One more sleep until training camp, Blackhawks fans. Only one! And we’ll all hit the pillow tonight knowing the 35th captain in the h🌳istory of the Chicago Blackhawk꧃s is Nick Foligno. Fans and media alike have called Foligno the de facto captain since he arrived before last season. There are maybe 2-3 guys in the game today who could follow in the skates of Jonathan Toews as the captain of the Blackhawks, and Foligno is one of them. He’s one of the most respected/loved players across the game.
When he signed a one-year deal here after his rights were acquired, it was brilliant. When the Blackhawks re-signed him for two more years, making him the captain made too much sense. Will Connor Bedard be the captain at some point? Yeah, probably. Could he have been nam🦩ed the captain now? Sure. Could he handle it? Probably. Should he have to shoulder the burden of being considered one of the faces of the league and the captaincy as a 19-year-old? Not necessarily. Foligno is fabulous in the room and on the ice and, frankly, there are veterans in the organization who can/will learn a lot about leading from him.
Every free agent the media has spoken with this summer said they heard from Foligno (some before the window even opened). The draft picks from this summer? Got texts or calls from Foligno, too. He’s as good of a recruiter as he is a player. Maybe now we have to refer to him as “Nick Foligno: Captain and de facto assistant GM”?
The Blackhawks shared a video of Foligno — and the rest of the team — learning he is the new captain this morning. It’s beautiful and perfectly captures why Foligno is so special. Family — on and off the ice.
One final thought on the captaincy of the Blackhawks: I’ve seen a few posts on social saying Foligno is “replacing” Toews as the captain. Nobody — NOBODY — “replaces” Jonathan Toews as the captain of the Chicago Blackhawks. Folgino follows him in the role. He’s the perfect person to do it, too.
Oh, and this morning I finally shared some really exciting personal news that is also hopefully exciting for Blackhawks fans. I wrote a(nother) book about the Blackhawks. This is an inside look at Connor Bedard‘s rookie season, from the fall that led to the Blackhawks getting the top pick to him being named the NHL’s rookie of the year with all of the hype, drama, excitement and frustration in between. It’s available for pre-orders now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and t𒁃he site for my publi🌠sher, Triumph Books.
With the news yesterday that Charlie Roumeliotis is taking over for Joe Brand at WGN Radಌio,and the Blackhawks releasing their preseason broadcast schedule, this morning feels like a great time to reset the deck on Blackhawks coverage for the media consumers out there.
In-Game: Rick Ball (PxP) and Darren Pang (color)
Pre & Post Game: Pat Boyle, Caley Chelios, Tony Granato
Written/Podcast: ???
WGN Radio
In-Game: John Wiedeman (PxP) and Troy Murray (color)
Pre & Post Game: Charlie Roumeliotis
Podcast: Charlie Roumeliotis
Also noteworthy the day before Blackhawks training camp opens, for the Rockford IceHogs 2024-25 season are now on sale. They previously released their for the coming season. There are a LOT of reasons to make the drive to Rockford this season!
Phil Thompson at the identified Frank Nazar, AJ Spellacy and Nolan Allan as three prospects to watch in training camp — which, again, opens TOMORROW.
Meanwhile, over at , Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus did the thing and put out their projected roster before training camp opens. These are always great for second-guessing after the fact, but I like what they put together.
A couple things got my attention right away. First, they have Philipp Kurashev listed as an option at the second-line center spot with Nazar. That’s intriguing to say the least. Kurashev has worked at center; he had to last year with all the injuries. I have leaned more toward him sticking with Connor Bedard on the top line in my projections this summer, but it’s hard to argue with him having a little more size and skill as an option there.
The other thing that grabbed my attention was the defensive group. They have Wyatt Kaiser and Isaak Phillips making the team out of camp. Which means Kevin Korchinski and Ethan Del Mastro are skating in Rockford to open the season. The idea of Korchinski getting some run in Rockford isn’t new; he would likely benefit from it. This is the first set I have seen with Phillips making the team over either of them, however. I have liked Phillips’ game and his development for a couple years now and wouldn’t mind that at all.
Steven Ellis at picked out 15 players who popped at the various prospect showcases all over the league this past weekend. He, like others, identified Nazar as a guy who looked really good. Here’s what he had to say about the potential second-line center for the Blackhawks:
Nazar is going to force his way into Chicago’s opening night lineup, isn’t he? Nazar kicked off the Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase with an assist and a couple of other good looks in a 4-3 overtime loss to St. Louis. He followed that up with a goal and an assist while easily being Chicago’s most effective forechecker. The energetic buzzsaw forward moved well, made smart plays with the puck and showca♑sed a good two-way game. Nazar made a good first impression with Chicago to close out the 2023-24 season and will be a serious contender to make the big club to start the year. He could benefit from some playing time in Rockford, getting more reps in a top-six role, but Nazar is riding a wave of momentum that you won’t want to bet against right now.
It appears the Big Ten was filming some promotional stuff recently and Blackhawks prospect Sam Rinzel tried out a celly for the cameras. I would absolutely love to see someone pull this off in the United Center.
Blackhawks legend Antti Raanta has called it an NHL career. He was the right guy at the right time for the Blackhawks and had a terrific run in the NHL.
Finally, shoutout to Ian Happ for his career year!
