The Chicago Blackhawks initiated their rebuild efforts in February of 2023 when they traded Patrick Kane to the New York Rangers. Since then, GM Kyle Davidson has spent eleven 1st round picks and loads of other draft capital rebuilding the farm system and flooding the team with young talent. It's headlined by former #1 pick Connor Bedard and former #2 pick Artyom Levshunov. Despite such a heavy influx, things haven't shown up in the win column. Chicago finished with 25 wins last season, only two more than the previous year.
Fans are getting anxious. They've lived through this rebuild for what will be four years this season. Progress should be noticeable by now. Calls are getting louder for the team to start being aggressive in finding a veteran difference-maker, similar to Marian Hossa in 2009, who can pair with Bedard to get this thing off the ground. Insider Frank Seravalli was quick to caution against that. He believes the Blackhawks are playing this perfectly. They will let the young guys gain experience this season, likely enduring another down year. However, the payoff will be a high pick in what is considered a stacked 2026 draft.
If things go as planned, this team will be ready to go by next season.
Chicago Blackhawks fans must endure the hardest thing of all: patience.
It isn't easy for fans to go from nearly a decade of constant winning and championships to an extended down period. Few cities understand it better. The Chicago Blackhawks couldn't keep the talent pool deep enough to survive the aging of their core. As a result, the rebuild was inevitable. Thankfully, Davidson understood that and has approached the process correctly.
Stack picks. Select talented players. Let them develop.
The hard part is letting the process play out. Too many teams get angsty and try to speed it up with significant free agent spending or blockbuster trades. Most of the time, that doesn't work. The Blackhawks have mirrored what the Cubs did under Theo Epstein in the 2010s. They compiled assets, drafted well, and built a stacked farm system. After four years, they made some crafty trades and free agent moves to fortify the roster in 2015. The rest is history. That time is coming fo the Blackhawks, but it's not here yet.
