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Chicago Blackhawks Listening On Kirby Dach

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The Chicago Blackhawks are open to just about anything this offseason. Having already traded Brandon Hagel, they are now expected to move Alex DeBrincat at some point and are also listening to offers for Kirby Dach, according to Scott Powers of The Athletic. It would appear as though no player is safe, regardless of age or draft pedigree.

Dach, 21, was the third-overall pick just three years ago, selected behind Kaapo Kakko and ahead of Bowen Byram. The young center has gone through several injuries, leading to just 59 points in his first 152 games. This season was especially disappointing for Dach, who scored just nine goals and saw his ice time drop significantly by the end of the year.

Powers suggests that the Blackhawks are looking for a top-15 pick in any deal, as they continue to tear down the organization in one of the most dramatic rebuilds the league has seen in a while. Hagel (23), DeBrincat (24), and Dach would normally be considered the pieces to build around but general manager Kyle Davidson obviously has a different opinion, at least if he can get enough value back in trade.

There is certainly reason to be down on Dach, but for some teams, he might appear to be the perfect buy-low candidate. There is still real upside to his game, and as a restricted free agent without any arbitration rights, this summer is at the mercy of whatever team holds his rights. There is little leverage that Dach could use to land an expensive deal, meaning there is at least the opportunity–slim as it may be–for a huge amount of excess value as soon as next season.

For contending clubs and ones a little further along in their rebuild, that might be a very appealing prospect.

NHL Announces 2022-23 Regular Season Schedule

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The news continues to break during what’s been a busy pre-draft week. The NHL has released the full 82-game schedule for the 2022-23 campaign, marking a return to normal dates and length for the first time since 2018-19.

2022-23 will see its curtains open overseas, where the San Jose Sharks and Nashville Predators will open the season at the O2 Arena in Prague, Czechia on October 7 and 8, 2022. The regular season will begin on the North American side of the Atlantic Ocean on Tuesday, October 11, 2022, with a classic doubleheader. The puck will drop at Madison Square Garden for an Eastern Conference Final rematch between the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers, followed by a Pacific Division showdown in Southern California between the Vegas Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings.

The Colorado Avalanche Stanley Cup banner-raising ceremony will be the following night at home against the Chicago Blackhawks. The season will wrap up on April 13, 2023.

Some key events throughout the season include the 2022 Global Series in Tampere, Finland, where the Avalanche and Columbus Blue Jackets will play a pair of games on November 4 and 5, 2022. The 2023 Discover NHL Winter Classic is slated for January 2, 2023, between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins at Fenway Park, and the 2023 NHL Stadium Series is set for February 18, 2023, in Raleigh, North Carolina, where the Hurricanes will host the Washington Capitals. All-Star Weekend will be February 3-4, 2023, hosted by the Florida Panthers.

More On Potential DeBrincat Trade

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As the 2022 NHL Draft approaches, many eyes are on the Chicago Blackhawks with speculation running rampant over the future of young sniper Alex DeBrincat. It’s not often that a player has two 40-goal seasons under his belt by the time he’s 24, even rarer for that player to be available in trade. With the Blackhawks starting a scorched earth rebuild in Chicago though, DeBrincat could find his way out the door.

Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus of The Athletic believe that the Blackhawks would pull the trigger on a DeBrincat deal if they received the right offer, and suggest that could be a top-10 pick and a quality prospect. That may seem like a disappointing return to fans who are hoping for a franchise-altering haul for their young star.

Latest On Kirby Dach

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  • The Chicago Blackhawks have made it no secret that they will be embarking on a scorched-earth rebuild under new GM Kyle Davidson. Nearly every player on their roster has seen his name surface in trade rumors, including star winger Alex DeBrincat. One player less frequently mentioned is 2019 third-overall pick Kirby Dach, likely because as a 21-year-old highly-drafted center most believe that Dach is the player a rebuilding club should hold on to, not deal. But per Friedman, a Dach trade might not be fully out of the question, and there is reportedly “a lot of research being done” on Dach by teams interested in acquiring him. Dach, who is still just 21 years old, has had an up-and-down NHL career thus far. He showed flashes in an injury-filled 2020-21, scoring 10 points in 18 games, but his past year was a disappointment (nine goals 26 points in 70 games) and there are some who look at him as a player in need of a change of scenery. Whether or not that’s true is still yet to be determined, although we now know that there are teams preparing for the possibility of Dach becoming available in a trade.

Blackhawks Turn Down Two First-Rounders And A Prospect For DeBrincat

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If the Blackhawks are going to move Alex DeBrincat this summer, it’s going to take a sizable haul to get him.  Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman notes in the latest 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link) that Chicago is believed to have recently turned down a package that would have yielded a high first-round pick in next week’s draft, another first-round selection, and a prospect for the 24-year-old but GM Kyle Davidson felt it wasn’t enough.  DeBrincat is coming off a 41-goal, 78-point season and has one year left on his current deal with a $6.4MM AAV but will be owed a $9MM qualifying offer next summer which is something that acquiring teams will need to budget around.  Meanwhile, with the Blackhawks squarely in a rebuild now, the time might be right to sell high on their star winger and they have justifiably set a high asking price for his services.

