Image [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/0f70220c-9546-41e4-8891-49abaa3a1af7.jpeg] Against the Boston Bruins on Thursday night, the Chicago Blackhawks dressed six defenseman who are all 23 years old or younger. Louis Crevier, 23, was the oldest player to play defense for Chicago in this one. The Frozen Four semi-finals were going on at the same time as this game. One of the teams, Western Michigan, dressed six defenseman who had an older average age than the Blackhawks had vs the Bruins. The commitment to youth is on full display for Chicago. One of the defenseman in the lineup, Sam Rinzel, is playing well beyond his years. He is one of the 20-year-olds that the Hawks had on defense. You'd think that he would be one of the guys sheltered on the third pair, but he was the number one for the entire game. Rinzel had an assist, but it was more of his defensive work that was noticeable. He can make an impact with his play in all three zones. In his sixth NHL game, he led the Blackhawks in ice time by playing 24:54. That is almost three minutes more than Alex Vlasic who played 22:07 which was the second most on the team. Vlasic has been this team's number one all year long until Rinzel came around. Now, they form a wonderful pair that Anders Sorensen is comfortable putting in any situation. Rinzel had flashes of this when he was at the University of Minnesota but you never know if it is going to translate at the game's highest level. It did for Rinzel and it only took a couple of weeks. How is Rinzel going to be when he's 25-28 years old? It's scary to think about the level of impact that he could make when he is in the prime of his career. After the game, a 5-2 victory for the Blackhawks over the Bruins, interim head coach Anders Sorensen spoke highly of his young defense unit dressed in that game. “Give them a lot of credit,” Sorensen said when asked about them being so young together. He knows it can be difficult to be impactful at this level with such a limited amount of experience. “Yeah, that’s a young D-core," Sorenson continued on his group. "I think they held together well. It’s not easy to come in here and play against [Pastrnak] and some of these guys. They did a good job, they hung in there”. There is a lot of growth still coming with this group. They won't continue to dress six defensemen under 23, but a good veteran or two will help them grow. The fact that Sam Rinzel is already capable of leading a blue line in the NHL speaks volumes about how well he can play. His ability to shut down the opposition and make waves in the offensive zone is the best on the team at this time. If Levshunov can match Rinzel's level of play, they will be a force to be reckoned with. Tons of other young defensemen are right there with them in the organization. Good times are ahead for Chicago. Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/] team site to stay updated on the latest news [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/latest-newshttps://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/latest-news], game-day [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/game-dayhttps://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/game-day] coverage, player features [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/playershttps://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/players], and more.
