The Chicago Blackhawks future outlook in the cage got much stronger at the trade deadline just under two months ago. General manager Kyle Davidson found a trade partner for veteran blue liner Seth Jones in the Florida Panthers and Chicago fans were thrilled at the return that he fetched for the 30-year-old. Along with a first-round pick, the Blackhawks got Spencer Knight in return for Jones and it appears that Chicago now has their top netminder of the future.
The Blackhawks have struggled to find a top goaltender since Corey Crawford was in his prime and that had to change in order for the current rebuild to get kicked into a new gear. While Knight was fantastic to watch in his short time with the Blackhawks this season, there is no doubt that he is the front runner in the organization to control the net for the long haul. Despite Chicago having other top goaltending prospects in their pipeline, the trade didn’t change the mindset of their current starter in the AHL.
Drew Commesso spoke on his relationship with Spencer Knight
Drew Commesso has put together a strong season with the Rockford IceHogs and even made his NHL debut back in December. For the longest time, he was the prospect in the organization set to be the primary goaltender of the future, but it appears that those plans have changed. Despite the move for Knight, Commesso remains focused on the process to being his best every night. When he appeared on the CHGO Blackhawks podcast, he had nothing but great things to say about Knight and his future with the franchise.
“Honestly, I don’t adjust my mentality at all,” Commesso said. “It was something that was completely out of my control and I think I found out about it 15 minutes before my first game back from injury in the locker room. For me, I’ve just had a great mindset of just being present and controlling what I can.”
Commesso’s strong mentality on the situation could have a lot to do with the fact that him and Knight have a strong relationship based on their time together at the U.S. developmental program and having similar roots as east coast natives.
“Spence and I have a phenomenal relationship,” Commesso said. “He’s been such a great guy to me ever since I met him at the U.S. program when we were there together and I only have unbelievable things to say about him. I think we are really similar in a lot of ways and we view the game very similarly.”
With how today’s NHL operates, it’s more important now than ever to have two strong netminders on an active roster. Gone are the days of one goalie taking the net for a majority of the season (with a few exceptions across the league, of course). Chicago needs as much depth as possible and having both Knight and Commesso in their system should be seen as a good thing.
The Chicago Blackhawks could have a solid goaltending tandem
Knight made 15 starts after the Blackhawks acquired him in March and posted a 5-8-2 record with a 3.18 GAA and a .896 save percentage. The numbers don’t attest to how solid the 23-year-old was in the cage due to the inconsistent play in front of him down the stretch.
Commesso made one start and came off the bench once in his brief stint with the Blackhawks. In 39 regular season games with Rockford, he had a 18-15-6 record with a 2.54 GAA and a .911 save percentage. Commesso improved in all statistical categories from his first season in the AHL and he will lead the IceHogs into the first round of the Calder Cup playoffs on Wednesday night against the Chicago Wolves.
NHL insider loves Chicago Blackhawks depth in their prospect pool
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