this year, he could be of benefit to their 26th-ranked offense until Kaiser is ready to get back into the fold.
Rinzel, taken several spots after Korchinski in the first round in 2022, broke camp with the Hawks after a strong finish last season that saw him record five assists in his first nine NHL games after wrapping up his sophomore year at the University of Minnesota. Ice time was harder to latch onto as a full-timer, though, averaging 17:09 per game through the first two months of this year after getting top-pairing deployment down the stretch in 2024-25.
After Rinzel had an even rating and nine points in 31 games, Chicago opted to send Rinzel to Rockford in early December for additional development. The well-rounded righty has looked solid there, rattling off 14 points in 23 games with a -8 rating on a team with an ugly -30 goal differential.
He’s now one of four righties on the Hawks’ active roster, so the path to playing time is murkier than what Korchinski has at the moment. Head coach Jeff Blashill has opted to dress seven defensemen frequently this season, though, so he should have a decent shot at getting in the lineup, even if his ice time isn’t extensive.
Kaiser sustained a lower-body injury in Chicago’s final game before the Olympic break. Head coach Jeff Blashill said yesterday that he’ll miss a couple of games on the other side but will be back at some point down the stretch.
Latest On Wyatt Kaiser
The Anaheim Ducks took the ice today for their first practice back from the Olympic break, with Leo Carlsson and Frank Vatrano full participants, as noted by Derek Lee of The Hockey News. Both players are working their way back from procedures.
In Carlsson, the 21-year-old young star was one of the biggest stories of the first half of the campaign, as he has broken out along with his Ducks, putting up 44 points in as many games. Carlsson was on his way to representing Team Sweden at the Olympics until a Morel-Lavallée lesion sidelined him in mid-January, requiring surgery.
On the other hand, while many Ducks have enjoyed such breakouts in 2025-26 under new Head Coach Joel Quenneville, it has been the opposite for Vatrano. The 31-year-old has just three goals and six points in 38 games, night and day from his 37-goal production two seasons ago. Although, to be fair, it came at an unsustainable 13.6% shooting percentage, and the emergence of several young forwards has cut his ice time dramatically. The Massachusetts native sustained a shoulder fracture in late December which brought a six week timeline estimation.
Currently clinging to the second Wild Card spot, where they’ll look to hold off rivals and end a seven year postseason dry spell, Anaheim returns to action on February 25 as they host the Oilers.
Elsewhere across the conference:
- Chicago Blackhawks Head Coach Jeff Blashill told reporters, including Greg Boysen of Blackhawk Up, that Wyatt Kaiser will remain sidelined after the Olympic break, but it’s expected he will return at some point later in the season. Back on February 4, the defenseman had an awkward leg injury against Columbus that was cause for real concern. The 23-year-old has a subpar 45.8% corsi for at even strength and is a -12, but he’s averaging 19:10 a night, the most in his career so far.
- Mammoth forwards Logan Cooley and Alexander Kerfoot were both regular participants in practice today, but still working their way back to game shape, as reported by Cole Bagley of KSL Sports. Cooley hasn’t played since early December after a scary lower body injury which thankfully avoided season-ending designation. Meanwhile, Kerfoot underwent a procedure in October, delaying his start to the campaign until January. The 31-year-old found the back of the net once in nine games, the 99th goal of his career, but appears to have had a setback. Both players returned to the ice February 2 in non contact jerseys, with another step in recovery today. Even without their young star and a veteran role player, Utah is marching along toward the playoffs this spring.
Trade Deadline Primer: Chicago Blackhawks
With the Olympic break now upon us, the trade deadline is less than a month away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We begin our look around the league with teams that have clear plans at the extremes of the standings, this time with the Blackhawks.
In the early portion of the season, it appeared there could be some intrigue regarding the Blackhawks’ plans at the trade deadline later in the year. First-year head coach Jeff Blashill had the team punching above their weight, lingering in the Western Conference’s playoff race, and looking far less like the obvious seller most observers would have expected them to be once the calendar flipped to March. But Chicago wasn’t able to sustain the winning pace it kept up for the beginning of the year, and now finds itself back in a familiar position: well outside the playoff race and overwhelmingly likely to enter trade deadline season as firm sellers.
