NEWSLETTER
Late last week, the Blackhawks announced a two-year extension with forward Nick Foligno. On Tuesday morning, the Blackhawks followed that deal with another two-year deal, this time with center Jason Dickinson. In locking-up those two players, the Blackhawks are showing they believe in them as both leaders and impact players on the ice.
These are two of the more important contracts that general manager Kyle Davidson has written on a number of levels.
There continues to be a lot of talk about the perceived timeline for the Blackhawks to return to competitiveness. While many outsiders and analysts have focused on a five-year timeline, Davidson has always refused to put a specific number on it because he wants the players to determine when they’re ready and how good they are. But he’s always made sure to keep his financial flexibility as well. That’s why Foligno and Dickinson received two-year deals; the summer of 2026 is when Connor Bedard‘s next contract needs to be written. And Kevin Korchinski as well.
But one aspect of the significance of these two deals is the very visual transition to the next stage of the building effort. Now, the Blackhawks are identifying leaders they want to be central to the insulation of their highly-regarded prospects as they enter the NHL. Guys who play the game the right way and buy into the program. And it’s been clear from training camp that the two veterans who have received contracts recently are players who fit that mold.
The other element that makes these deals significant is the players themselves making career and life decisions that show how much they’re buying into the program. And their belief that this ship is turning in an exciting direction, even if the results this season have been frustrating.
“It lets me know that my voice and my impact will hopefully be around for long enough that it can really sustain and dig in and grab hold here,” Foligno said on Saturday. “That’s what I get excited about. And also having the opportunity to play on a great team.”
The opportunity to play on a great team, eh? Foligno sees where this program is headed and wants to be a part of it. He, and Dickinson, could have been significant trade pieces for Davidson as he continues to stockpile picks to accelerate his rebuild. But these contracts signify the transition to the next stage of that effort. It’s time to build with and around certain players, and the organization wants Foligno and Dickinson to be two core players that surround their exciting young nucleus into the future.
After Dickinson signed, he spoke to the media on Tuesday morning. And his comments echoed what we heard from Foligno after he signed his extension. In fact, Dickinson went as far as to say he would like to be around well beyond the two years he just got from the Blackhawks.
“I see something here,” Dickinson said. “I’m not going to lie, I would’ve liked a few more years because I see what’s down the line. I see the potential, I see where things can go and I would love to be a part of that. I’m a building block right now as we move forward and who knows, in a couple year we could be talking another extension to really see things through.”
He, too, wants to see where things are headed — and believes in the direction of the franchise. And knows how special Chicago is going to be. Dickinson went as far as to specifically talk about how strong the pipeline is in Chicago and eventually seeing some of the young players integrated into the NHL lineup.
As a reminder: Dickinson got off to a really nice start to his career in Dallas and signed a deal with Vancouver to be a piece for them as they tried to rebuild. But just about everything wasn’t going right in that organization during the one year Dickinson was there, and his numbers struggled. So the Canucks dumped his salary on the Blackhawks; they threw in a 2024 second-round pick for defenseman Riley Stillman — arguably the best trade of Davidson’s tenure as general manager thus far.
Since he arrived in Chicago, things have been significantly better in almost every regard for Dickinson. He immediately developed a good relationship with Jonathan Toews, learning from him daily last year. He spoke often about how important it was for him to soak up as much knowledge as he could from Toews during practices and games because of his respect for the Blackhawks’ captain.
Beyond that, Dickinson’s numbers have gone straight up since his arrival in Chicago. He’s spoken frequently this year about finally getting payoff for the hard work he’s putting in — and his confidence is high. He’s on pace to score almost 30 goals this season after never scoring more than nine in a season because he’s working hard and the coaches are putting him in positions to succeed. Which is why Dickinson wants to be here for the long haul.
Why does Dickinson want to be around here? The direction of the team is clearly something players view as potentially special. But feeling valued as a player and the investment the coaches and organization have made in him also stands out. I asked Dickinson about what it means to him personally that Foligno and Richardson both spoke out on his behalf to keep him in Chicago.
“It’s pretty amazing. It’s special,” Dickinson said. “I appreciate them that they speak that highly of me and they think that highly of me. Because I just try to carry myself well, carry myself as a professional and let it speak for itself. I don’t try to do anything special, I just try to be me and hope that it’s enough.”
Richardson doubled-down on the importance of the leadership continuity in the room and the importance of both Dickinson and Foligno to their building efforts.
“They’ve earned that respect for us leaning on them and using them in a lot of aspects, not just on the ice and their play,” Richardson said. “We confide in them a lot to pass messages on through the team and where we want that leadership and examples to be and what we need and they’re great. They don’t just say, ‘Oh, yes,’ and go ahead and do it. They ask questions and give their opinions and we value that. So, it’s good to have that because you have to have some feedback back. If everything’s ‘Yeah, ok, yeah, ok’ and they go do it, we’re not getting a feel of the dressing room and them on how things are going. So, for us to coach properly with the group of guys, we need to have some feedback back and those two guys are great about it.”
I know I’ve written a lot about the importance of keeping both Foligno and Dickinson around for some time. On New Year’s Day, two of the three players I identified as should-be priorities for the Blackhawks to retain this year were Foligno and Dickinson (the third was Alex Vlasic… he’s next). Why did I label them as priorities? Because of what they mean on and off the ice.
As a fan of the team since the Secord-Savard-Larmer days and someone who has written about the team for nearly two decades, the hallmark of teams turning the corner in the right direction is getting the right players in the room together at the right time.
Signing Foligno and Dickinson assures the two players that they’ll have a team behind them for the next two years. It affords the coaches continuity of leadership in the room. And the front office is showing agents, players and the rest of the league that they’re ready to reward players who buy in and perform well.
These two deals are incredibly important for the next chapter in Blackhawks history. And I’m happy for both guys that they can see the excitement return to the United Center in the coming years as part of the team that’s hearing the cheering from 20,000 fans.
