The Chicago Blackhawks were one of the worst teams in the National Hockey League in 2023-24; not even Connor Bedard could help this roster escape the basement of the Central Division. Although the reigning Calder Trophy winner was electric, scoring 61 points in his first 68 games as a professional, it was a miserable campaign outside of the phenom.
But now entering year five of the rebuild — and without a playoff appearance since 2020 — the front office made a couple of nice moves this offseason. That includes the free agent signings of Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen up front, along with adding three-time Stanley Cup champion Alec Martinez into the mix. Although all of those players are veterans, none of them are sneaky — they will all be relied upon next season.
In order for this team to take the next step forward though, there are a few more under-the-radar players who will need to bounce back in 2024-25. One of them was on the Hawks last year but missed almost the entire season due to injury, while the other two are players who badly needed a change of scenery. Here are three vets who could move the needle more than they're expected to this year.
Hawks would love if Taylor Hall came back strong
Expectations were high last season for Taylor Hall, but the former Hart Trophy winner suffered a devastating injury that cost him all but 10 games of Chicago's campaign. He was supposed to guide Bedard in his first taste of NHL hockey, but instead spent most of the year watching from the press box.
Heading into 2024-25, those expectations have certainly been lowered for a player who is now coming off knee surgery. At 32-years-old, Hall is certainly not the player he once was. But if he can come back healthy, he has potential to be sneaky good on a much-improved forward core.
Although it's unlikely he'll start the new year alongside Bedard — Bertuzzi and Teravainen will probably get the first crack with the sophomore star — he should be a fixture on the top-six along with Andreas Athanasiou and Philipp Kurashev. The latter was excellent on Bedard's wing last season, scoring 54 points in 75 games.
There's certainly a chance that the top-six will shuffle around based on how things start, and there is a chance that Hall could play with Bedard both on the top line, and with a much-improved powerplay unit. If No. 71 can play with that top group, there's a great chance he could equal or improve on his last full season, which was a fantastic 61 points in 81 games with the Boston Bruins in 2021-22.
Ilya Mikheyev needed a change of scenery
Another player who has lost a ton of hockey due to injury is Ilya Mikheyev. He broke onto the scene with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2019-20, putting up 23 points in 39 games after coming over from Russia. Although his offensive game declined slightly over the next few seasons, he remained a solid defensive presence and one of the fastest players in the entire league.
But it all went off the rails after Mikheyev left the Leafs to sign with the Vancouver Canucks in July of 2022. He tore his ACL in his first preseason game on September 25 of that year, and was shut down after 43 games to undergo surgery to repair the injury. Mikheyev just wasn't the same player when he returned in 2023-24, managing just 31 points in 78 games.
That was enough for the Canucks' brass, who sent the 29-year-old to the Blackhawks earlier this summer. Now with a change of scenery, Mikheyev will have the opportunity to prove that his early season success was no fluke — and in a smaller media market than both Toronto and Vancouver.
With relatively low expectations, Mikheyev should certainly challenge for a top-six spot, although he'll likely begin the season on the third line. Still, this is a player that has proven he can excel in the NHL, and it looks like he's fully healthy heading into training camp. The Canucks needed to offload Mikheyev for cap space, and with a fresh start in Chicago, he could surprise.
TJ Brodie could help stabilize Blackhawks' blue line
On the back end, along with Martinez, another former Maple Leaf should help improve a Blackhawks defensive unit that was terrible last season. TJ Brodie was phenomenal in his few seasons with the Calgary Flames, but his game really started to fall off in Toronto. He also dealt with injuries, missing around a third of the year in two of his four campaigns in Ontario.
Brodie is now 34-years-old and projects as a third pairing defenseman, especially with Alex Vlasic and Kevin Korchinski looking to take the next step. But in a sheltered D-pairing with Martinez, both veterans have the potential to excel. Brodie was probably playing a bit out of his depth on the top pairing at times with the Leafs, and he shoudn't be expected to play those minutes in 2024-25.
Both Martinez and Brodie have been terrific defensive defensemen in their primes, and together, the two could make up just the kind of third pairing the Hawks need as they look to maximize the young guns on the blue line.
On paper, the Blackhawks still look like they need a couple of years before they're legitimate playoff contenders in the Western Conference. But Bedard and Kurashev should both be even better next season, and the marquee free agent signings in Bertuzzi and Teravainen should help round out the forward core.
But if Hall and Mikheyev can bounce back from their injuries, and Brodie can find his earlier career form with sheltered minutes, there's a great chance the Blackhawks do not finish in the basement of the Central Division for the third consecutive year.
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