Blackhawks news, updates: Assessing the progress of Chicago’s young defenders

After a quiet offseason, the influx of young defenders on the Blackhawks blue line from last season will be a central theme for the upcoming season as well, as the prospects that GM Kyle Davidson has been stockpiling for several seasons no longer have older veterans standing in their way.

To set expectations of what we could be getting from this youthful group of blue-liners in the 2025-26 season, we\'re going to take a look back at the progress of the young defenders who played at least 10 games (so no Sam Rinzel) with the Blackhawks but have not hit 100 total NHL games yet.

Wyatt Kaiser is the exception: he did not hit 100 games yet but played in a majority of the games, finished the season with the Blackhawks, and had an impressive enough finish that his season merited a standalone season summary.

Note: The Advanced Stats cards included are going to be skewed somewhat by the smaller samples for these players. It\'s still a good data point to reference but as a starting off point for areas of strength or weakness. All other stats are from Natural Stat Trick and at 5-on-5 unless otherwise noted.

Nolan Allan

Allan surprised many by making the Blackhawks roster out of training camp and skating in the season opener. In 43 games, he recorded one goal and seven assists while averaging about 15:08 of ice time per game. He had some strong stretches of play, especially on the defensive side of the game, but consistency issues led to him being healthy scratched more as the season progressed, culminating with a midseason reassignment to Rockford in late February. The demotion allowed him to get more consistent minutes rather than sitting in Chicago’s press box, and he finished the season there.

Generally speaking, Allan\'s high-level shot metrics weren\'t great during his NHL stint: when he was on the ice, the Blackhawks finished with just 41.73 percent of the shot attempts and 37.29 percent of the expected goals. Those aren\'t great numbers, even by Blackhawks standards, but it\'s important to note that Allan performed best when put in a shutdown role with Connor Murphy. His other three most common partners were all veterans, but they either put him in a run-and-gun offensive style -- a role for which he is not suited -- or with TJ Brodie -- who was not suited for the NHL last season.

With 5v5 TOI CF% xGF% G% TJ Brodie 177:21 37.35 32.13 28.57 Connor Murphy 166:02 50.52 50.31 66.67 Seth Jones 94:48 44.33 42.30 33.33 Alec Martinez 91:19 35.90 29.43 40.00

Beyond the shot metrics, Allan showed individual flashes that displayed a solid foundation of skills which could work nicely in the NHL, given continued positive development. Oddly, he didn\'t use his elite skating in transition as much as expected: he passed out of the defensive zone more than he skated the puck out. Although, when he did skate it out, he did so at an above average success rate. Allan had quite a few stretch passes that sprung teammates into the offensive zone, even if they didn\'t often result in goals. He was better at using his skating in the defensive zone, retrieving pucks well either by outracing opponents or forechecking well to gain possession.

Stretch pass examples that did result in a goal:

Chicago goal!

Scored by Ilya Mikheyev with 13:10 remaining in the 1st period.

Assisted by Nick Foligno and Nolan Allan.

Vancouver: 0 Chicago: 1 #CHIvsVAN #Canucks #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/A2pwuZ5HGe

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) November 17, 2024

Chicago goal!

Scored by Nick Foligno with 16:34 remaining in the 3rd period.

Assisted by Nolan Allan.

Los Angeles: 2 Chicago: 1 #CHIvsLAK #GoKingsGo #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/fq0D3JA5RS

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) November 2, 2024

Where Allan\'s skating did stand out was more in the D zone: closing gaps with precision, steering attackers wide, and delivering hard, timely checks to win puck battles. At the blue line, Allan allowed more entries against than any other Blackhawks defender, but he tended to force opponents to dump the puck in and then used his speed to chase. It didn\'t always work for him this season, but it could with more experience. He also sometimes struggled under sustained pressure, particularly when forced to make quick decisions. That often led to turnovers, exposing a need for quicker reads and more dynamic puck movement under duress. Allan has made good progress with his puck handling over the years, but it was a problem area for him since before being drafted.

An area Allan did see improvement on as the season progressed was in terms of offense, though this didn\'t show up much on the scoresheet. Like Wyatt Kaiser, Allan was more of a facilitator with good neutral zone passing and solid cycle movement that often played a role in an eventual scoring chance or goal but is not enough to count as an assist. It wasn\'t that consistent, unfortunately, hence the low even-strength offensive WAR rating, but even seeing a little improvement in Allan\'s performance is nice to see.

