The Chicago Blackhawks have good young defensemen. They put together a good performance on Tuesday.
The Chicago Blackhawks were defeated in overtime by the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night at the United Center. This was their one game at home following a four-game road trip on the East Coast, before heading west for the last time this season.
Their trip out east did not go well. They went 1-3-0 and were a bad defensive hockey team in all four games. Even the game they won over the New York Islanders wasn’t an ideal performance.
Against the Jets at home on Tuesday, they had a much better game in regard to their defense. With injuries to Artyom Levshunov and Matt Grzelcyk, they are left with Alex Vlasic, Wyatt Kaiser, Louis Crevier, Ethan Del Mastro, Sam Rinzel, and Kevin Korchinski. Those six will likely finish out the season if they stay healthy.
After the game was over, there was a lot of chatter about the forwards who played well, but Jeff Blashill had time to compliment this group of young defensemen, who played a mostly strong game against a desperate and talented Jets team.
"I thought they did a solid job," Blashill said of the six who played vs the Jets. "In the second, we didn't make as many plays as we could have made to have the puck and not spend as much time in our [defending] zone. We are asking a lot out of them. Overall, they did a solid job."
The Blackhawks were outshot 15-2 in the second. It's been an issue for them in the middle frame, and that's something that must be worked out next season. In this game, however, the Blackhawks came out and outshot the Jets 10-2 in the third. That played a role in them forcing overtime.
When the defensemen closed gaps, used their speed, and made smart first passes to create a breakout, the Blackhawks had better success with possession and overall play.
When complimenting the group as a whole, Blashill went out of his way to call out (in a good way) one specific player.
"Wyatt Kaiser was excellent," Blashill said. "I would definitely single him out. Wyatt's a bit of a gamer. He attacks the game. I love the way he attacks it, and I thought he was excellent tonight."
There might not be a player on the team who has raised his stock more in 2025-26 than Kaiser. They still haven't given him much of a shot on the power play, but he is proving that he has the tools to be in consideration for that job in the future.
Kaiser's defending in his own end and being hard to play against is what has allowed him to become a core piece in the organization. Blashill said earlier in the presser that Winnipeg's top line of Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele is one of the best in the league in his mind, and Kaiser played a key role in mostly containing them at 5 on 5.
There are going to be more ups and downs for Chicago over its final seven games of the season, but the foundation is there to keep building with youth. There are a couple of NCAA Frozen Four teams with younger blue lines than Chicago's, which puts into perspective how young they actually are.
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