Chicago Blackhawks: Top 10 Prospects Entering 2018
The Chicago Blackhawks missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade this past season. With a pipeline able to add depth and blue line help, the Blackhawks could be able to use their prospect pool to rebuild quickly.
The Chicago Blackhawks prospect pool is one able to add depth in the immediate term and blue line help in the future. Is that enough to help them rebuild after missing the playoffs for the first time in 10 years? Maybe, maybe not.
It might take more than adding more depth offensively to pull out of the plummet. It might take an immediate defensive force being added to the team to help fix the defensive problems.
The Blackhawks pipeline has more than the following ten prospects as well. In addition to the names that will be mentioned, the Blackhawks also have Anthony Louis, Tyler Sikura, and Luke Johnson in the pipeline.
These prospects are ranked on three factors – ceiling, NHL readiness, and the chance that the player becomes a consistent member of the Chicago Blackhawks. Let’s start with the goaltenders.
Goaltenders
1. Collin Delia [24 years old]
Stats:
Rockford Ice Hogs (AHL) – 28 games played, 2.72 goals against average, .900 save percentage (10 playoff games played, 2.34 GAA, .924 SV%).
Chicago Blackhawks (NHL) – 10 gp, 4.12 GAA, .887 SV%. Indy Fuel, ECHL; 2 gp, 3.96 GAA, .889 SV%.
Collin Delia had a rough season. He played ten games in the ECHL, being iced out of the AHL because of too many goaltenders. He played 28 games in the AHL due to injuries and didn’t do so well, even for a rookie season.
Next, Delia went up to the NHL, again because of injuries, and was clearly not ready. An accountant looked better than him, coming in in relief after Delia himself went down.
it’s looking more and more like Delia will eventually have one of the two jobs for the Chicago Blackhawks.
But when he finally was able to play consistently, he looked excellent. Delia played 10 playoff games for the Rockford Ice Hogs, including one of the longest postseason games in AHL history, and had 2.34 goals against average and .924 save percentage. He was tied for seventh in playoff SV% and was 10th in GAA.
In the regular season, Delia was 29th in GAA and tied for 42nd in save percentage. Perhaps with a more steady schedule next season, and a full year in the AHL, Delia could be much better. After all, he more than proved himself in the playoffs. If he can make an impact with Anton Forsberg next season in the AHL, it’s looking more and more like Delia will eventually have one of the two jobs for the Chicago Blackhawks.
2. Alexis Gravel [18 years old]
Stats:
Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) – 39 gp, 3.38 GAA, .890 SV% (8 pgp, 2.70 GAA, .917 SV%).
Alexis Gravel is the most recent Chicago Blackhawks draftee at goaltender and was one of the consensus top goaltenders in the draft. His style of goaltending is very similar to Corey Crawford‘s, in that he relies on positioning. Gravel is good at keeping himself in front of the puck at all times instead of relying on overly flashy athletic saves. He is also very similar to Crawford in size, standing 6-foot-3 and able to keep pucks out of the top shelf.
He’s far away from being an NHL regular, but if he gets the access he needs to better goaltending coaches, he could become an excellent goaltender for the Blackhawks in the future.
Gravel was 26th in save percentage of goaltenders with more than 10 games, was 23rd in GAA, 11th in playoff save percentage, third with more than one series, and was 13th in GAA (fifth in more than one series). In other words, even in a shortened season, he stood out. He’s also had very similar numbers last season and is looking to have the same consistency that Crawford brings.
Replacing Crawford is going to be incredibly hard for the Blackhawks. But with Gravel’s ceiling being a very similar goaltender, replacing him with a younger version of himself won’t be too hard. He’s far away from being an NHL regular, but if he gets the access he needs to better goaltending coaches, he could become an excellent goaltender for the Blackhawks in the future.