A little give-and-go passing play that led to Allan\'s first NHL goal:

Nolan Allan finishes off a beautiful little give-and-go and scores his first in the NHL! 😍 pic.twitter.com/RtTHqNIX7L

— NHL (@NHL) December 20, 2024

Overall, Nolan Allan’s rookie year built a solid foundation, as he showcased his defensive toolkit, but he\'s still a work in progress. At times, he struggled under sustained pressure, particularly when forced to make quick decisions. Although there were points when he showed he could play in the NHL, the demotion gave him time to further polish his skills in Rockford before he could potentially become a reliable top-four defense option at the NHL level.

Louis Crevier

Although Crevier started the season in the AHL, he ended up with the most games played among the young guns covered in this article with 56, thanks primarily due to his early chemistry with Alex Vlasic once recalled in November. The two ended up spending nearly 340 minutes together, the second most for a Blackhawks defensive pairs behind Vlasic and Murphy (481:16 TOI). The duo started off quite well together, and Crevier was getting around or more than 20 minutes a night in January, but he struggled when paired with anyone else. He finished with a team-worst shot attempt share (41.46 percent) and near the bottom in expected goals share (41.60 percent) as well. A concussion towards the end of January derailed him for a bit and, when he returned to the NHL lineup, he wasn\'t given as much responsibility, especially as this coincided with the call-ups of Kevin Korchinski and Artyom Levshunov.

Still, even with such poor shot metrics by the end, this was a solid enough season for the former seventh rounder. He finished with only three goals and one assist on the season, but offense is never going to be his calling card. Individually, he had some strong defensive qualities to his game. Crevier posted above average zone clear numbers, and was good at sealing off the boards and limiting second-chance opportunities. With his long reach, he fared well in disrupting passing lanes and blocking shots and, despite not being the fleetest of foot, Crevier did well at getting back when needed. He\'s not as refined in any of these categories as Vlasic or even Kaiser at the end of the season, but the growth and ability is there.

\" He plays really well here in the NHL. His position is really good, his range, killing plays defensively, has been really good, and he\'s getting more predictable with pucks too. \"

-- Anders Sorensen, Jan. 5

Anders Sorensen on Blackhawks D Louis Crevier:

"He plays really well here in the NHL. His position is really good, his range, killing plays defensively, has been really good, and he's getting more predictable with pucks too. " pic.twitter.com/0NsoCy6RuL

— Phillip Thompson (@_phil_thompson) January 5, 2025

That said, much like Allan, Crevier has major issues when it comes to handling and managing the puck. He has shown a tendency to turn the puck over, particularly when under pressure or attempting breakouts. He’s not expected to quarterback offense, but he does need to be more dependable with the puck on his stick. Improving his decision-making -- knowing when to move it, where to move it, and when to keep it simple -- will be key to solidifying his long-term role.

The other criticism seen most about his game is that, despite his size, Crevier is not particularly physical. He can be, especially when on the forecheck, but he tends to rely more on his frame/length to take away space rather than throw his weight around. He did get feisty occasionally, like when he stood up for his goalie below:

Louis Crevier takes exception to Victor Arvidsson's shot attempt after the period ended. pic.twitter.com/8BFP2g8np7

— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) January 12, 2025

There\'s a lot to like about how Crevier has progressed, but the question really is about where he fits in among the rest of the Blackhawks defensive group. He\'s been fairly reliable so far, but he\'s not as dynamic at either end of the ice as several other young defensemen vying for a spot in the Blackhawks\' long-term plans. If the Blackhawks continue to invest in his development, though, Crevier does have the potential to emerge as a reliable shutdown option. It\'s just about refining the finer points of his game.

Ethan Del Mastro

Del Mastro spent a majority of the season in Rockford, probably disappointing to the blue-liner, considering he was arguably the best defender for the IceHogs last season and could have made the transition sooner. Additionally, while in Rockford, his role shifted away from being more of a two-way player and towards the role of a defensive backboard, based on the influx of kids like Korchinski and Levshunov with higher offensive ceilings. This severely limited his points production, although Del Mastro continued to refine his defensive game and ultimately excelled there. This quality play earned Del Mastro a six-game call-up with the Blackhawks at the end of January, but the bulk of his play with the big club was late February to early April. He ended the season with 24 NHL games, with his ice time growing as the games progressed to top 19-20 minutes regularly, and he picked up two goals and four assists in that span.

