After firing Luke Richardson in the dog days of the 2024-25 campaign, the Blackhawks led a coaching search that ended in Jeff Blashill’s hiring. With him came some new faces.
Michael Peca and Mike Velucci came along to run the special teams. Anders Sörensen, the previous interim head coach, was retained to coach the defensemen and to keep a familiar face in the room. Jimmy Waite remained as the goaltending coach.
More specifically, Peca worked with the penalty kill while Velucci ran the power play. Both of these coaches also worked closely with the forward group. Sörensen gained plenty of favor for his longtime employment with the Blackhawks and IceHogs coaching staffs. Waite, a former Blackhawks player, has held his position for over a decade and is widely considered one of the best goaltending coaches in the NHL.
Holding it all together at the top was Blashill, a former longtime Red Wings head coach. After spending some time under Jon Cooper in Tampa Bay, the Blackhawks’ front office saw a cohesive vision between Blashill and the rebuild.
Many questions arose from the quality of the roster, which the fanbase focused on instead of the coaching. Ultimately, great coaches get the best out of their players, and they fell short in their first season as a staff.
Power Play Struggles
Although the Blackhawks had tons of offensive firepower, the unit severely struggled to capitalize. By the end of the season, they ranked fourth to last in power play percentage. This number is simply inexcusable with the young, fast, talented offensive players the Blackhawks have.
Something the Blackhawks don’t lack in terms of personnel are goal scorers. Many are still young and figuring out the NHL’s pace of play, but they still should be able to score on the man advantage. Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar, Nick Lardis, and Oliver Moore all saw power-play time. Unfortunately, they struggled to put together consistent zone entries and opportunities.
Even when Anton Frondell entered the first power play unit to end the season, the team simply could not find the back of the net very often. Although, it’s worth mentioning that their structure was solid, and they found plenty more chances.
Velucci would occasionally change who ran the point. Artyom Levshunov, Sam Rinzel, and Bedard all took that spot at different points in the season. Ultimately, there was a fundamental issue with the way the unit performed.
To give Velucci some credit, the power play passed the eye test towards the end of the season. Adding Frondell and going to a five-forward power play with Bedard quarterbacking really helped the first unit. Unfortunately, though, the execution just was not there, and they still struggled to score.
A five percent uptick in production would put them in the middle of the league standings, but would do wonders for the overall success of the Blackhawks. Expect Velucci to really shake things up next season to find a system that works for new faces and the improved young talent.
Is Sörensen the Guy?
Kyle Davidson has prioritized drafting defensemen. So, the man in charge of those players is one of the most important coaches on the staff. Sörensen led a lackluster playing career as a defenseman, but has carved out a coaching career built on developing players.
He started in the Chicago area as a youth hockey coach before coaching the Chicago Mission some years later. During that time, he would help develop future Blackhawks in Ryan Hartman, Vinnie Hinostroza, and Nick Schmaltz.
After a coaching stint in Sweden, Sörensen was hired by the Blackhawks as a player development coach in 2013. Fast forward thirteen years, and he is now one of the most important voices in the room. So far, his contribution has looked shaky, but hopeful.
Blackhawks D-Core
Rinzel, Levshunov, Wyatt Kaiser, Louis Crevier, and Alex Vlasic were all players who stayed relatively consistent as blue liners. Crevier and Kaiser were both excellent, unlocking pieces of their game that took their contribution to the next level. Not giving Sörensen some credit here would be a misstep.
Rinzel and Lev both have a lot of young player woes to work out. Improved consistency, decision-making, and physical strength will make these two next-level defensemen. With time, Sörensen will really be able to flex his developmental muscle with these two.
Alex Vlasic was disappointing. After a career year, Vlasic signed a deal that felt like a steal at the time. So far, he has seemed timid and simply ineffective in high-leverage areas. Even though he has his money locked up, more is needed out of a guy who is expected to wear an ‘A’ next season.
The ‘Pronger’ Model
Hockey Hall of Famer Chris Pronger often cites a 300-game benchmark to evaluate defensemen. Across the five players mentioned above, not a single one has passed that threshold. The only player who is even close is Vlasic, who has 260 games under his belt. Ethan Del Mastro, another young hopeful, has played 45 games. Kevin Korchinski, the first draft pick of the rebuild, sits at 105.
Long story short, the defensemen are fine, at least for now. If the opinion of one of the greatest defensemen in league history holds any water, then it could take seasons to know what the Blackhawks have on their blueline. Now’s the time for Sörensen to show what he came to Chicago to do: develop.
Though the defense may be a question mark, the Blackhawks did have a few exclamation points on the year.
Peca’s Penalty Kill
The penalty kill was incredible, and at times, it felt like the Blackhawks almost wanted to be on it. Objectively, this was where the team played their best hockey.
After the trade deadline, speculation swirled on whether the unit would stay solid with Connor Murphy and Jason Dickinson, arguably their two best penalty killers, being shipped off.
Nevertheless, the Blackhawks finished at 83.6%, second-best in the league behind only Colorado. Ilya Mikheyev and Teuvo Teravainen both showed their excellent killing abilities. Ryan Greene and Landon Slaggert joined these two veterans while Vlasic, Crevier, Kaiser, and Rinzel backstopped the effort. Peca worked wonders coaching this group, and it will be interesting to see if any adjustments will be made next season.
Goaltending
Spencer Knight, in his first full season as a starting goaltender, was simply stunning. Having over a year to work with Waite, compounded with his raw talent, made him incredibly reliable. On a contending team, Knight would be in the Vezina discussion.
Arvid Soderblöm was shaky, but for a backup goaltender on a defensively poor team, he did about the best he could. He made some marginal improvements in his rebound control and positioning, but he failed to stand on his head like Knight could. Again, on a contending team, Sodie would make for a rock-solid backup netminder.
Drew Commesso is another interesting goalie who looked awesome in his three starts. Waite could really bring out the best in him with what he has already shown. If the Blackhawks want to move on from Soderblöm, they know they have their next man up. Adam Gajan could be sneaky in the discussion, too, in a couple of seasons.
Interesting Line Combinations
Where Blashill got the most heat was in his line combinations. For much of the season, Bedard flew alongside Andre Burakovsky and Greene. It was an intriguing experiment, but not at all the answer. With the talent coming up and additions to be made this offseason, this hit to Blashill’s perception could be quickly turned around.
To close the season, Blash finally put Bedard and Nazar on a line together. Frondell also saw time on Bedard’s wing, and Lardis eventually became a mainstay. Although they never caught true fire the way many expected to, the framework is there. Ultimately, the lines are moving in the right direction.
The Bottom Line
The coaching staff did not do enough to prove they can lead a dynasty, but they didn’t prove otherwise either. There were some bright spots and blemishes, but mostly a lot of unanswered questions.
Blashill believes in the rebuild. He believes in the potential these young players possess. Goal alignment between the coaching staff and the front office was the most important part of the search, and they got just that. Now, it’s time to see that vision turn into reality.
Leave a comment