This was supposed to be the year the Chicago Blackhawks finally took meaningful steps forward to emerge from their rebuild. And yet, a quarter of the way into the 2026-27 campaign, the team once again is stuck at the bottom of the standings.
Chicago’s 3-2 overtime win against the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday, which snapped a six-game losing skid, was just their fifth victory over the season. Their 5-13-1 record has them sitting last in the tough Central Division by a wide margin, and second-last league-wide.
General manager Kyle Davidson intended to make a statement with his off-season moves, trading the fourth-overall pick for cornerstone defenceman Bowen Byram and bringing back franchise icon Patrick Kane to be a veteran scoring presence for a young core up front.
Instead, Davidson’s squad faces plenty of questions. Of the handful of teams at various stages of rebuilding, the Blackhawks might just be the toughest puzzle to solve and one of the most interesting teams to monitor as we enter the second quarter of the season.
With all that in mind, we’re taking a closer look at the Blackhawks’ early-season woes, and the options ahead.
The stats behind Chicago’s struggles
While it’s still early, the numbers are troubling. Nineteen games into the season, the Blackhawks sit at or near the bottom of the league in just about every major statistical category.
They’re last in goals scored per game, averaging 2.21 per matchup, and those scoring woes are compounded by a second-worst ranking in goals against per game (4.11). The team is struggling to gain — and maintain — control of the puck, winning just 42.5 per cent of draws this season (last) and generating just over 23 shots per game (second-lowest league-wide) while allowing more than almost everyone else (30.3 per game, behind San Jose and Vancouver).
Special teams aren’t faring much better. While their 78.3 per cent success rate when killing penalties has them sitting squarely in the middle of league rankings, their dead-last power play is a different story: the Blackhawks are converting on just 11.1 per cent of opportunities.
How injuries have amplified troublesome start
Although the Blackhawks’ obvious offensive woes and defensive deficiencies make it clear the self-inflicted wounds are plentiful, there have also been some important outside factors working against them in the early goings. You cannot tell the story of this season without looking at the strong slate of opponents — more than half of their 19 games have been against teams inside the playoff picture, including two (ugly) outings against the defending Stanley Cup champs — and, even more importantly, how Chicago has been shorthanded throughout.
Injuries haven’t been widespread through Chicago’s roster, but they have been extremely impactful considering the core players affected. Between Connor Bedard’s delayed season debut while recovering from summer shoulder surgery and Bowen Byram’s undisclosed upper-body injury that’s sidelined him nearly a month, the Blackhawks have been without either their best forward or best defenceman for 18 of their 19 games. The only time both stars were in the lineup was Oct. 13 — a 5-3 victory over Pittsburgh. Byram has been out ever since, and currently has a day-to-day designation.
Davidson’s quarter-season check-in offers glimpse into gameplan
With questions growing louder about the direction of his club, Davidson held a media availability in Chicago on Wednesday to address some of the larger concerns and assure fans change is coming.
“We know that (the fans have) stuck with us through this rebuild,” he said Wednesday. “They deserve more than what we’ve provided this year. But they can be rest assured that, every single day, we’re coming here with the intent of making our way out of this, improving, and getting to where we want to go. From ownership, management, coaches, and players, we’re all committed. We’re all really, really motivated to get this right.”
Davidson identified the club’s defensive struggles as the biggest area in need of improvement, and appears ready to tackle the issue in-house by adding a new voice among the coaching staff. He also made it clear he’s actively looking at the trade market in order to bring in help offensively.
Here’s a look at both paths forward:
Changes behind the bench target defence
Head coach Jeff Blashill was on the hot seat over the past week, especially following the squad’s dismal 9-2 drubbing to Carolina on Saturday. But reports emerged Sunday that his job was safe, and Davidson doubled down on that during Wednesday’s availability.
Davidson said he has “full confidence” in Blashill and his ability to lead the team, and also said he and Blashill are “very much on the same page” with how they view the team and the path forward.
So, Blashill stays, but changes are still afoot as the team is introducing another voice to the coaching staff in former NHLer Mark Eaton. Eaton isn’t new to the organization — he’s been involved in player development with the club since 2014-15, in various capacities, including most recently as assistant general manager. Starting Monday, said Davidson, Eaton will “embed with the coaching staff, full-time, for the foreseeable future.”
He likened Eaton’s new role to the NFL’s use of position coaches, with Eaton working exclusively with the defencemen on skill development more than scheme.
With plentiful trade chips, Blackhawks have options to improve scoring
Although Eaton’s presence on the defensive side of the squad suggests Davidson wishes to improve things internally, offence appears to be a different story.
During Monday’s episode of 32 Thoughts: The Podcast, Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman said he believes Chicago is seeking offensive help outside of the organization.
As this summer showed us, Davidson is not afraid to make a splash on the trade market. After hoarding draft picks in the early years of his rebuild, Davidson traded away the fourth-overall pick in 2026 for Byram in June. Might he trade away another first-rounder? He’s certainly got enough to play with.
In addition to Chicago’s own 2027 first-round pick, the Blackhawks also possess two others in next June’s draft: the Oilers’ and the Panthers’. They also have a pair of second-round picks poised to look more like late first-rounders, as they hold their own as well as Vancouver’s. That could very well mean Chicago has five picks within the first 35 draft slots in the class of 2027.
Although it would likely take a lot to pry the Blackhawks’ own first-round pick from Davidson’s hands, especially given the way the Byram deal has unfolded (through no fault of the player, of course), Friedman said he “definitely” thinks the Edmonton and Florida first-rounders are in play, as well as those two second-rounders.
But what of other trade chips? Veterans Jordan Greenway, Teuvo Teravainen, and Andrew Mangiapane have been in and out of the lineup. Either via trade or waivers, moving a few veterans would shake things up, potentially clear up cap space, and could land another veteran better-suited to this group.
How Davidson acts from here will be one of the most interesting storylines to watch.