Like the other defenders on this list, that offensive stat line isn\'t really anything to write home about, but Del Mastro did have a strong positive impact on shot metrics with the team. When he was on the ice, the Blackhawks owned 47.52 percent of shot attempts and 47.74 of the expected goals, both marks first among defenders. Granted, Del Mastro did not face the highest quality of competition, but he also wasn\'t given a high percentage of offensive zone starts, either (46.41 percent). His biggest contributions to offense were his zone entries -- typically via passes -- and his in-zone passes, which led to a decent number of scoring chances. He was also one of the better defenders at being involved in chance generation off the cycle/forecheck. Del Mastro didn\'t shoot as much as he should have (2.54 per 60, seventh among defensemen), but his shot selection was pretty great and resulted in a lot of rebounds (0.7 per 60, third).

Look at this drive in and around a defender to get a shot on goal and ultimately an assist via rebound:

Frank goals in back to back games 🤝 Ethan Del Mastro first NHL point pic.twitter.com/8BQYxwVH2Q

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) January 27, 2025

And his first NHL goal was a pretty wrister:

🚨 FIRST NHL GOAL FOR ETHAN DEL MASTRO 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Z7rrVssdrh

— Blackhawks on CHSN (@CHSN_Blackhawks) February 28, 2025

Here was a beautiful stretch pass from Del Mastro:

Chicago goal!

Scored by Ryan Donato with 03:45 remaining in the 1st period.

Assisted by Ethan Del Mastro and Ilya Mikheyev.

Chicago: 1 Vegas: 0 #VGKvsCHI #Blackhawks #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/7XrGmJlhYt

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) March 29, 2025

Unlike Crevier, Del Mastro used his size more effectively in a heavy way, especially in tight checking roles. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound defender liked to put physical pressure along the boards and in open ice to force opponents to the outside or gain possession for the Blackhawks. He also used his reach in-zone to disrupt opposing plays. His positioning, especially when it came to zone-entry defense, really shined in later games with the Blackhawks.

However, as is a running theme with these young defenders, turnovers were an issue with Del Mastro too, as he needs to make quicker reads under pressure. It was honestly frustrating to watch him turn the puck over -- especially on zone exits -- when he first joined the Blackhawks late in the season because he didn\'t take the time to fully assess the situation, but he did get much better as he got more comfortable in the NHL. Del Mastro was also overly aggressive at times, throwing off his timing and further complicating coverage issues the whole team was having, but he also settled more in this regard the more he played.

Here\'s an example of Del Mastro making a little fake move under pressure that caused his opponent to stumble and gave himself time to patiently pass out for an exit:

This deceptive fake by Ethan Del Mastro sent William Karlsson tumbling into the boards. Del Mastro's been good this period pic.twitter.com/UZWj8yX4qp

— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) March 29, 2025

Ultimately, Del Mastro finished the season well, playing as a physical, stay-at-home defenseman and showing occasional offensive flashes. His ability to handle NHL-level minutes and disrupt play has impressed, although puck-handling and reaction under pressure still requires refinement. With continued development and experience -- especially in zone transitions and in tight situations -- Del Mastro appears set to compete for a regular NHL role in the coming seasons.

Kevin Korchinski

This season was basically a restart for Korchinski when it came to his development at the professional level. He spent a majority of the season in the NHL last season, sure, but it was both a bad season for him and not helpful for his progression as a player (he objectively regressed). As a result, despite that experience, the Blackhawks opted to have Korchinski play predominantly in the AHL to almost relearn the aspects of his game that made his a No. 7 overall pick. And he did an admirable job: after a slow start, Korchinski started to string together larger stretches of good play in Rockford, where he led all defensemen with 27 points (3 G, 24 A) in 56 games and was selected to the AHL All-Star Classic. Offensively, that puts him basically on par to his draft-year in terms of NHLe.

Kevin Korchinski was named the @TheAHL All-Star Challenge MVP!! 😮💨

We caught up with him afterwards to hear about his take on this experience. pic.twitter.com/9fSHoODxm6

— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) February 4, 2025

His play earned two call-ups to the Blackhawks, once in December and at the end of March, as a reward. He wasn\'t as impactful in the NHL -- he appeared in 16 games total with Chicago, logging 1 goal and 1 assist while averaging 17:05 of ice time per game -- but there were signs that Korchinski could still be the player the Blackhawks hoped they were getting when they drafted him in 2022. And considering he\'s still just 20 years old, there\'s still a lot of time for him to grow.

