Chicago Blackhawks fans will appreciate Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews even more in 2021

Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane are needed by the Chicago Blackhawks more than ever right now.

The bill has finally come due for the Chicago Blackhawks who are in the process of executing a mass rebuild, but their two franchise icons in Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane will still have a huge role to play in 2020-21.

What a strange time this is for the Blackhawks, an Original Six franchise who put together one of the best and longest dynasties in the modern era.

However, those heady glory days and the memories of those three Stanley Cups are long gone and firmly in the rearview mirror, with the Blackhawks now officially in rebuild mode.

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As was the case with General Manager Stan Bowman’s recent body of work, the transition from an aging team in flux to one that will now tear everything down and start over was an ugly and messy one, with Jonathan Toews telling Mark Lazerus of The Athletic that the decision to shift into a full-blown rebuild absolutely blindsided the core veterans.

And that brings us nicely on to Toews and Kane who, along with Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook, are the four lone survivors of that dynasty core and the remaining placeholders from a happier era for Chicago sports fans.

The good news is that with their No-Move Clauses coupled with the current financial landscape in the NHL in the wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Toews, Kane, Keith and Seabrook are unlikely to be going anywhere anytime soon, even if the front office did want to move them in order to commit to a full rebuild.

It is good news where Toews and Kane are concerned in particular because, while they may not be thrilled at the direction the Blackhawks are now heading in, this franchise and their fanbase needs them move than ever.

We all remember what the state of Chicago hockey was like before the two poster childs arrived on to the scene, dwindling attendances, a dreadful product on and off the ice and no real identity for fans to invest in and get behind.

But then came along Joel Quenneville who helped to maximise the talents of his young, talent-laden core, which also had elite goaltender Corey Crawford to lean on too.

All of a sudden, almost overnight, the Blackhawks were the it thing in sports and being a fan of this team was something you could be proud of, attendances boomed, merchandise flew off the shelves and the Chicago Blackhawks were a formidable force on and off the ice after winning three Stanley Cups in five stellar, dynastic years.

Most of that success comes down to the likes of Toews and Kane, who were without doubt the faces and the very heartbeat of this franchise.

Their continued presence will at least help to keep some interest in the team, despite the fact that Crawford was allowed to sign with the New Jersey Devils in Free Agency, while forward Brandon Saad was traded to the Colorado Avalanche who could well become the next great dynasty in the NHL.

With Seabrook a broken shadow of his former self and Keith in the back nine of his career, most of the burden will fall on to Toews and Kane to ensure that 2020-21 isn’t a complete bloodbath for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Granted, they will have some help with Kirby Dach proving in an impressive rookie season in 2019-20 that he could help to usher in a new era for the Blackhawks, while both Dylan Strome and Alex DeBrincat are potent weapons too.

But, outside of a few players and the core four, this Chicago roster as it is currently constituted lacks real talent and star power, and a goaltending tandem of Malcolm Subban and Collin Delia could prove fateful.

Again, anything can happen in what will be a shortened 2020-21 season and the Blackhawks certainly benefited from making an expanded postseason format last year, but it is now clear that the front office will sell off pieces as and when they see fit.

I mean, even if the Hawks end up in a Division featuring the likes of the Detroit Red Wings, the Florida Panthers and the Minnesota Wild, which is a possibility per Pierre LeBrun, Chicago’s questionable goaltending alone ensures that an easier Division is no guarantee that they will be competitive next season.

As a result, 2020-21 could be a rough one for the Chicago Blackhawks as they get used to their new reality as a rebuilder and, as such, their two most reliable icons in Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane will no doubt be appreciated by their adoring fanbase even more as they continue to do what they’ve always done for the one franchise they’ve only ever known, despite the many changing faces and dynamics around them.

Make the most of them now, Chicago, because they may not be here forever.