Record
22-26-9 (6th in the NHL’s Central Division)
Deadline Status
Sellers
Deadline Cap Space
$63.04MM on deadline day, 1/3 retention slots used, 41/50 contracts used per PuckPedia.
Upcoming Draft Picks
2026: CHI 1st, FLA 1st (Top-10 Protected), CHI 2nd, NYI 2nd, TOR 2nd, CHI 3rd, OTT 4th, CHI 7th, FLA 7th
2027: CHI 1st, CHI 2nd, VAN 2nd, CHI 3rd, CHI 4th, CHI 6th, CHI 7th
Trade Chips
While the Blackhawks in prior years have listened to offers on veteran players without much consideration to contract status, the team is now in a different stage of its rebuilding process. The team may have once been interested in how it could use any veteran asset to help contribute to its stockpile of draft picks and prospects, it does not make as much sense for the club to do that now. Veterans with multiple years of team control remaining, such as Teuvo Teravainen, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Ryan Donato, for example, each play a role in supporting the team’s young players in the lineup, and retaining those players would help the Blackhawks’ rebuild propel forward in a variety of different ways.
As a result, it’s likely that Chicago’s selling at the deadline will be more concentrated on its pending UFAs, the players who are unlikely to be retained by the team beyond 2025-26. Among pending UFAs, the Blackhawks have several veteran players likely to attract interest from contending teams. 
In what is widely expected to be a thin market for centers, Jason Dickinson could be among the top options for a team looking to add a bottom-six pivot.
While his days of scoring 22 goals, as he did in 2023-24, may be over, he remains a fixture on Chicago’s penalty kill, wins nearly half of his draws, and has even received Selke Trophy votes during his time in Chicago.
His $4.25MM cap hit is also unlikely to be too prohibitive for contending teams to be able to fit into their payroll, especially if the Blackhawks elect to retain salary.
One of Chicago’s other top veteran pending UFAs, like Dickinson, plays at a premium position. 32-year-old Connor Murphy is a right-shot defenseman who has been the subject of trade rumors throughout his Blackhawks tenure, in large part due to his reliability as well as positional value. While he’s ceded a top-four role this season to other younger Blackhawks blueliners, he remains among the team’s most heavily-used defender on the penalty kill, and could be an attractive option for a team looking for a stable veteran defensive defenseman. Murphy has a 10-team no-trade list on his contract.
While Dickinson and Murphy are the team’s two most obvious trade candidates, and the players likely to hold the most value on the trade market, Chicago does have a few other pending UFA players who could draw interest: Captain Nick Foligno is a respected veteran leader who contending teams could be eager to add as a bottom-six forward. Veteran winger Ilya Mikheyev is flirting with a second consecutive 20-goal season in Chicago, and is the team’s top penalty-killing forward. Although he has a 12-team no-trade list, he could be of great interest to contending teams.
Versatile forward Sam Lafferty has had a season to forget, but does have the ability to play center and was an in-demand bottom-six forward during his last go-around with the Blackhawks. If a team is looking to add a depth center without giving up significant assets, Lafferty could very well be a player they have interest in.
A team looking to stabilize its bottom pairing on defense, perhaps even with a veteran player who could fill in on the power play in case of injuries, could have interest in blueliner Matt Grzelcyk. The 32-year-old, who scored 40 points in 2024-25, has just 12 points in 57 games this season after joining the Blackhawks originally on a PTO. He’s unlikely to return Chicago very much in a trade, but is nonetheless a candidate to be dealt due to his experience level and pending UFA status.
Trade Needs
NHL-Ready Young Talent: The Blackhawks aren’t at the stage of their rebuild where draft picks are at their most valuable. Sure, the team could still benefit from adding more picks and prospects to its pipeline, but that is unlikely to be their most pressing interest. Chicago has picked high in the draft in each of the last four years, including inside the top-three picks of the draft in each of the last three years.