Those 16 games is technically too small a sample to use as an accurately projection, but it\'s close enough to touch on some and hope it speaks to potential for the future. For example, although he only had two points, Korchinski\'s even-strength WAR was above average due to his shot contribution, primarily with his playmaking. His primary shot assist rate was the highest among Blackhawks defensemen and was also the highest on the team. That is absolutely skewed by the sample size, but it lines up with his AHL stats well enough that we hope the combined sample suggests it\'s achievable consistently in the future in the NHL. Additionally, a majority of those shot assists were also scoring chance assists, illustrating how good Korchinski is at reading the ice offensively and getting off high-danger passes efficiently in those NHL games. Again, the NHL sample alone isn\'t large enough for full evaluation but it does add to the story of his time in the AHL, which continues to show improved offensive promose.

If he wants to really up his offensive game, Korchinski would benefit from shooting more (he was middle of the pack among defenders), because his shot is quite good.

KORCH SNIPE!!! WHAT A STRETCH pic.twitter.com/ncIGyfArtT

— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) April 11, 2025

Korchinski also had some nice transition moments that really stood out. He was one of the best at carrying the puck into the zone, even if he needed to do it more often to hit league average in quantity. Korchinski also had some of the best zone exits with possession, skilled at both carrying the puck out as well as passing it out: he finished with the best passing rate for exits by a decent margin and was third on the team for his rate of carrying the puck out. He was especially adept at threading crisp outlet passes to jumpstart zone entries and using his stick effectively to disrupt opposing plays.

Defensively is where Korchinski just isn\'t ready for the NHL. Like Del Mastro, Korchinski had moments over being too aggressive -- or, perhaps more accurately, being too overzealous -- especially in his first few games with the Blackhawks. Additionally, too often he defaults to a conservative posture in-zone, misreading man coverage and allowing opponents to exploit space along the boards or through the slot. His stick is active, but without the positional awareness to match, he finds himself chasing plays or arriving a step too late -- especially following in-zone turnovers or quick transitions.

Korchinski got caught at the blue line on Vegas' second goal. pic.twitter.com/VUxsCB7bxB

— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) March 29, 2025

It\'ll be interesting to see if Korchinski can make the Blackhawks next season, especially since the team is expected to be quite young on defense. It was obvious that his chemistry was primarily with the young players on the team and he seemed to be much more comfortable in his second stint with the team because of his familiarity with many of the players. In his own words: “It feels kind of like Rockford up here.”

“It feels kind of like Rockford up here.”

—Kevin Korchinski on having several former IceHogs teammates for his recall to the Chicago Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/7X4kuXFrxI

— Phillip Thompson (@_phil_thompson) March 27, 2025

Korchinski still shows glimpses of what made him a standout in the WHL. He’s capable of smart reads, tracking down breakaways, and using his reach to break up dangerous chances. The problem is frequency with those moments are currently too few and the recurring breakdowns too plentiful. The potential is still very real, but for now, Korchinski remains a prospect in need of more development. Continuing to rediscover his offensive confidence and sharpening his defensive instincts will be essential if he’s to reassert himself as a future cornerstone on the Blackhawks’ blue line.

Artyom Levshunov

Another young blue-liner who possibly made the jump to professional hockey before he was ready, Levshunov still had some quality growth this season, albeit mainly in the AHL. He skated in 52 games for the IceHogs, amassing 22 points (5 G, 17 A), which was second among defensemen behind Korchinski. Athletically, Levshunov was one of the best guys on the ice, displaying the evident foundation for being a two-way defender. His high ceiling is obvious, even if he\'s been a mixed bag in terms of performance and results currently. His progress was decent enough overall, though, and the Blackhawks called him up for 18 games in March and April (even if that long a stint didn\'t feel earned).

Offensively is where Levshunov looked his best when with the Blackhawks. He picked up six assists and could have had more points if some of his teammates were better at finishing. He showcased elite mobility, quick hands, a sharp instinct for loose pucks, and a savviness to draw defenders towards him, opening lanes for teammates in the process. His passing touch and willingness to jump into offensive plays added another layer to his offensive toolkit.

Here\'s a clip of Levshunov being involved in a passing rush play:

Chicago goal!

Scored by Joe Veleno with 08:58 remaining in the 2nd period.

Assisted by Artyom Levshunov and Nick Foligno.

