NEWSLETTER
Let’s talk about signing people, shall we? On Monday, the Rockford IceHogs announced they re-signed forward Kyle Maksimovich to a one-year AHL contract. This obviously doesn’t impact the Chicago Blackhawks’ roster or available contracts, but it is interesting that the IceHogs are re-signing free agent forwards while the Blackhawks still have a list of their own that needs new paper.
Maksimovich is a 26-year-old undersized forward who appeared in only one game in the AHL last season; he spent most of the year with Indy in the ECHL. Again, he doesn’t impact Chicago. But starting to fill in a few gaps in Rockford with the understanding that a long list of prospects are going to start hitting the IceHogs’ roster is interesting nonetheless.
The Blackhawks have the following RFAs to consider in the coming weeks:
From that list, the only players who aren’t eligible for arbitration are Phillips, Crevier and Teplý. And Teplý is the only player on the list who doesn’t have NHL experience.
This becomes an interesting conversation quickly because of the arbitration issue. The deadline for teams to elect for salary arbitration is 48 hours after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Final — which could happen on Tuesday night if the Florida Panthers handle their business in Game 5.
The name that’s received the most re-sign comments thus far this offseason has been Stauber, who had a nice run with Rockford this past season. As I’ve noted previously, the issue here is simple: if he isn’t an upgrade from Arvid Söderblom, and the Blackhawks want to improve the caliber of competition to back up Petr Mrazek, he might be looking for a new home this summer. It’s also noteworthy that Drew Commesso got the majority of the postseason starts for the IceHogs and is viewed as the heir apparent in net in Chicago (Adam Gajan will go to college for a few years).
Blackhawks forward depth?
Anderson played on a two-way deal this past season and, once he was called up to Chicago, showed that he’s a viable NHL player. He was a solid contributor defensively and on the penalty kill and plays with the speed the coaches like. But, again, if the Blackhawks are looking to improve the roster, was he good enough to feel comfortable getting an NHL contract again this summer? He’s only 26 and is a solid depth forward who I would like to see back; I was somewhat disappointed he only got a two-way deal last summer.
Raddysh, 26, scored 20 goals after he was acquired from Tampa, but his production disappeared dramatically this past season. He lost his spot in front of the net on the power play and didn’t seem to ever find it at even strength.
Guttman, 25, was a point-per-game player in Rockford this past season but is undersized. With the Blackhawks bringing in a lot of young forwards, there may be value in having a player who was a captain on an NCAA champion, but he might be a two-way contract option more than an NHL-only deal.
There’s a lot to love about the energy and effort from Johnson and Entwistle, but they feel like the roster guys who might not have a roster spot when the Blackhawks start improving the roster. Both has functioned well as a 13th forward on the NHL roster, however, and play physically. So a two-way deal for one of them might make sense.
What about the Blackhawks’ blue line?
The good news for the Blackhawks is they have time with two of the three defensemen on the list because they aren’t eligible for arbitration yet. Roos has NHL experience and is already 25, but it’s hard to imagine the Blackhawks handing him an NHL contract as yet another LHD in the system. He might be trade bait… or headed back to Europe.
Scott Powers at The Athletic wrote earlier in the offseason that he wouldn’t be surprised if Phillips and Crevier were re-signed to help the organizational depth in Chicago and Rockford. Neither is a finished product yet and neither is eligible for arbitration. They both have good size… but the Blackhawks’ blue line is starting to get crowded and more prospects are coming.
How either fits into the short-term future with Alex Vlasic, Kevin Korchinski, Ethan Del Mastro, Wyatt Kaiser and Nolan Allan — all LHD by the way — is TBD. Obviously Crevier is a right-handed defenseman, so that helps his case. But the deep metrics really didn’t like his NHL time this past season. The Blackhawks also have RHD Sam Rinzel on the way and there’s a chance the Hawks select a RHD (Artyom Levshunov) at No. 2 in the 2024 NHL Draft next week who could be a pro as soon as September, though I think he’ll spend another season at Michigan State.