There are more than enough players on the way, and more importantly, there are already many young players on the roster in need of additional support, such as franchise face Connor Bedard, 2022 first-rounder Frank Nazar, and a wealth of other young pieces.
If the Blackhawks trade away some veterans at this deadline, their top priority in terms of return should be trying to add prospects, not picks, and especially prospects who are close to NHL-ready, players who the Blackhawks could quickly plug into their NHL lineup and assess whether they’re a fit to be part of the team’s next contending core.
Photos courtesy of Chris Jones-Imagn Images
Panthers’ 2026 First-Round Pick Traded To Blackhawks Is Top-10 Protected
The Florida Panthers acquired defenseman Seth Jones from the Chicago Blackhawks at the 2025 Trade Deadline. In return, the Blackhawks received goaltender Spencer Knight and a conditional 2026 first-round pick. At the time, the reported condition was that the pick would become Florida’s 2027 first should the Panthers find another trade involving their 2026 pick. It was revealed on Friday – nearly a full year after the deal – that the pick also carries top-10 protection, per hockey insider Frank Seravalli.
That condition was later confirmed by Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times, who adds that Chicago has been aware of the protection since the trade occured.
This news will diminish the Blackhawks’ chances of landing two top-10 picks in a strong 2026 draft class. Chicago currently sits with the sixth-worst points percentage, while Florida holds the 10th-worst. Wielding both first-round picks, with no protection, could have nearly doubled Chicago’s chances at landing the first-overall selection.
Instead, the Blackhawks will have to watch where Florida falls before they can start planning for the next two drafts. The Panthers have faced consistent challenges this season and enter the Olympic break with a 4-6-0 record in their last 10 games. The back-to-back Stanley Cup champions seem headed for a postseason miss, pending a surge in the second-half.
While a chance at double-dipping in the top-10 is always enticing, the Blackhawks’ prospect pool will move forward relatively unaffected. Draft pundits have agreed that top-10 value could fall into the teens of this year’s draft, while the 2027 class is believed to be another loaded year. Chicago has spent the last eight years building one of the best prospect pools in the league and are now entering a phase where promoting young talent will become more important than adding it. That could push the Hawks to consider moving out draft capital for some veteran rivets, an approach argued for by Kyle Bokota of Blackhawk Up.
Chicago seems headed for a high pick regardless this season, and still hold outside odds to land first-overall. Their scouting room will be as busy as ever, looking to land another value pick to join Anton Frondell and Vaclav Nestrasil Jr. from their 2025 class.
Blackhawks Reassign Sam Rinzel
2/5/2026: The Blackhawks reassigned Rinzel back to Rockford today, returning him to the AHL in time for the Olympic break.
Rinzel played in three NHL games during his most recent recall, tallying one goal. Notably, his ice time was up considerably from his last NHL stint. In his final game of his recall, against the Blue Jackets yesterday, he played nearly 26 minutes.
1/30/2026: The Chicago Blackhawks have made a move to fortify their blue-line. Top prospect Sam Rinzel has been recalled to the NHL, putting him on the Blackhawks roster for the first time in 2026. This move comes amid a quiet spell for fellow top youngster Artyom Levshunov, who was on the ice for five goals against in Thursday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Attention will hone in on which young defender Chicago decides to roll out with three games left on their schedule before the Olympic break. Levshunov has struggled through much of January. In 15 games since the new year, he has been on the ice for 16 goals-against, while only posting three points of his own. The only Blackhawk to see more goals is Levshunov’s defense partner, Wyatt Kaiser, who has been on the ice for 17 goals-against.
Levshunov has recorded 21 points and a minus-27 in 52 games on the year. His scoring is up, but his plus-minus is down, from the six points and minus-13 that Levshunov recorded in 18 games last season. Even with the pit he’s in, Levshunov has still averaged 19 minutes of ice time each game, emphasizing that Chicago hasn’t lost faith in their former second-overall talent.
