How the Blackhawks Might Look Under Blashill’s Guidance

We are about six weeks away from the start of training camp. The Chicago Blackhawks roster is set, except for an unexpected trade between now and opening night. While the offseason was devoid of big acquisitions, the declaration that it is time for the young players to take over this team is welcomed. The most significant addition made this summer was the hiring of a new coaching staff.

So, what exactly is Jeff Blashill going to try to implement for this young Blackhawks team? We have a wealth of data to examine from his seven years as head coach of the Detroit Red Wings and three seasons as an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning. While he will likely add some wrinkles to better serve the players he has, we have a good idea of what the plan of attack will be.

Before we break things down, I need to give a huge shout-out to Jack Han and his excellent Hockey Tactics series. Every year, he releases an illustrated guide detailing the systems and strategies employed by each NHL team. It is a tremendous resource for hockey coaches, writers, and fans to have a better understanding of the play in front of them. I highly recommend purchasing it every season as a helpful companion to your NHL viewing.

Blashill is Not Richardson

During Blashill’s introductory press conference last May, he mentioned that good defensive habits lead to more time in the offensive zone. He went on to explain that he wants to play to this team’s strength, which is skating and speed.

“I have certain beliefs in hockey that aren’t going to change, but they actually play into the strengths this team has,” he said. “When we don’t have the puck, we want to pressure and give the other team no space. If you can skate, you can do that. When we do have the puck, we want to play as fast as we can and be relentless in our attack. If you can skate, you can do that.”

Read More: What Detroit Thinks of Jeff Blashill

Many fans panicked when they heard Blashill discuss the importance of defensive play. It made them flash back to the system implemented by former head coach Luke Richardson. He mostly used the 1-2-2 system, which focuses on clogging the middle of the ice, making opponents have to play the puck through multiple defenders. Richardson knew his team was offensively challenged, so he only sent the F1 in deep to forecheck, making it easier for the other two forwards to get back defensively. He was essentially playing defense while in the offensive zone, making it even harder for the team to score goals.

That is not what Blashill is going to do. During his time in Detroit, he primarily used the 2-1-2 system, the same one Anders Sorensen employed when he took over last season. He preferred his team to attack off the rush rather than off the cycle. Once again, playing to the Blackhawks’ strength. The downside to playing more aggressively in the offensive zone is that you’ll ultimately make it harder to suppress your opponent’s scoring chances and give up more odd-man rushes. However, with the influx of team speed, the Blackhawks should be able to recover and disrupt the play in their defensive zone. The Lightning used this system a lot, too, while Blashill was there, but having Nikita Kucherov to lead the rush helped quite a bit.

Neutral Zone Will Be a Key Area of the Ice

The 2-1-2 system can also create more turnovers in the neutral zone and set up a counterattack. It puts a lot of pressure on the strong-side defenseman to make a one-on-one play at the blue line. However, if he can force a turnover, the Blackhawks can gain an odd-man rush going the other way because the forwards are behind the play. If the defender can’t make the play, it could be a long night for Spencer Knight or Arvid Soderblom.

During the 2021-22 season with the Red Wings, Blashill took full advantage of two dynamic rookies while attacking through the neutral zone. One common regroup saw defenseman Moritz Seider join the rush and use short passes to a forward just outside the blue line to gain zone entry. Forward Lucas Raymond often swung back to get the puck from a defenseman, then attacked the middle of the ice with his speed and skating. He preferred to gain the zone through the middle, but had both his linemates out wide to pass off to if he got jammed at the blue line. One of those linemates was often Tyler Bertuzzi.

I would look for these regroups early and often this season. Blashill has plenty of candidates to fill the Seider role with a slew of fast and talented defensemen. Whether it’s Sam Rinzel, Artyom Levshunov, or Kevin Korchinski, there are plenty of offensive-minded defenders who are willing to join the rush. Multiple speedy forwards can attack the middle of the ice and gain the zone. It feels that Frank Nazar will especially excel at this play.

Defensive System May Be a Work in Progress

It will be interesting to see what kind of defensive zone coverage the Blackhawks start off with. In Detroit, Blashill used a typical “five-tight” coverage, which focuses on protecting the middle of the ice. The F2 cuts off the low-to-high pass along the strong-side boards. The F3 holds his ground at the weak-side dot when the puck goes behind the net to allow the other two forwards to get into the slot and prevent a prime scoring chance. When the puck was cycled up high, the Red Wings got into the shooting lanes, then went into man-on-man coverage.

Sorensen will be in charge of the defensemen this season, and I’m sure he’ll have some input on what coverages are used. Last season, against the high cycle, the Blackhawks played a hybrid of man-on-man pressure on the strong side, with the weak-side forward keeping an eye on the high slot. When the puck went below the goal line, the wingers fell back into zone coverage, while the center joined the defensemen down low. This is when the inexperience of young centers like Conner Bedard and Nazar really showed. They struggled at times playing defense down low, but the logic of the coverage is to set them up down the middle for a breakout.

We will get a good idea early in training camp of how Blashill wants to start the season. For those of you worried about him playing a boring style of hockey like Richardson, that won’t be the case. He will look to utilize the team’s speed and skating as weapons, while holding them accountable when playing without the puck.