We’re now less than a month from the start of the NHL regular season, and excitement about the Blackhawks is already ramping up. The team spent a bunch of money this summer to turn its roster upside down. After being forced to put players into certain roles just to field a roster at times last season, Chicago now has the luxury of putting together a real, competitive lineup when they open the regular season at Utah. But how will the new-look Blackhawks fit together?
We’ve finally reached the end of our preseason preview of the Blackhawks, who will feature an invigorated roster that should actually be competitive at the NHL level. Last year’s bottom defensive pairing was usually a disaster, with players like Jarred Tinordi and Nikita Zaitsev simply serving as traffic cones until Alex Vlasic and Seth Jones could catch their breath. This year’s pairing is a bit different, however. These two veterans are much more competent and are a perfect representation of a much deeper Blackhawks defense.
TJ Brodie
The majority of the Blackhawks’ defenders are veterans who are vast improvements over last year’s squad, but who still don’t represent long-term parts of Chicago’s franchise when it’s fully rebuilt. That’s the case for Brodie, who was brought in this summer on a two-year deal with an AAV of $3.75 million. Just because he likely won’t be around when the Blackhawks are contending for Stanley Cups doesn’t mean he won’t be a valuable member of this year’s team – he was vital in Toronto’s success last year while posting a plus-minus of +17. At age 34, father time has certainly caught up to Brodie, who has clearly lost a step. However, he’s still an elite, heady skater who moves the puck well and has a bit of scoring ability left in the tank.
With Brodie now on the Blackhawks’ bottom line, this year will be a great chance for him to play a more free game, setting up his teammates efficiently and racking up assists. With Chicago’s revamped offensive unit, there won’t be much pressure on him to score, so he’ll be able to position himself more effectively in the defensive zone. He won’t have to cover as much ground now that he’s next to Connor Murphy, so the pressure is off of Brodie as he looks to remain one of the better blueliners in the league.
Connor Murphy
Murphy wasn’t too much of a bright spot on last year’s team, only picking up eight points while missing a good chunk of the season due to a lingering groin injury. Murphy isn’t the best scorer, but he does possess good size and skating ability and carries the puck well. He’s also one of the clear veteran presences in Chicago’s locker room, especially since he’s the longest-tenured Blackhawk after joining the team in 2017. The 31-year-old has two years left on his contract and should be more than serviceable until his deal is up.
When he was healthy last year, Murphy was often stuck paired with young, inexperienced players like Kevin Korchinski, Isaak Phillips or Wyatt Kaiser. That was great news for the youngsters, who were able to learn plenty about the NHL game from the veteran, but Murphy was also asked to be in too many places at once in the defensive zone. Now paired with Brodie, much of the pressure is off of both skaters. They’re both intelligent veteran defenders who position themselves well. While this line may not have quite the lockdown prowess as players like Alex Vlasic and Seth Jones at the top, Brodie and Murphy should make things difficult on opposing offenses and help close lanes for the Blackhawks’ veteran goaltenders.
