TJ Max (blackhawks)

After this season, Johnson has 2 years remaining at $5M AAV on his current contract. One option is to try trading him but the return would be rather low at likely a low draft pick -- and that assumes there are suitors. Another option is to buy him out.

What if Davidson decides to not just retain him but also lean on him as a much-needed veteran to lead the youth through the rebuild. Like Toews and Kane, Johnson has won multiple Stanley Cups. Could Johnson lead without one or both Wonder Twins around?

Assume for a second that at least Toews has a new address next season and the Hawks re-sign Dylan Strome. Could Johnson hold down the 2C position with Strome and top goal scorer Alex DeBrincat forming the top line with Kane or Taylor Raddysh?

Having Johnson play pivot for the 2nd line -- at least to start the season -- would allow Kirby Dach and Lukas Reichel to play either wing on his line and/or be the primary cogs for the 3rd line. Johnson can provide mentorship for Strome, Dach, and Reichel.

Remember Robert Lang? The reliable Czech was brought in to ease the development of a rookie center named Toews. Lang was in Chicago for just one season but played his part to log big minutes so Toews could get acclimated to the pace and rigor of the NHL.

Of course, if Toews stays with the only team he has ever known, then he can be the master now when he was once the apprentice. However, there is concern that Toews may not be the best teacher at this point in his career due to an increasingly ornery disposition.

But if Toews is with a new franchise, depending on Strome to be the center to guide the youth may not be preferred given he himself is still getting through his own learning curve. With that in mind, having Johnson on the squad and playing top 6 makes sense.

If not Johnson, then the Hawks could go with a free agent veteran center signed to one year who could then be flipped at the trade deadline similar to Carl Soderberg last season. That strategy may be applicable with personnel for the blueline and in net, too.

Again, operating under the assumption that Johnson and Strome are still Blackhawks for 2022-23 but Toews and Kane are not, the top 6 could look something like:

DeBrincat - Strome - Raddysh Reichel - Johnson - Dach

In due course, Dach could eventually slide over to center and Johnson takes his spot on the right wing where he is just as comfortable playing. Even if Toews is still with the team, the captain could be either 2C or 3C interchanging with Johnson.

A 3rd line of Toews (or Johnson) centering Philipp Kurashev and Henrik Borgstrom may be in the cards next season. However, an upgrade may be in order to at least swap out Borgstrom for a winger with more grit, consistency, and offensive punch.

If Kane is still with the team, too, then he obviously is the 1RW which would bump Raddysh down a peg either to the 2nd or 3rd line. He could be that aforementioned winger to take Borgstrom's spot. He essentially has replaced him this season.

That leaves the 4th line being comprised of a variety of rough-and-tumble forwards like Boris Katchouk, MacKenzie Entwistle, Reese Johnson, and Sam Lafferty. Jujhar Khaira should be back from LTIR but he may perhaps be the one who is bought out.

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Blackhawks Game Summary

Saturday Boxscore

DeBrincat - Strome - Kane Kubalik - Toews - T Johnson Kurashev - Lafferty - Raddysh Katchouk - R Johnson - Borgstrom

Vlasic - S Jones McCabe - Regula C Jones - Gustafsson

Lankinen Delia

Scratches: Dach, Entwistle, de Haan, Stillman

1st Goal (0-1): Weatherby (Reedy, Chmelevski) 2nd Goal (0-2): Hertl (Meier) 3rd Goal (0-3): Meier (Barabanov) 4th Goal (1-3): T Johnson (Toews, S Jones) 5th Goal (1-4): Bonino (Burns, Couture) PP

SOG For/Against: 28/19 PP: 0-for-2 PK: 2-for-3 Faceoffs Won: 61%

Highlights

IceHogs Game Summaries

Saturday Boxscore

Altybarmakian - Reichel - Teply Hardman - Slavin - Barratt Morrison - McLaughlin - Gicewicz Osipov - G Mitchell - Gabriel

Phillips - I Mitchell Stanton - Kalynuk Galvas - Beaudin

Soderblom Morris

1st Goal (1-0): Osipov (Galvas, Stanton) 2nd Goal (2-0): Altybarmakian (Kalynuk, Teply) 3rd Goal (3-0): Slavin (unassisted) 4th Goal (3-1): Suess (Heinola, Reichel) 5th Goal (3-2): Lundmark (Eyssimont, Oligny) 6th Goal (4-2): Gicewicz (Galvas) 7th Goal (5-2): I Mitchell (McLaughlin, Reichel) PP 8th Goal (5-3): Vesalainen (Chisholm, Gustafsson)

SOG For/Against: 24/46 PP: 1-for-2 PK: 3-for-3

Highlights

Sunday Boxscore

Altybarmakian - Reichel - Teply Hardman - Slavin - Barratt Morrison - McLaughlin - Gicewicz Pour - G Mitchell - Gabriel

Phillips - I Mitchell Stanton - Kalynuk Galvas - Beaudin

Soderblom Morris

1st Goal (0-1): Shaw (Addison, Rossi) PP 2nd Goal (0-2): Swaney (Mermis, Hicketts) PP 3rd Goal (1-2): Altybarmakian (Beaudin, Reichel) 4th Goal (2-2): Morrison (Kalynuk, McLaughlin) 5th Goal (2-3): Chaffee (Addison, Shaw) PP 6th Goal (3-3): Hardman (Reichel, Teply) PP 7th Goal (3-4): Rau (Gervais, Mermis) 8th Goal (3-5): Rau (unassisted) EN

SOG For/Against:39/39 PP: 1-for-1 PK: 3-for-6

Highlights

IceHogs Notebook

* Andrei Altybarmakian has scored a goal in 5 consecutive games and is one of a trio of Rockford forwards with the hot hand offensively; Mike Hardman has tallied 4 in his last 4 games while Josiah Slavin has 9 in his last 16.

* Brett Connolly will be out for 4-6 weeks with a left knee injury incurred last weekend thus will miss the rest of the regular season and at least one round of the Calder Cup Playoffs depending on how deep the Hogs go.

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See you on the boards!

Sources: Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune, Daily Herald, NBC Sports Chicago, The Athletic Chicago

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