The time has finally come; the start of a new era of Chicago Blackhawks hockey is here. The Hawks kick off their 2023–2024 regular season against the Pittsburgh Penguins. While there are no hopes for playoff hockey in Chicago just yet, you wouldn’t know it based on the excitement level surrounding this team. Last year was the teardown that featured the team moving on from its remaining legends and putting us in the best position to land the grand prize in the draft. This year, while the rebuild is in full effect, will feature the first look at what could be a very good group of young guns for the future. Connor Bedard is obviously the biggest piece to be excited about, but then you have Lukas Reichel, who is set to play his first full season in the NHL after a very good preseason in the 2C role. On the backend, you have three young defensemen ready to make a name for themselves and show that they belong in the NHL and are ready to take on a big role. Kevin Korchinski is the highly touted defensive prospect who is going to have the chance to hold the keys to this d-core. Will he step up and take them, or will he get sent back to the juniors before burning 10 games and the first year of his contract? Wyatt Kaiser has turned into a sneaky, quiet top prospect who always seemed to be just another man in the system. He has seen a lot of praise this off-season, landing on a few top 100 prospect lists from various sources. Lastly, you have Alex Vlasic. The 6’6… former 2019 2nd round pick has taken a slow-build approach to his game. After going through a massive growth spurt and having to learn to play with his massive frame, he has developed into a very good shut-down defenseman. This year will be a great test to see if the 22-year-old is ready for the big time or needs more time in the minors.
Projected Lines:
#Blackhawks lines and pairings ahead of Opening Night:
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 9, 2023
Hall-Bedard-Donato
T. Johnson-Reichel-Raddysh
Katchouk-Guttman-Athanasiou
Perry-Dickinson-Foligno
Vlasic-Jones
Korchinski-Murphy
Tinordi-Kaiser
Mrazek
Söderblom
Extras: Entwistle, R. Johnson, Zaitsev
This is going to be a fun game tonight, with Connor Bedard playing against his hockey hero, Sidney Crosby. You also have the first look at what seems to be the Penguins final push to win a Cup with their big three: Crosby, Malkin, and Letang. New GM Kyle Dubas went out and picked up defending Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson to add a lot of offensive firepower to this team. Will it be enough to make them legit contenders again? I don’t think so, but it will make for some interesting hockey out of Pittsburgh. WCBPodcast Watchalong Tonight, we will be doing our very first watchalong on our YouTube channel. We have been a part of these before, and they are always a good time. There is a live chat option, so you can leave comments and interact with us as we watch the new era of this team begin. We will be going live at 6:45 central for a little pregame talk. Join Here
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