It’s hard to judge Kyle Davidson’s stewardship of the Chicago Blackhawks rebuild when they haven’t shown any progress since he officially took over three years ago this month.
He collects draft picks well, knows how to fire coaches and is fluid in corporate-speak, but we’re still waiting to see whether Davidson is closer to a Theo Epstein clone than an Artūras Karnišovas hologram.
Back in March 2022, Davidson was 33-years old and the youngest general manager in the NHL, taking over a franchise reeling from the fallout of the scandal surrounding former video coach Brad Aldrich. Davidson deserved patience, and Blackhawks fans were willing to grant that request, knowing the damage former GM Stan Bowman had done to the organization.
The Hawks were 19-27-8 when the interim tag was lifted from Davidson’s title, well on their way to missing out on the Stanley Cup playoffs for the fourth time in five seasons. His biggest decision in his first full season in 2022-23 surrounded franchise superstar Patrick Kane, who was dealt to the New York Rangers at the 2023 trade deadline, marking the end of the Kane-Jonathan Toews era. Davidson confirmed that news on the morning of the final game when he told reporters: “Tonight will be the final game in a Blackhawks jersey for Jonathan Toews because we will not be re-signing him in the summer.”
Remember, it was Toews who had said the previous summer the rebuild was already “draining,” telling The Athletic: “At the end of the day, we’re talking about a five-plus-year process, according to (Davidson). So that part of it doesn’t sound appealing to me at all.”
Davidson somehow lucked into the top choice in the 2023 draft, winning the Connor Bedard sweepstakes and ushering in the new era. But few of Davidson’s moves to surround Bedard with some veteran talent have worked out the last two-plus years, and players such as Max Domi, Corey Perry, Taylor Hall and Craig Smith, who was dealt to the Detroit Red Wings on Friday, would all be short-timers in a Hawks sweater.
Now they’re closing in on the end of Year 4 of the “five-plus-year process” with a 19-35-8 record — second-worst in the NHL — entering Friday’s game against the Utah Hockey Club. They’re headed for another shot at a No. 1 pick and perhaps even another in the 2026 draft.
“We’re the exact same team right now we were (in) Game 1,” defenseman Seth Jones said after a 2-1 loss in Utah on Feb. 25. “It’s pretty evident out there. We haven’t made any strides to be a better, more simple hockey team, and it shows.”
Jones could afford to tell the truth. He knew he was on his way out of town, having requested a trade. Davidson accommodated him, sending Jones and a 2026 fourth-round pick to the Florida Panthers for 23-year-old goalie Spencer Knight and a conditional first-round pick in ’26 and agreeing to eat a chunk of Jones’ albatross of the contract.
The de-Bowmanization of the Hawks was complete.
But the Hawks are still on their way to their seventh season in eight years without a playoff appearance. Something must change.
Davidson made one more move before Friday afternoon’s deadline, dealing goalie Petr Mrázek and Smith to the Red Wings for forward Joe Veleno. It wasn’t the kind of move that helped the Hawks as much as it rewarded Mrázek for being a good soldier after being taken out of the rotation with the Knight acquisition.
Instead of griping about his fate, Mrázek was understanding of the situation, saying “I believe when people are positive, good things will happen. Definitely not in a bad mood or anything.”
When asked on NHL Network if the trade moved the needle forward for the Red Wings, commentator Bruce Boudreau laughed and said it moved it backward. Funny guy, or just stating a fact?
Either way, the Hawks have a new, young goalie with an upside, and Mrázek doesn’t have to sit on the bench and wallow. It’s a win-win for Davidson as both a GM and decent human being.
More importantly, Davidson wound up keeping Ryan Donato and hopefully can find common ground on extension after the 28-year-old’s career-best season. In a season in which almost nothing has gone right, Donato’s improvement has been fun to watch.
So where does this leave the Hawks?
Pretty much where they started, but with a potential star in Knight to go along with Bedard and top prospects Artyom Levshunov, Frank Nazar and Oliver Moore waiting to make their marks in the NHL, not to mention draft picks galore, including another potential No. 1 or No. 2 pick this year.
So there’s still a future, even if the “five-plus-year process” is trending toward the “plus.”
Davidson deserves credit for being able to get something valuable for Jones and for moving on from Luke Richardson when it was apparent his first full-time coaching hire was not getting the job done. His next big decision will involve interim coach Anders Sorenson, a nice guy who hasn’t stood out under difficult circumstances. If the Hawks don’t expect to win in the next couple of years, they have no reason to look for a big-name replacement.
But Davidson also could make a bold move this summer and announce Nick Foligno as the next coach. When he announced Foligno would be the Hawks’ 35th captain in September, Davidson said it was “a little bit of a no-brainer” for him.
“I don’t think anyone around the facility or around the team can really see anyone but Nick as the leader of this current Blackhawks team,” Davidson said.
That remains true. Foligno turns 38 next year and eventually is going to coach somewhere. Why not let him be at the helm of the rebuild when it hopefully turns the corner in a couple of years when the kids are all together?
The Hawks need to do something to reward fans for their patience.
It’s not going to last forever.
