Blackhawks 2026/27 season

[gflore34]

Maybe you can answer this jersey cubs fan - why are, currently, none of the young players improving.  In fact, I know it's a very small sample, they appear to be regressing.  It's not as if they're completely devoid of talent, many of them were very good amateurs, some even dominating.  Yet, as Blackhawks, they're completely pathetic, there's nothing good to point at, it's very discouraging when there's not the slightest glimmer at the end of the tunnel.

[jersey cubs fan]

3 hours ago, gflore34 said:

Maybe you can answer this jersey cubs fan - why are, currently, none of the young players improving.  In fact, I know it's a very small sample, they appear to be regressing.  It's not as if they're completely devoid of talent, many of them were very good amateurs, some even dominating.  Yet, as Blackhawks, they're completely pathetic, there's nothing good to point at, it's very discouraging when there's not the slightest glimmer at the end of the tunnel.

Everybody in hockey loves the phrase “development isn’t linear”. In addition to that truism, I think there’s two main things going on. 
 

1) all of these players are playing with less than ideal NHL teammates, which is a self fulfilling prophecy of prospect failure. 
2) it’s tough to get past the hump of an organization not only accepting, but inviting failure. 

Good players need to play with good players to reach their promise, every hockey parent thinks their kid just needs to play on the top line or pair with the top D to succeed. And the parents of the #1 center and #1 D think their kid needs to play on a better team. 

But there are individual storylines for all of them. It’s not weird for late first and early second round draft picks to be non contributors at the nhl level. You need top of the first talent to get top NHL ability. Defenseman take longer to develop and there hasn’t been a top of the lineup veteran in place for guys to compete with and eventually take their place. They were all just guaranteed NHL minutes because the Hawks had no other options. Teams like the Devils have a bunch of D men to the point that they chose to trade away their RFA first round D in Nemec rather than make room. 
 

very soon Chicago will begin moving on from some of these names we’ve heard about for years. There just isn’t enough roster space for all of them. That’s part of the reason why Davidson was so willing to trade the #4 pick. Diminishing returns have hit this team. It’s probably gonna be Arty or Rinzel in a year or two. I doubt they sign both to long extensions. Lardis is redundant despite his history of scoring because other guys do what he does better (in theory) and he can’t do bottom 6 stuff. 
 

in a way Bedards injury may help them actually decipher who is worthy of being given top line minutes and who is just here because the Hawks have no real competition for these roles. 

[gflore34]

1 hour ago, jersey cubs fan said:

Everybody in hockey loves the phrase “development isn’t linear”. In addition to that truism, I think there’s two main things going on. 
 

1) all of these players are playing with less than ideal NHL teammates, which is a self fulfilling prophecy of prospect failure. 
2) it’s tough to get past the hump of an organization not only accepting, but inviting failure. 

Good players need to play with good players to reach their promise, every hockey parent thinks their kid just needs to play on the top line or pair with the top D to succeed. And the parents of the #1 center and #1 D think their kid needs to play on a better team. 

But there are individual storylines for all of them. It’s not weird for late first and early second round draft picks to be non contributors at the nhl level. You need top of the first talent to get top NHL ability. Defenseman take longer to develop and there hasn’t been a top of the lineup veteran in place for guys to compete with and eventually take their place. They were all just guaranteed NHL minutes because the Hawks had no other options. Teams like the Devils have a bunch of D men to the point that they chose to trade away their RFA first round D in Nemec rather than make room. 
 

very soon Chicago will begin moving on from some of these names we’ve heard about for years. There just isn’t enough roster space for all of them. That’s part of the reason why Davidson was so willing to trade the #4 pick. Diminishing returns have hit this team. It’s probably gonna be Arty or Rinzel in a year or two. I doubt they sign both to long extensions. Lardis is redundant despite his history of scoring because other guys do what he does better (in theory) and he can’t do bottom 6 stuff. 
 

in a way Bedards injury may help them actually decipher who is worthy of being given top line minutes and who is just here because the Hawks have no real competition for these roles. 

Thanks.  Really like the analysis.  Don't remember, did you coach or play or are still playing?  I play with a fellow in my old man lacrosse during the summer, who has essentially played hockey all of his life and keeps on going. 

[jersey cubs fan]

I’m just a youth coach and fill in pickup game player. Complete amateur and non expert but been paying pretty close attention to the sport for several years. 
 

I’ve also been a tank skeptic since it began so biased, I guess. But I’m tired of the free pass Davidson has had where every year results don’t matter it’s the next year that matters.