The month of October is in the books for the Chicago Blackhawks. Out of 11 games played, the team has a rather dismal record of 3-7-1, which is currently tied with the Nashville Predators for last in the league. But all is not lost. The Blackhawks are a team in the middle of a rebuild, and rebuilds take time and patience. While this record is even worse than it was this time last season, the Blackhawks do seem to be making some strides in the right direction. Here are four observations from the Blackhawks’ first month of the 2024-25 season.
Blackhawks Competitive in Most Contests
One thing I’ve noticed that’s much different than last season is the Blackhawks have been competitive and had a chance to win in almost every game so far. With the exception of the 6-3 loss to the Vancouver Canucks, the Hawks were only down by one goal in the third period (if you don’t count empty net goals) in all of their losses this month.
For the most part, the Blackhawks didn’t look like an inferior squad in these losses either, aside from the 4-2 loss to the Dallas Stars. The Hawks are obviously a more talented team than last season, and they’re working on gelling as a group. Slow starts have been a problem, or just being sleepy for stints where a few mistakes cost them. But that’s going to happen with any team, especially one with new personnel where players are trying to get to know each other’s tendencies. Some players are also learning new systems.
At this point, I think all these losses are getting into the players’ heads. They’re going to need to dig deep to get out of this slump.
On a positive note, if you look at the Blackhawks’ three wins, they dominated those games, winning by a 5-2 margin against the Edmonton Oilers and the Colorado Avalanche, and 4-2 to the San Jose Sharks (Oct. 17).
All in all, the Blackhawks increased competitiveness is a promising trend. If they can keep this up, it’s eventually going to lead to more wins.
Line Combinations Still a Work in Progress
The Blackhawks are still trying to figure out their optimal forward line combinations, as they will all season long. But quite frankly, I’m having a hard time making sense of some of the changes head coach Luke Richardson and his staff have implemented. But let’s try to make some sense of it…
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