With this move, Chicago will open the door to potentially resting Levshunov for the short-term, while giving Rinzel another chance to stamp his spot in the NHL lineup. The Blackhawks assigned Rinzel to the AHL after he scored just eight points in 28 games to start the season. His first stint in the minors got off to a roaring start – with Rinzel scoring seven points in his first four AHL games – but it has quieted down as of late. Rinzel has scored only three points in his last 15 games, bringing his totals with the Rockford IceHogs up to 10 points and a minus-10 in 19 games. It’s another cold spell that Chicago is hoping to snap with this roster move. Rinzel scored five points in the first nine games of his NHL career at the end of the 2024-25 season. He has shown strong sparks that could help lift Chicago out of their recent four-game losing streak.
Blackhawks' Wyatt Kaiser, Colton Dach Leave Due To Injury
As the dust settles from today’s blockbuster in which the Rangers dealt Artemi Panarin to the Kings in exchange for top prospect Liam Greentree and a conditional third-round pick, more details on the other suitors have emerged.
It was noted yesterday by TSN’s Chris Johnston on Insider Trading that a team had offered as much as $40MM, and the mystery club may now be revealed. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reported that the Seattle Kraken made a strong effort to acquire the superstar, offering him an extension in the 3-4 year range, worth what Pagnotta said is “north” of $12MM per year. The contract could have doubled term compared to what Panarin promptly signed with Los Angeles, a two-year extension worth $11MM each year.
Despite proving not enough to sway Panarin into waiving his no-trade clause to head up to Washington, the effort is commendable from Kraken GM Jason Botterill as his team is in Wild Card range, hungry to make a splash to earn their second playoff berth in their fifth season as a franchise. It’s curious to imagine if former fourth overall pick Shane Wright could have been off to New York. One week ago, it was reported the Kraken were open to dealing him for a “dynamic top-six scoring winger”, and the “Breadman” certainly fits the bill.
Additionally, ESPN’s Emily Kaplan mentioned the Hurricanes, Lightning, and Capitals as among the “several teams circling at the end”, however, Panarin told management that he was set on Los Angeles. Crossing off another major city in his career after stops in Chicago and New York, Panarin’s preference limited Rangers GM Chris Drury’s trade leverage considerably. He has caught criticism for the return, but as noted by Kaplan, the Rangers feel they plucked the Kings’ best prospect in Greentree, and time will tell.
The break is nearly upon us, and although Panarin’s new team plays tomorrow night in Vegas as their final pre-Olympics action, Kings Manager of Editoral Content Zach Dooley confirmed that he won’t be rushed into duty. It seems likely he could make his highly anticipated debut in their first game back, at home for a Golden Knights rematch on February 25.
Elsewhere across the league:
- The Chicago Blackhawks have had a rough go tonight in Columbus, as first the team announced that defenseman Wyatt Kaiser wouldn’t return, followed by forward Colton Dach, both due to injury. Kaiser’s status is concerning, as Zach Werenski of the Blue Jackets landed in his knee area awkwardly. The 23-year-old has yet to miss a game this season, averaging 19:28 a game across 56 so far. It’s still a work in progress for Kaiser, who doesn’t stand out on the stat sheet, however the lefty already plays a top four role for Chicago as his game develops. Meanwhile, Dach was pinned to the boards by Erik Gudbranson, and it’s not as immediately clear what happened to injure the grinder, who has nine points in 51 games this year.
- Shortly before tonight’s game against the soon-to-be short benched Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets team reporter Jeff Svoboda shared that Kirill Marchenko would miss his second straight game due to illness. The 25-year-old leads all Jacket forwards with 46 points in 50 games, continuing to emerge as a star after last year’s 74 point breakout. Marchenko will utilize the Olympic break to get healthy, but in the meantime, Columbus has maintained their surge under new Head Coach Rick Bowness.