Blackhawks Hoping To Keep Derek King

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  • While Derek King is no longer Chicago’s head coach following the hiring of Luke Richardson, GM Kyle Davidson told reporters, including Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times, that the Blackhawks are looking to retain King in a yet-to-be-determined role. It’s possible that King goes back to AHL Rockford which is where he was before he was called on to replace Jeremy Colliton while he also could become an assistant on Richardson’s staff or transition into a role in their front office.

Jim Pappin Passes Away At 82

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Former Toronto Maple Leafs and Chicago Blackhawks forward Jim Pappin has passed away at the age of 82, the Maple Leafs announced. The club’s statement read:

A two-time Stanley Cup champion, Pappin played parts of five seasons in Toronto, scoring 54 goals with 46 assists in 223 regular season games. Somewhat of a late-bloomer, Pappin didn’t make his NHL debut until the 1963-63 season, when he was 24. Successful as Pappin’s Toronto career was, given the two Stanley Cups, his career would take off dramatically after a trade to the Chicago Blackhawks in 1968. The veteran, now 29, put up 70 points in 75 games in his first season with Chicago, more than doubling his previous best of 32. He would remain an elite point-producer with the Blackhawks, culminating in a career-best 41 goals and 51 assists in 1972-73.

Chicago Blackhawks Hire Luke Richardson

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June 29: TSN’s Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the Blackhawks signed Richardson to a four-year contract. He’ll be the team’s head coach through 2025-26.

June 27: The Blackhawks have made it official, hiring Richardson as their next head coach. General manager Kyle Davidson released a statement:

We are excited having a seasoned coach like Luke join the organization as head coach. Luke shares our vision and goals for the future, and he will have an opportunity to build an environment and culture of high performance, hard work, and high accountability. Throughout the interview process, it became evident that he not only had every quality we were looking for in a head coach, but also is a high-character individual that was perfect to lead this next era of the Chicago Blackhawks. 

June 24: The Winnipeg Jets may be waiting on Barry Trotz to make a decision but the Chicago Blackhawks are nearing one of their own. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff tweets that Luke Richardson is expected to be the next head coach of the Blackhawks, and the two sides are putting the finishing touches on a contract.  Scott Powers of The Athletic reported earlier today that Richardson, interim head coach Derek King, and Vancouver Canucks assistant Brad Shaw were the three finalists.

Richardson, who has spent the last four seasons as an assistant with the Montreal Canadiens, has long been looked at as a future NHL bench boss, even going back to his playing days. The 53-year-old former defenseman played more than 1,400 games in the league, and almost immediately transitioned onto an NHL coaching staff with the Ottawa Senators in 2009.

With the Blackhawks not expected to contend next season as they head into a complete rebuild, getting an inexperienced (and therefore inexpensive) bench boss always seemed to be the likely move. Richardson has just a handful of games as an NHL head coach–all coming in the 2021 playoffs when Dominique Ducharme was held out with COVID-19.

He does, however, have four years of experience as a head coach in the AHL, and is as well-respected an assistant as you will find around the league. His departure from the Canadiens will leave a substantial hole to fill, as Montreal tries to climb out of the bottom of the league under new head coach Martin St. Louis.

It is not clear what this would mean for King, who was brought up from the minor leagues to replace Jeremy Colliton early in the season. The Blackhawks went 27-33-10 under the interim boss, in his first taste of NHL head coaching. Powers wrote today that it would surprise him if the Rockford IceHogs didn’t stay with Anders Sorensen as head coach, meaning King could be looking for another role somewhere else.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Blackhawks Not Shopping Patrick Kane And Jonathan Toews

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  • While some have speculated about the possibility of the Blackhawks moving one or both of franchise stalwarts Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews this summer, Scott Powers of The Athletic reports (subscription link) that the veterans aren’t being shopped and if they do wind up going elsewhere, it will be at their request. The idea of discussing extensions with them hasn’t been ruled out either although that isn’t expected to happen this summer as all sides want to see how things go in what’s expected to be a rebuilding year in Chicago.  Kane and Toews are each under contract through next season at a $10.5MM cap hit.

Chicago Blackhawks Announce Front Office Changes

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Almost four months after affirming Kyle Davidson as the team’s permanent general manager, the Chicago Blackhawks have finalized the rest of their main hockey operations staff moving forward. The organization announced today that Meghan Hunter has been promoted to Assistant General Manager, Hockey Operations. They also said that Mark Eaton remains in his role as Assistant General Manager, Development, Brian Campbell has been named Advisor, Hockey Operations, and Karilyn Pilch has been promoted to Director of Player Personnel.

With her promotion, Hunter becomes the fourth woman in NHL history to serve as an assistant GM. She’s been with the Blackhawks organization for the past two seasons, serving as a scout and their director of hockey administration during that time. The 41-year-old had the highest points-per-game in a single season in University of Wisconsin history during her freshman year, tallying 42 goals, 36 assists, and 78 points in just 35 games. Her record stands against legends of the women’s hockey game such as Brianna Decker, Hilary Knight, and Meghan Duggan.

Eaton, a longtime NHL defenseman, will enter his third season as an assistant GM in Chicago. He’s been with the organization in an off-ice capacity since 2014, when he joined them as a development coach. Campbell has been a development coach with the Blackhawks since 2018 and also spent four years with them on the ice. He was an advisor to the team during their general manager search, ultimately opting to retain Davidson.

Pilch has five years of management experience, including three as the director of hockey operations for the Boston University women’s team and two years as general manager of the PHF/NWHL’s Boston Pride.

 

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