Chicago: 1 Utah: 1 #UTAvsCHI #Blackhawks #UtahHC pic.twitter.com/53T6gSR13s

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) March 30, 2025

And here\'s Levshunov with a nice little keep-in before getting the puck to Bedard for the goal:

BEDSY AND ARTY 🤩 pic.twitter.com/eXsixDtiaC

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 19, 2025

But Levshunov is also often chaotic in the offensive zone, where his play is often raw, more about instincts than structure, and occasionally overly ambitious. But, if he can harness that energy and channel it into more structured, purposeful play, Levshunov has all the makings of a high-impact defenseman.

We\'ve discussed this at length at SCH already, but we\'d be remiss not to mention that one of the biggest holes in Levshunov\'s offensive game right now is how poor his shot selection is. He shoots a lot , but not with enough thought behind those shots at times, as several of them result in turnovers or low-percentage plays. The decision-making process -- whether to shoot, hold, or dish -- still needs a lot of fine-tuning. It’s a trend that’s followed him in the AHL, where he puts pucks on net frequently, but with mixed impact. Volume isn’t the issue, it’s choosing the right moment, and too often, those choices aren’t creating real chances.

The clip below has an example of Levshunov not always having the best shot selection: at the 18-second mark, he shoots directly into the guy who\'s standing, like, eight feet from him (he wasn\'t alone, Nazar\'s shot attempt wasn\'t well timed either). He walks the line and helps cycle the puck well, though, illustrating how good Levshunov can be combined with some areas that need work.

Watch this full O zone shift for Kaiser and Levshunov and how well the move the puck and walk the line to create different looks: pic.twitter.com/HN92d3ahyi

— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) March 27, 2025

Defensively, Levshunov is still quite raw, though he\'s made strides to improve in this area as well. For example, he\'s more poised and assertive at the blue line, his gap control is tighter, his reads are sharper, and he\'s showing a newfound confidence in stepping up. The problem, as with most young defenders, is consistency. There are too many moments when he doesn\'t apply these good traits continuously throughout a game or between games. When Levshunov is on, he\'s really on -- but if not, he\'s either a ghost or a detriment to the team defense. He sometimes puck-watches too much, looking for a way to turn a play into an offensive opportunity, but instead causes missed coverage and assignments.

This is another example of the dual experience of Levshunov in a single sequence: he loses his player and allows him to get a breakaway chance but then feeds a teammate with a bank pass for a quality chance at the other end:

Ivan Barbashev sneaks behind Artyom Levshunov for a fast break chance but Spencer Knight makes the breakaway stop. Then Levshunov feeds Frank Nazar for a quick chance on the other end pic.twitter.com/vgEkE3dM9V

— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) March 29, 2025

Below is a great clip of Levshunov being the best defender on the ice for the Blackhawks. Once Levshunov figures out how to do this consistently, the sky\'s the limit.

Watch this ridiculously good defensive shift by Artyom Levshunov (and terrible shift by the rest of the Blackhawks): pic.twitter.com/FuEEIN9Aav

— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) March 16, 2025

Levshunov isn\'t afraid to be physical, but he still has to learn when to go for a hit and the timing around them at the AHL and NHL levels. At the NHL level, he had more physical moments than not, though, which is a testament to his improvement in this area. Here is one such case:

Klim Kostin tries to finish his hit on Artyom Levshunov but Levshunov knocks him down instead pic.twitter.com/sHpbDNrKvs

— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) March 14, 2025

Even through mistakes and growing pains, Levshunov obviously tries his best and has a high effort level. It\'s important to remember that he has progressed rapidly through four levels of North American hockey in three years, and that type of transition is not going to be without issues.

Another look at Artyom Levshunov's diving keep in prior to the Bertuzzi goal pic.twitter.com/JmOoRLy3Lt

— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) March 27, 2025

Overall, Levshunov delivered a promising rookie season, balancing strong AHL production with a an fairly alright transition to NHL play for a 19-year-old whose league graduation has basically been a speed-run. While there are still key areas of growth needed, his rapid adjustment and flashes of composed, high-end play signal a high-upside, long-term projection given the right development. Continued development in positioning, decision-making, and consistency will be key. Next season will be interesting because Levshunov has a higher ceiling than everyone else in this article, but is also the most green of the bunch and did not show last year he was quite NHL ready. Still, even if it may be better for Levshunov to spend another full or partial season in the AHL working on his foundation, the high-upside may be too tantalizing for the Blackhawks coaching staff, so expect a training camp battle with potential for him to secure a regular NHL spot.

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Talking Points