Sources: Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald, NBC Sports Chicago, The Athletic Chicago
Here's a summary of newsworthy notes from Day 11 of Blackhawks training camp:
* Wyatt Kalynuk sustained an ankle injury in practice yesterday and is diagnosed as being out for a few weeks (actual timeline TBD).
* Brett Connolly was placed on waivers and -- at time of print -- has not cleared or been claimed yet.
* Arvid Soderblom was cut from training camp and joins the IceHogs training camp which began on Monday.
* Lines, pairs, and goalies yesterday for the primary group:
Kubalik - Toews - Kurashev
DeBrincat - T Johnson - Kane
Borgstrom - K Dach - Hagel
Khaira - Entwistle - Hardman
Gaudette - Carpenter
Strome - R Johnson
Stillman - S Jones
McCabe - Murphy
de Haan - C Jones
Galvas - Kalynuk
Fleury
Lankinen
* Lines, pairs, and goalies yesterday for the secondary group:
Reichel - C Dach - Nylander
Pour - Barratt - Teply
Slavin - Altybarmakian - Osipov
Regula - Mitchell
Phillips - Beaudin
Allan - Crevier
Subban
Delia
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Projected Defensemen
With Kalynuk out for several weeks with an ankle injury and will likely start in Rockford to get back up to speed again before being considered for a recall to the NHL, Jakub Galvas is the odds on favorite to snag the last spot on the Blackhawks blueline.
If that's the case, the D pairs could look something like this:
McCabe - S Jones
de Haan - Murphy
Stillman - C Jones
Galvas
Galvas could form a rotation with Riley Stillman and Caleb Jones in the 5/6/7 spots. Another option is giving Calvin de Haan occasional maintenance days which would allow Galvas, Stillman, and Jones to all start at the same time.
Once Kalynuk is fully rehabbed from the injury and ready for recall to the varsity club, the coaching staff will have a decent idea of which defensemen are performing up to par or even performing exceedingly well and who is struggling and deserves to sit.
When that happens, that could be Kalynuk's chance to matriculate back into the starting lineup. However, don't count out Ian Mitchell or Nicolas Beaudin emerging after a few weeks of logging big minutes in all situations for the IceHogs.
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Projected Forwards
For much of the offseason and preseason, there has been a noticeable glut at forward. Training camp is the natural place to see where water reaches its level with each player then make decisions to retain those who can help the team compete and win and trim those who cannot.
Obvious cuts have been made the past few days with prospects either headed to Rockford to attend IceHogs training camp or headed back to juniors. The next week is when harder decisions need to be made. One such decision was made yesterday.
With Connolly placed on waivers, the picture got a tad more clear as to who will be in the forward ranks for the Blackhawks. If he's not claimed by another team, he theoretically would report to the Hogs and could be a much needed veteran leader for the AHL squad.
There's the slight chance that Connolly refuses to report to the AHL which is what happened last preseason when Nick Seeler was cut in training camp back in January, didn't report to Rockford, and was placed on unconditional waivers to terminate his contract.
Could that be a similar path for Connolly? If so, are there any financial ramifications on the Hawks salary cap? And could this storyline play out for others who may be on the outside looking in like Ryan Carpenter, Alex Nylander, and/or Dylan Strome?
The status of the aforementioned foursome of forwards is what could be making decision making cloudy for management given several youngsters -- Henrik Borgstrom, MacKenzie Entwistle, Adam Gaudette, Reese Johnson, Philipp Kurashev, and Lukas Reichel -- are impressing in camp.
Even if Reichel is deemed close to being ready but should preferably mature more in the AHL first to round out his game more at a lower level for a few weeks, this younger cohort deserves to be on the NHL roster more than Carpenter, Connolly, Nylander, and Strome.
With that in mind, here's an ideal set of forward lines:
DeBrincat - T Johnson - Kane
Kurashev - Toews - Kubalik
Hagel - Dach - Borgstrom
Khaira - Entwistle - Gaudette
R Johnson
One other factor to consider is Andrew Shaw's contract and how it will be managed as far as LTIR. Thus, what the roster may look like right before the new season starts may look slightly different after the first day sunsets.
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IceHogs Preseason Games
Tune in if interested. My AHL TV subscription is renewed but preseason games aren't being televised.
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See you on the boards!
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