The excitement for this year’s Blackhawks season is unquestionable - the team opens the year with a primetime matchup against the Penguins on ESPN Tuesday night. The roster has been completely upended and all eyes will be on Connor Bedard as he shares the faceoff circle with his idol, Sidney Crosby.
However, Bedard isn’t the only young skater making his NHL debut Tuesday night. Chicago answered one of its biggest questions after Monday’s practice when it was announced that Kevin Korchinski had made the team and would be traveling to skate in the opener. The 19-year-old couldn’t be more thrilled:
“It’s amazing. It’s a dream come true. Something I’ve dreamed about as a kid. It’s going to be really cool. Obviously there will be some learning moments but overall it’s super exciting with family there.”
- Kevin Korchinski
The 2022 seventh-overall pick had to pack his bags in a hurry, as the team headed to Pittsburgh after their morning practice. Korchinski’s parents and sister will be there to see his debut, he says, so he’ll hope for a big night. If the comments from head coach Luke Richardson about the decision to keep him on the roster are any indication, he’ll need some nice performances to stay with the club.
“We just told him, like everybody else in the league, it’s the best league in the world, congratulations, you earned the spot, but now every day is to keep it.”
- Luke Richardson
Korchinski will likely have a pretty short leash for the first few games - if he plays fewer than ten throughout this year, his entry-level contract will slide further down the road. That’s not necessarily Chicago’s biggest concern with their abundance of cap room, but they’ll have to pay all their prospects, including Connor Bedard, eventually. No one, aside from maybe Kyle Davidson and Luke Richardson, knows where Korchinski will spend the majority of this season, but he’ll certainly have the chance to sway that decision one way or another.
Even Korchinski says he could have some trouble adjusting to the NHL. He admitted he’ll have to be careful to not get star-struck, and mentioned future Hall-of-Famers including Crosby and Erik Karlsson on the other end, neither of whom he’s seen play in person.
Despite the opening-night jitters, as well as the pressure to perform, Korchinski has the confidence of his young coach, who raved about his physical potential. He told reporters the prospect is a great skater and highly skilled player. He also praised his maturity and coachability:
“But he’s great. He learns every day, and you can see him implement, even during the game what we tell him later on in the video clips, even defensively. Offensively, I don’t even know if we have to help him there. He’s got the instinct to go and he’s got the gas to get back and cover up himself, so he’s shown a lot more strength and maturity this year than he was last year and I think he’s shown he’s ready to start.”
- Luke Richardson
If you asked Korchinski, he’d likely say he’s done with the easy part - making the team. He’s still got plenty to prove during his tenure in Chicago, whether it’s for a few games or the entire season. Will he be able to show he belongs at the sport’s highest level?
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