Kyle Davidson Is Still Rebuilding Like It's 2022 While the Rest of the NHL Has Moved On
The last month has absolutely torched whatever confidence I had left in Kyle Davidson's vision for this team.
As a Blackhawks fan, my belief that we're anywhere close to icing a legitimately competitive roster is at an all-time low.
First, let's talk about the Bowen Byram trade. I don't necessarily have a problem with moving the 4th overall pick for an established NHL player. Prospects are lottery tickets, and not every rebuild needs another teenager. But if you're going to cash in a premium asset, shouldn't you be getting an elite player in return? I’m not convinced Byram is that guy, and I'm even less convinced that was the right price.
More concerning is Davidson's complete inability to find a legitimate running mate for Connor Bedard.
Bedard is heading into his fourth season. Fourth.
At some point, the endless excuses about "sticking to the plan" stop being reassuring and start sounding like a guy reading from a script. The franchise was gifted a generational talent and Davidson still hasn't found him a top-line winger capable of maximizing his offensive potential. That's roster malpractice.
Meanwhile, the rest of the league appears to be figuring out that draft picks are massively overrated compared to proven NHL talent. Danny Briere's aggressive move for Leo Carlsson is exactly the kind of swing that changes a franchise's trajectory. It sends a message: stop hoarding futures and start acquiring players.
The market is changing, and Davidson seems determined to operate like it's still Year One of the rebuild.
I've already seen multiple articles suggesting Pen's GM Kyle Dubas should make a monster offer for Bedard. Let's pretend he actually does. What are the Hawks getting back? Four late first-round picks? Congratulations, you've traded Connor Bedard for the opportunity to maybe draft a future Connor Bedard. Makes perfect sense.
And if Bedard ever reaches the point where the Hawks have to match some astronomical offer, that's another problem entirely, one that became exponentially harder because management has spent years failing to build a winning environment around him.
At this point, Kyle Davidson feels like the intern who wandered into Stan Bowman's office one day, got promoted to the big chair, and never updated the PowerPoint presentation he brought to the interview.
He came in with a plan. Fine.
The problem is the league changed and the plan didn't.
Teams are valuing NHL talent more and draft picks less. Smart GMs are adapting. Davidson is still collecting futures like it's a hobby.
Good luck, Kyle.
You're going to need a lot more than another draft pick to get yourself out of this one.