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Lynch: Loss to Utah symbolizes Blackhawks step behind

The Utah Hockey Club’s Game 1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks symbolized just how much work the Hawks still have in the rebuild.

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Utah Hockey Club Rink
Utah Hockey Club | Photo courtesy of Pat McGann

The Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 loss at the hands of the Utah Hockey Club may not be the end of the world, but the loss did remind me of just how much more work the Hawks still have left.



While this season may see the Blackhawks take a jump in the standings, Chicago still has a lot of work left on the rebuild. The loss to Utah showed just that.

Let’s just take a moment and look at who scored goals for Utah. Dylan Guenther got Utah going, followed up by Clayton Keller, Barrett Hayton, Guenther again and Lawson Crouse.

So the goal scorers were Guenther, Keller, Hayton and Crouse.

Clayton Keller was drafted seventh overall in 2016 by the Coyotes. Barrett Hayton was drafted fifth overall in 2018. Dylan Guenther was drafted ninth overall in 2021 and Lawson Crouse was acquired by the then Coyotes in 2016 in in a salary cap dump involving former Blackhawk Dave Bolland. Crouse was a good prospect at the time that the Coyotes acquired, he was drafted 11th overall in 2015.

I mention all this to say, Utah’s lineup is reaping the rewards of Arizona’s hard work over the past five plus seasons. Matias Maccelli has become a top nine forward – he was drafted in the fourth round in 2019. Jack McBain has found himself on a line with Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther. He was acquired by Bill Armstrong while GM of the Coyotes in 2022. Armstrong gave up a second round pick for the forward.

Cooley, playing on a line with McBain and Guenther, is another example of patience through the draft. Armstrong drafted Cooley third overall in 2022, he is now entering his second full NHL Season and should be signing a massive extension once July comes around.

While the Arizona Coyotes may have had a sentimental connection to Josh Doan – drafting the forward in the second round of 2021 – Utah is just as happy to have him with the new team.

Doan had a great training camp, earning a spot on the third line with the club entering the season. Utah looks to be just a few steps ahead of the Blackhawks.

Where Utah has Logan Cooley, maybe a few years from now Blackhawks fans will be watching Frank Nazar. Where Josh Doan fits into the lineup maybe AJ Spellacy can come into the fold.

The Blackhawks should be more competitive this season, there is no denying the better team on paper Kyle Davidson has built. But to turn the corner towards Stanley Cup Playoff contention, the Blackhawks are going to be needing more of their recent draft picks under Davidson to step up.

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