Luke Richardson Building a Winning Culture with Chicago Blackhawks

Last year, Chicago Blackhawks General Manager Kyle Davidson began jettisoning players who would not be part of the rebuild-to-be over the next few years. Players aged out, young players  were under developed and over exposed, management made rash trades and coaches were unqualified. That is to say, the championship window was officially closed.

With likely future stars Connor Bedard and Adam Fantilli dangling as the ultimate prizes in next year’s draft, fans jumped on the bandwagon of the proverbial “tank.” The Blackhawks were to battle Arizona, San Jose, or maybe even Montreal for the dubious prize as the worst team in the NHL. With that comes an advantage in the draft lottery, which could ultimately lead to Bedard.

The Chicago Blackhawks have started the season with a 4-2 record, good for third in the Central with a game in hand. Should they win the next game against Edmonton, they would be in sole place of first. This certainly is not the tank that fans were expecting. In fact, social media is alive with comments complaining that the Blackhawks can’t even tank properly. Fans are angry after each win.

So, what exactly is going on? Are the Chicago Blackhawks blowing their chance at the best player to come along since Conner McDavid, or are they doing something more important, building a new culture? The answer is actually both. Winning will undoubtedly take the Hawks out of the running, but winning, or competing at a high level, could have bigger dividends.

For the Blackhawks, tanking is a risky business.

First of all, being the worst team in the league doesn’t ensure that a team will actually get the first pick. Since 1995, only 11 teams have been the worst and received the first pick- 40%. Look at Buffalo in 2015 for tank results. They were the worst team and ready to invite Conner McDavid into the fold, right? Wrong. While they were the worst team, they lost the lottery to Edmonton and ultimately drafted Jack Eichel. They have not made the playoffs since.

Tanking also brings with it a lot of losing. Like winning, losing can become contagious. And, it can become a team’s culture. While not tanking over the past few years, the Blackhawks began slipping into this losing culture. There was no confidence in management and there was certainly no confidence in coaching. And it was clear that the draft had not been kind to the Blackhawks.