Nine games in, the Chicago Blackhawks are still searching for answers, and the early picture has been uneven at best. At 3-6-0, they’ve already shown both sides of the coin - the kind of 4-3 win over the Winnipeg Jets that flashes promise, and the kind of 4-0 loss to the Dallas Stars that snaps everyone right back to reality.
That’s been the story of this start: a young team trying to reshape how it’s viewed, with a few surprises already baked into the first stretch of the season. Some have been encouraging. Others have been a problem.
Teuvo Teravainen has been one of the pleasant ones.
After slipping to 14 goals and 35 points last season, his lowest totals since 2022-23, plenty of people were ready to wonder whether the 32-year-old forward was near the end of the line. Instead, after moving down to the third line, the player known as “Turbo” has opened the year with some life. In seven games, he has two goals and five assists and is a plus-two.
There’s a clear hope here, too: a healthy Connor Bedard could ease the burden on the middle-six group and make life easier for players like Teravainen over the long haul. Even if this pace doesn’t last, the Blackhawks can take comfort in seeing a veteran with a strong start. This team is going to need whatever production it can get as the young core keeps developing.
Bowen Byram, meanwhile, has gone in the other direction.
Chicago paid heavily in assets and contract dollars to bring him in, and that came with pressure. The expectation was that a bigger role would unlock more of the offense already in his game and help the Blackhawks get a real No. 1 offensive defenseman. So far, that hasn’t happened.
Byram has only one assist, which puts him 17th on the Blackhawks, and he has also missed time with an upper-body injury. His minus-seven is ugly enough on its own; it would be the worst mark on the team if not for Patrick Kane’s minus-11.
For now, the ask is simple: return healthy, simplify things, and stop forcing the issue. His skating and offensive skill can matter a lot, but not if he’s overthinking every shift.
What he looks like once he’s back will be worth watching closely.
The larger issue, though, is still the offense.
Last season, Chicago struggled to score and finished with 2.54 goals per game, which ranked 31st in the NHL. This year hasn’t brought a jump forward. In fact, the Blackhawks are scoring 2.33 goals per game, which leaves them 29th in the league.
Bedard’s absence was a huge part of that, and he has already chipped in three points since returning. But the attack still needs more help.
Only six players have multiple goals so far, and Kane and Anton Frondell are among the group with just one. That leaves too much on too few shoulders.
There are at least a couple of positive signs. Frank Nazar and Roman Kantserov each have three goals, which is something. But it hasn’t been enough to change the overall direction of the offense, or the standings.
And that brings the Blackhawks to the part of the schedule that can either sharpen the picture or make it worse. They still have 75 games left, which is the comforting part and the unsettling part all at once. If the scoring doesn’t improve, if Byram doesn’t find the form that made him such a major addition, and if the young players don’t keep taking meaningful steps, this season could get long in a hurry.
For now, Chicago has three games left on this homestand, with the Montreal Canadiens, Florida Panthers, and Los Angeles Kings coming in. It’s a demanding stretch, and it should tell a lot about exactly where this team stands.
In Other News...
Blackhawks Fans May Finally Get A Beloved Jersey Back
Chicago hockey fans may be getting a familiar sight back on the calendar after years away from it. The Blackhawks green Shamrock look has long carried a special place in the teams history, even if it only ever appeared in warmups and never in actual games. When the NHL banned specialty warm-up uniforms in 2023, that effectively shut the door on the look, at least for a while.
Now there is fresh reason to think the jersey could return in a new form, with a teaser and leaked list pointing to an early November unveiling tied to the leagues Hometown Remix jerseys. The buzz has only added to the intrigue around a design that already feels woven into the citys St. Patricks Day identity, and Blackhawks fans will not have to wait long to find out whether the hint turns into a real release. [Read more 🡒]