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The Only Way the Chicago Blackhawks can Salvage this Season

By Brendan Semon

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - DECEMBER 15: Seth Jones #4 of the Chicago Blackhawks celebrates a win over the Washington Capitals with Marc-Andre Fleury #29 at the United Center on December 15, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. The Blackhawks defeated the Capitals 5-4 in overtime. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - DECEMBER 15: Seth Jones #4 of the Chicago Blackhawks celebrates a win over the Washington Capitals with Marc-Andre Fleury #29 at the United Center on December 15, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. The Blackhawks defeated the Capitals 5-4 in overtime. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /
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The Chicago Blackhawks have dug themselves a massive hole and now there’s only one way they can salvage the 2021-22 NHL season.

Despite having exciting potential heading into the new year, the Chicago Blackhawks now sit second-from last in the Central Division of the Western Conference without a 1st-Round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft after having given it away to the Columbus Blue Jackets, along with top prospect Adam Boqvist, when they traded for Seth Jones.

The only bright side of the loss of this draft choice is it’s Top-2 protected. In other words, if they receive the No. 1 (5.8% odds) or the No. 2 pick in the NHL Draft Lottery they will get to keep their original pick. If the Hawks were to receive the 3rd overall choice or lower Columbus would get their selection. Having the highest odds of receiving the No. 8 pick in the draft, it’s safe to say that fans better wear their luckiest suit on the day of the lottery.

Chicago can no longer hide the fact that their playoff window is long gone and with general manager Stan Bowman finally out of the picture for good the organization can now take the time to steadily rebuild this roster into a championship squad. In doing so, they must do everything in their power to obtain a 1st-Round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. While a Top-10 selection would be the best-case scenario, at this point anything would suffice.

The Hawks rank at the bottom of the NHL in prospect pools as the only notable name they have in their system right now is German-born center, Lukas Reichel, whose ceiling is a middle-six forward. They need to buy into a rebuild and stop the lunacy of thinking they’re still contenders. They had a good run, but now it’s time to build for the future so we can experience it all again sooner rather than later.

Approaching the 2022 NHL Trade Deadline on March 21st, the biggest name that has been atop the rumor board is Blackhawks netminder Marc-Andre Fleury who is gathering interest from nearly half the teams across the league. The front office is making it clear that in any situation in which Fleury is to be traded, the bar is a ’22 1st-Round draft choice and a prospect. Chicago simply cannot and will not settle for any less. Considering he’s been one of their only bright spots, posting a .908 save% and 2.92 GAA average on a team giving up 3.43 goals per game (25th in the NHL), they’ll find a lot of teams willing to match their asking price.

If the Chicago Blackhawks want to salvage the 2021-22 NHL season, the only way they can do so is to trade one of their big-name players for a day one spot in the draft. If they’re fortunate, losing said player(s) will cause them to fall more so in the standings, giving them better odds to receive the No. 1 or the No. 2 selection, thus providing them two picks in the 2022 NHL Draft which is superbly stacked with talent in the Top-25 players ranked.

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