As a young team, the Blackhawks are be figuring out what the best combinations are and which defensemen will take on the bigger responsibilities.
The Chicago Blackhawks are a very young team that still needs time to figure everything out. This includes line combinations and best defense pairings.
This season, veteran Seth Jones was paired with Alex Vlasic on the top pairing. The two worked together well and have gained chemistry. Vlasic is 22 years old and 2023-24 was his de facto rookie season since he only played in 22 NHL games prior.
Vlasic and Jones got comfortable with each other. Vlasic proved himself enough to stick on the top pairing all season, and was selected to the IIHF World Championship for Team U.S.A.
But things could still easily change in Chicago in the future. The most likely defenseman to take over Vlasic on the top pairing is swift-skating Kevin Korchinski.
Korchinski is a seventh overall pick that was a true rookie this season, playing his first NHL game at the start of the season and first pro games at any level. Since he was only 19, he had to play in the NHL or go back to junior where he was too good for.
Korchinski was ready for the NHL, but it was the right move not to throw him into the fire on the top pairing with zero experience. His skill level is very high and with the proper development, he will be a pillar on the back-end and team for many years.
Coach Luke Richardson has compares Korchinski's skill set that of Hall-of-Famer Scott Niedermayer.
Korchinski has the potential to be the Blackhawks' No. 1 defenseman as he was drafted seventh overall in 2022 by general manager Kyle Davidson for a reason. Pairing Korchinski with Jones would make a power pairing and the 19-year-old is super fast.
Korchinski still needs to develop and and build muscle before he really breaks out. This doesn't mean he can't play in an elevated role though. At the very least, he needs an above average partner all season. If Connor Murphy stays healthy and beside Korchinski in 2024-25, this will help.
The Blackhawks aren't expected to win just yet, so there's no harm in trying out Korchinski with Jones for a while next season either.
Experimentation is the best thing for a young team. It gives chances to certain players who could do something with an opportunity and sometimes chemistry just clicks. The Blackhawks are in a very good spot defensively if there is this type of competition for top pairing minutes on the left side in the midst of a rebuild.
Vlasic's chemistry with Jones and his talent can't be denied, but Korchinski has more high-end talent and a higher ceiling. This will likely turn into an experiment for Luke Richardson and the Blackhawks next season as more interesting pieces are added to the team.
We're going to have to see more from the eye test and deeper analytics to really decide who is the better option to play beside Jones now and in the future.