The preseason is in full swing for the Chicago Blackhawks. Veteran and new players alike are trying to find their way and etch out their roles with this new-look team. We know that Nick Foligno is the Blackhawks’ 35th captain in franchise history, and Connor Bedard is primed to begin his second season in the NHL. The Blackhawks are trying to take that next step in their rebuild. Individually, a few players didn’t have the greatest 2023-24 campaign, and they want to remedy that as this 2024-25 season commences. Let’s look at four players who are looking to have bounce back seasons.
Murphy Wants the Most
When Connor Murphy is at his best, he’s a shutdown defenseman with a lot of snarl. He’s known for his big hits and for blocking shots, and just generally getting under the skin of the opponent. In short, he embodies what the team sees as their identity; being hard to play against. At 31 years old and with seven seasons in Chicago under his belt, Murphy is a veteran and a leader on the team. He’s also sported the “A” for alternate captain on his jersey for the last three seasons, and will do so again this season.
This is why Murphy would be the first person to tell you he was disappointed in last season’s campaign. To be fair, the Boston Massachusetts native dealt with a troublesome injury last year that kept him out of the lineup from Jan. 16 through Apr. 12. He suited up for three contests at the end of the season, but that was mostly just for his pride and to get some game reps before the offseason.
At first Murphy thought he was just dealing with a minor groin strain. But it turned out to be an osteitis pubic injury, which is pain and inflammation of the groin and surroundings areas. He kept thinking his symptoms were subsiding, but as soon as he started ramping up his exercises it would get inflamed again.
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Dealing with injuries is nothing new for the veteran blueliner. In his seven seasons with the Blackhawks, Murphy has only played more than 58 games two times. But last season was by far the worst; he only played in 46 contests, registering two goals and eight points.
Interestingly, the previous 2022-23 campaign was one of Murphy’s best. He suited up for 80 games, contributing seven goals, 13 points, 160 blocked shots (first on the team) and 165 hits (second on the team).
Can Murphy stay healthy this season, and emulate his strong campaign from two seasons ago? I’m sure he’s hoping so. With the exception of the 2019-20 playoffs in the Edmonton bubble, Murphy has never participated in postseason games in all of his 11 years in the league. I’m sure with an improved Blackhawks’ team, he wants to see playoff games with Chicago before his contract expires at the end of 2025-26.
Athanasiou Aims High
Here is another player who dealt with injuries last season. Andreas Athanasiou only suited up for 28 games in 2023-24, recording just two goals and nine points. Considering he was the top offensive contributor in the 2022-23 season (20 goals and 40 points), this was definitely a tough pill to swallow.
Like Murphy, Athanasiou dealt with a groin-and hip related injury that kept him out of the lineup from Nov. 9 through Mar. 12, a span of 53 games. Before the injury, he had a slow start to the season, only managing four assists in 11 games. When he returned in March, the forward again had a tough time finding his groove. When interviewed in early April, Athanasiou acknowledged that.
When you sit out for that long, it’s a little bit of a new feeling, coming back and playing. I’ve had some good chances in some games. [I’m] just building throughout all zones of the ice.
The 30-year-old has always been known for his speed. He did say he had “more in the tank” upon returning last season, indicating that he still might not have been 100%. When healthy, it’s amazing to watch Athanasiou use his speed to create breakaway after breakaway. But for all those opportunities, he only seems to score off a handful of them. That’s the frustrating thing about this speedy forward. He creates so many chances, but can’t seem to finish. He does look healthy and fast in this training camp, so perhaps this can finally be remedied.
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Head coach Luke Richardson also experimented with Athanasiou playing center at the end of last season, which was rather successful. If he can come out of training camp strong, I could even see Athanasiou taking on the second line center role. In this scenario, he would also benefit from more talented linemates to complement his speed, hopefully leading to more goals and more success.
The veteran forward will also be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, meaning he’ll want to play well to earn a new contract, whether it be in Chicago or elsewhere.
Hall Hoping for Health
Let’s move on to Taylor Hall, who is yet another player that ran into injury woes last season. Hall’s was the worst of all; he only suited up for 10 games before undergoing ACL surgery to his right knee, ending his season.
As a No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 draft, Hall was brought in last season to be Bedard’s mentor and linemate. Well, we all know that didn’t come to fruition. But Hall has actually been paired with Bedard and Tyler Bertuzzi so far in training camp. While it’s too early to know if that will be the top line on opening night, it appears Hall is getting every opportunity to pick up where he left off last season.
Now, the 32-year-old has a lot going against him. It’s hard at any age to recover and return to form from a knee injury, much less at 32. Can Hall bounce back right away, or will it take him some time to get up to speed again? He’s also headed into his 15th year in the league, including five playoff appearances. While he brings plenty of experience to bring to the table, that’s also a lot of wear and tear on the body.
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Like Athanasiou, Hall will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, so he’ll want to perform well to earn another contract. Hall will be hoping, first and foremost, to stay healthy, as well as bounce back and contribute at a high level like he’s done in the past.
Reichel Ready for a Breakout
While the theme has been injuries so far with players who need to bounce back, Lukas Reichel can’t use this as an excuse. He just flat out had a bad season in 2023-24. As the 17th overall draft pick by the Blackhawks in 2020, Reichel came into the league with a high pedigree. He was deployed as the second line center last season, behind the young Bedard on the first line. Hopes were high for Reichel, with the coaching staff placing him in this top-six center position.
Well, he just didn’t take to playing center. Finally, he was moved to the wing. But by this time, Reichel had lost any mojo he might have started with. He didn’t score his first goal until Nov. 16, and that was on the man advantage. The Blackhawks weren’t sure what to do to help Reichel gain his confidence back. They ended up sending him down to the Rockford IceHogs in February to regroup.
When Reichel returned to the big club in late March, he did look a little more rejuvenated, but it didn’t really translate to the scoresheet. He ended the campaign with five goals and 11 points in 65 games.
In an attempt to turn things around this season, the 22-year-old changed up his offseason routine. He returned to practicing on the ice sooner, and worked on gaining more strength. In an attempt to be more competitive, Reichel worked on battle drills with his brother, who Reichel described as “big and strong”.
The German native is also taking a page out of Patrick Kane’s book to improve his shot by using his legs more. He said,
If you look at [Connor Bedard], his upper body is really strong. He does it with his upper body. I’ve got to do it like — if you look at [Patrick Kane], he kind of steps into the shot because he’s strong in his lower body. So just using my legs to get a better and heavier shot.
Let’s hope all these things work for Reichel, because this certainly feels like a make-it-or-break-it season for the young forward. Blackhawks’ general manager Kyle Davidson made that pretty clear with this statement.
My expectation is that he competes hard for a top-six spot, and we’ve got bodies, so he’s going to have to earn that. He’s going to have to come in and take that role. It’s on him, in a way. We don’t want him playing on the fourth line or anything like that, but he’s been around enough to know what the expectation is and what the NHL requires from a consistency standpoint.
For what it’s worth, Reichel has been on a line with Philipp Kurashev and Teuvo Teravainen so far in training camp. Reichel is good friends with Kurashev and the two of them have found some success on the ice together in the past. With Teravainen as a playmaker on the other wing, this could potentially translate into a breakout campaign for Reichel.
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The Blackhawks are still sorting out a lot of question marks as training camp continues. The first exhibition game will be on Wednesday, Sept. 25, when the Blackhawks will host the Detroit Red Wings. Their first contest in the 2024-25 regular season will be on Oct. 8, against the Utah Hocky Club in Salt Lake City. Can the above players put together bounce back seasons? We’ll find out soon enough.
