Throughout much of this summer, I’ve struck a cautious tone in many lists as we consider players we’re concerned about or who are on thin ice. It’s great to keep an eye on certain skaters to decide whether they should stay on the NHL roster, but it’s also sometimes important to take a more optimistic approach. After all, this Blackhawks team should be quite a bit better than the squads of the last few years, with some fans even whispering about playoff contention. It’s easy to get excited about three Blackhawks players in particular heading into the new season.
Well… duh. Connor Bedard sometimes doesn’t get the credit he deserves on these lists simply because he’s an obvious choice. However, there’s no question he’s not only the most exciting player to watch in Chicago for this year, but also one of the most exciting in the entire league. He already makes the absurd plays look normal, and assuming he’s on a more talented top line than the Blackhawks had last year, he’ll have more opportunities to turn into one of the NHL’s premier scoring talents. Many media members have listed Bedard as a potential dark horse for the Hart Trophy, and his hype is going through the roof. It’ll be fun to see his game develop this season.
Korchinski is an interesting player to watch this season because we don’t yet know where he’ll be playing. Last year, Korchinski was forced into the NHL lineup even though the AHL would have done him some good because he was only 19 years old. Now that he has an opportunity to spend time with the IceHogs and the Blackhawks have brought in more veteran defensive talent, there’s a pretty decent chance he gets sent to Rockford. If Korchinski stays in Chicago, however, he’s an obvious breakout candidate. His defensive skills last season were a bit raw, but another season of experience could be just what he needs to turn into a premier top-pairing talent.
Could Kurashev progress even further? The 24-year-old enjoyed a career year last season, bumping his point total to 54 from 25 the year before. Much of that jump was attributed to playing next to Bedard on the top line, and the two developed a decent bit of chemistry that resulted in plenty of scoring, even if they both boasted some of the worst plus-minus marks in the league. If Kurashev is pushed to a middle-six role because of Chicago’s offseason additions, he’ll likely take a step back, and at his current salary, that’s just fine. But the Blackhawks may instead attempt to blossom the pairing of Kurashev and Bedard by leaving the Swiss forward on the top line. If that’s the case, Kurashev could see an even bigger increase in scoring and rank among the better scorers in the league.
