NHL

Chicago Blackhawks Opening Night Roster Predictions

By James Neveau • •

The Chicago Blackhawks wrapped up their preseason schedule with a 1-0 victory over the Boston Bruins on Saturday night, and now the team’s attention will be turned fully to their opening night roster.

The team has possibly tipped its hand on a few potential moves, including their backup goaltender position and their second line wingers, but there are still plenty of questions that need to be answered by the coaching staff and front office between now and Thursday night.

So who will make the final roster, and who will be cut loose? To answer that, we’ll provide our final predictions for the Blackhawks’ opening night lineup.

Forwards: Artem Anisimov, Lance Bouma, Alex DeBrincat, Ryan Hartman, John Hayden, Tomas Jurco, Patrick Kane, Tanner Kero, Richard Panik, Brandon Saad, Nick Schmaltz, Patrick Sharp, Jonathan Toews, Tommy Wingels

While a good number of players on this list are considered locks, there are a few that are up in the air. DeBrincat has impressed many with his skills in camp, and Joel Quenneville does seem to like him, leading us to include him on the final roster prediction.

There is a chance that the team dumps one of Lance Bouma or Tommy Wingels to keep Vincent Hinostroza on the roster, and Tomas Jurco is also a bit of a question mark, as the team could potentially choose to keep Hinostroza or Jordin Tootoo instead.

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Patrick Sharp
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Dauphin, acquired by the Blackhawks in the Niklas Hjalmarsson trade, could provide some scoring punch among a forward group in sore need of it, as he scored 17 goals in just 38 AHL games last season.
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DeBrincat is one of the most highly touted prospects in the NHL, and he showed why at the Traverse City tournament in Michigan as he racked up five goals (and a fighting major) in four games.
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Forsberg, acquired from Columbus in the Artemi Panarin trade, will be competing to be the Blackhawks’ back-up goaltender, a key role left vacant by the departure of Scott Darling.
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The Blackhawks’ blue line is very unsettled, but with comparisons to Niklas Lidstrom, the Blackhawks’ organization is VERY high on Forsling’s ceiling, and it will be interesting to see if he can live up to the hype.
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Signed to a tryout deal by the Blackhawks, Franson will try to bring some veteran presence to the blue line, and he could be the financial beneficiary when the team finally is able to put Marian Hossa on injured reserve.
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The Blackhawks gave up a third round pick to get Jurco and protected him in the NHL Expansion Draft, so they clearly have a lot invested in the winger. He needs to reward their faith.
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With Marcus Kruger gone, the Blackhawks are going to be looking for a bottom-six center, and Kero has the defensive skill and occasional scoring touch to potentially fill that role.
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The Blackhawks gave up Hjalmarsson to get Murphy, a younger blue liner that addressed the team’s lack of balance when it comes to the handedness of its defensemen. Murphy has some big skates to fill, but the team is confident in his upside.
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It’s going to be put up or shut up time soon for Pokka, who has been highly touted but has never been able to make the jump to the NHL full-time. With uncertainty reigning on the Blackhawks’ blue line, Pokka will never have a better shot to make the team than he will this season.
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Can Sharp regain the form that saw him score 34 goals for the Blackhawks in the 2013-14 season, or will he be the player who couldn’t stay healthy with the Dallas Stars? Training camp will give us the first glimpse as the Blackhawks, and Sharp, attempt to answer that question.

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Defensemen: Cody Franson, Duncan Keith, Michal Kempny, Connor Murphy, Jordan Oesterle, Jan Rutta, Brent Seabrook

This group is a bit easier to predict, but there is definitely a question to be asked about whether Oesterle and Rutta can both make the team over Gustav Forsling, who has been projected to be a very good NHL player by this front office.

We had Forsling on our roster at the halfway point of camp, but further film study and his last few games have led us to drop him from the mix. He still has a lot of raw talent, but he’s been lacking polish on the ice, and Oesterle has been playing well enough to potentially wrest the final defensive spot away from him.

Goaltenders: Corey Crawford, Anton Forsberg

It seems all-but-given that Forsberg will make the squad over Jean-Francois Berube, as the goaltender hasn’t impressed much in game action or in practice.

Forsberg will likely get in the ballpark of 20 games this season, as Quenneville would prefer to rest Crawford and because of the high likelihood that the netminder will suffer an injury at some point during the season. 

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NHLPatrick KaneBrandon SaadPatrick Sharp
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