by The Chicago Blackhawks may not be in the place the team or fans were hoping for in Connor Bedard’s second year, but the season has had some bright spots so far.
There are three Blackhawks players in particular who had pleasantly surprising seasons that deserve recognition here. In no particular order, Ryan Donato, Alex Vlasic and Arvid Soderblom deserve attention for their performance in 32 games.
Ryan Donato
Donato always had a lot of skill and the ability to produce something when given the opportunity. The problem is that he never got that chance at the NHL level. In eight seasons in the NHL, it was the only time he saw more than 14 minutes of ice time per game. They came to the Boston Bruins as a 21-year-old, to the Minnesota Wild as a 22-year-old and to the Blackhawks as a 28-year-old (this season).
Donato scored five goals and nine points in 12 games with the Bruins in 2017-18, four goals and 16 points in 22 games with the Wild the following season after his trade, and has 11 goals and 18 points in 30 games with the Wild this season Blackhawks season.
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This is Donato’s fifth team in the NHL, but he has found a place where he is valued and rewarded for his strong play. He leads the team in goals and is third in points after Teuvo Teravainen had two great games and passed him for second place.
Donato has made a lot of jumps this season and has been used where he was needed, but that hasn’t hurt his performance overall. With all the new additions, he wasn’t expected to surpass his offense from last season (12 goals and 30 points), but he’s on pace to surpass that mark.
Alex Vlasic
Vlasic is in his second season as a full-time NHL player. He opened a lot of eyes last season and continues to do so for the Blackhawks in 2024-25. His value has increased even further with the absence of Seth Jones on the back end, as Vlasic has stepped into the role of number one defenseman by logging the most ice time, playing against top talent, having the best power play and…death penalties.
Isaiah J. Downing Imagn Images
Vlasic is fourth on the team in points and has already equaled his goals (two) and points (16) from last season in less than half of the games. The 23-year-old is playing more than two minutes more per game than last season and his discipline has improved significantly.
There were some big shoes to fill when Jones left, and Vlasic has done an excellent job at this stage of his career. It looks very good that the Blackhawks have him under contract for five more years at a great price.
Arvid Söderblom
Expectations for Soderblom weren’t high this season after the Blackhawks signed Laurent Brossoit to compete with Petr Mrazek for starts. With Brossoit’s injury, Soderblom made it to the Blackhawks and hasn’t looked back.
He didn’t play much at the start of the season, but still performed well when called upon. Mrazek was recently injured, forcing Soderblom to step up, which he did, winning three of his last four games.
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Soderblom will remain in the NHL regardless of what the original plan was for him this season. After finishing last season with a 3.92 GAA and .879 SV% in 29 starts (32 games played), the 25-year-old has a 2.70 GAA and .909 SV% in 11 starts (12 games). He had a good start rate of 35% last season and has increased that significantly to 65% this season.
With Soderblom not expected to play a role for the Blackhawks this season and prospects for his future in Chicago or even the NHL not looking good, everything changed very quickly.
The hope is that Donato, Vlasic and Soderblom can continue their strong and surprising play for the Blackhawks this season and other areas of the team can improve. The season is not lost, but the future holds more surprises.
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