In their first waiver transaction of the 2023-24 season (aside from Corey Perry), the Blackhawks placed forward Boris Katchouk on waivers Monday.
The move comes with a pair of Blackhawks expected to be activated off IR in the coming days or weeks. Top-six forward Andreas Athanasiou, who left the ice a month ago with a groin injury, is still not skating, but he’s expected to return to the lineup sooner rather than later. Forward Colin Blackwell may be a bit closer to a return. After a sports hernia surgery in March and a series of setbacks, the 30-year-old began taking reps in Blackhawks practice last month. He hasn’t been activated yet, but his progress seems to warrant the belief that he’ll be with the team soon. Given the news of Katchouk being waived, we may hear good news about Blackwell as early as today.
The decision to waive Katchouk was simply a case of “first man out”. After he was traded to the Blackhawks in March 2022 (the same deal that brought Taylor Raddysh to the team), he was in the starting lineup for most of the 2022-23 campaign, notching 16 points in 58 games. This year, though, Katchouk has found himself in the lineup much less frequently. He has two goals and two assists in 17 games this season but has lost his grip on his starting bottom-line role. He appears to have lost in a roster battle to Reese Johnson and Mackenzie Entwistle, who have both been pleasant surprises. Katchouk has been a healthy scratch for the last four games for the Blackhawks. Katchouk also lost his job on the team’s penalty-kill unit with the addition of Nick Foligno, as well as Raddysh becoming a staple on the unit.
Katchouk will likely clear NHL waivers, at which point he’ll be assigned to Rockford. His contract expires at the end of this season, so it’s unclear what the 25-year-old’s future holds. He’ll hope to get plenty of minutes at the AHL level to raise his value before that point.
The move is a great sign of what’s to come, whether that’s Blackwell rejoining the team or someone else. With Katchouk not getting any minutes with the Blackhawks, it also allows him to improve his game elsewhere.
In the same flurry of Blackhawks moves Monday, the team recalled defenseman Filip Roos and placed Jarred Tinordi on IR with a concussion. The team left for Edmonton after Monday’s news for a game Tuesday against the Oilers.
