Chicago Blackhawks: What would a true rebuild look like?

What would a Chicago Blackhawks rebuild look like if they did it right?

The Chicago Blackhawks claim that they are rebuilding their roster. It isn’t a very good roster anymore and their record over the past three seasons shows why. They won the Stanley Cup in 2015 and haven’t won a playoff series since. They haven’t even been to the playoffs (the normal playoffs) since 2017. They made it to the bubble in the NHL’s “Return to Play” but they would have not even sniffed the playoffs in a normal year.

So, if they were to actually rebuild the way they’re supposed to (which is unlikely), it would be really painful. Fans would see some of the players that they have come to love over the years go if the rebuild was done the right way. They did a good job building from the ground up in the mid-2000s and that is what they need to do again.

Already have

The Chicago Blackhawks already have some nice young pieces in place to build around. They have Kirby Dach, Ian Mitchell, Adam Boqvist, and Alex DeBrincat who are all pretty good young players to build around. We will see who emerges as the game-breakers but that is a good place to start. They need a lot more young players but those guys are pretty nice to have to lead the way.

Legends

Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Duncan Keith are three of the five greatest players who ever played for the Chicago Blackhawks. They have won numerous individual awards and have come together to lead the way to three Stanley Cups. All three of them were named to be NHL Top 100 players of all time which basically locks them in as Hall of Famers.

Unfortunately, the Hawks would get the best rebuild done if they traded those guys. Kane and Toews are each top of the line NHL forwards, especially Kane. Keith is still a good top-four defenseman that would help any team win. Each player would return valuable assets that would certainly help them build a good future.

Draft

If they were smart enough to do a rebuild the right way, they would probably have a couple of high draft picks coming up. With those picks, it would be nice to win the lottery but you can’t bank on that. What they can hope for, is using those picks wisely. Scouting and developing is key to getting the most out of young prospects.

Realistically

Realistically, Stan Bowman probably won’t trade any of the players that will return the best assets. This already feels like a rebuild that they won’t do right because of the moves they have already made. They made a few trades that made it seem like they are trying to win but it came after letting Corey Crawford walk so they can “look at the young guys they have to play goal”.

Not much Stan Bowman has done over the past few years has made much sense so it really isn’t that much of a surprise. We just have to hope that they have learned a few lessons and are able to start turning the page into something good. If they did a real rebuild, things would get ugly before they got better but if they don’t, they will just stay ugly. The former is probably the best course of action and trading some popular players would be key.