The Chicago Blackhawks made a great announcement on Friday

There are a lot of changes going on with the Chicago Blackhawks these days. They want to rebuild some of the trust that has been broken between them and hockey fans over the last handful of years.

There are some new fresh people running the team now and some new fresh players ready to take over the on-ice product. Ever since winning the Draft Lottery earlier this year, the Hawks have been doing everything right.

Connor Bedard is here now and he is ready to make this team be as fun as it was back when Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews were young. The future is bright in Chicago.

On Friday afternoon, the Blackhawks made another very exciting announcement that should make all fans of hockey in Chicago very excited. This is the type of news that could change things forever.

The Chicago Blackhawks are expanding on Fifth Third Arena starting in 2024.

The Blackhawks have one of the best practice facilities in the NHL with Fifth Third Arena. It is a great place to watch hockey and for the players to prepare for games at the NHL level. The workout facility, locker rooms, and clubhouse are really cool.

On Friday, the team announced that the city of Chicago has approved an expansion of Fifth Third Arena. The plan is to make it one of the top community rinks in the entire world. That could mean a lot of really cool things for local hockey fans.

The youth and local programs will certainly get a boost from this as the team cares about that just as much as they care about it being the NHL practice facility.

Could the IIHF World Juniors eventually come to Chicago thanks to the fact that this second rink will be right next to the United Center? That would certainly be cool as the United States is scheduled to get it (an unknown city) in 2026. It will be in Sweden this year and Canada next year.

Conveniently enough, 2026 is the anticipated opening of the new expanded rink with construction set to get underway in 2024. Hockey fans from around the world coming to Chicago would be such a great experience and this announcement opens that door.

Seeing this announced on Friday should make everyone even more excited for hockey in Chicago. Some very fun times are ahead and this makes it even better.