The Chicago Blackhawks held their final practice ahead of the 2026 NHL trade deadline on Thursday morning, and there were plenty of noteworthy tidbits from the session.
First, defenseman Wyatt Kaiser was among the first players on the ice at the newly rebranded Blackhawks Ice Center, and he was spotted wearing a regular red practice sweater. Indeed, Kaiser was a full participant at Thursday’s practice for the first time since suffering a lower-body injury on Feb. 4, in the Blackhawks’ final game before the Olympics. He’s missed each of the team’s first four games out of the break.
Kaiser skated alongside Sam Rinzel on the second defensive pairing during practice, and that’s likely where he’ll be slotted again come Friday night. Head coach Jeff Blashill confirmed after practice that Kaiser is expected to return to the lineup against the Vancouver Canucks.
“Kaiser is tracking for tomorrow,” Blashill said. “Unless there was a setback today that I don’t know about, I expect him to play tomorrow.”
The Blackhawks had eight defensemen on the ice during practice, one more than they’d like with their NHL club. Kaiser has yet to be activated off injured reserve, but that should happen on Friday morning or afternoon. With his return seeming imminent, the Blackhawks decided to make a transaction, cutting the roster down to the standard seven defensemen.
Unsurprisingly, Kevin Korchinski ended up being the odd man out. The 21-year-old was assigned to the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL after practice wrapped up on Thursday.
Kevin Korchinski has been sent back to Rockford.
Wyatt Kaiser is expected to return from his lower-body injury on Friday against Vancouver. pic.twitter.com/pbXpGtUpz9
— Jack Bushman (@JackBushman2) March 5, 2026
The Blackhawks recalled Korchinski on Feb. 18, when Kaiser was initially placed on injured reserve, ahead of the first practice session back from the Olympic break. The 2022 No. 7 overall pick appeared in both games during the back-to-back over the weekend against Colorado and Utah, but was healthy scratched for the other two games versus Nashville and Winnipeg. Ethan Del Mastro, who was recalled from Rockford on Tuesday, drew into the lineup in favor of Korchinski against the Jets.
Even in the two games he did play before getting sent back to the minors, Korchinski wasn’t given much of an opportunity, getting buried on the third pairing and receiving less than 10:30 of ice time in both outings. He also didn’t get a look on either of the two power-play units, which fits his strengths as an offensive-minded defenseman. Clearly, there’s some disconnect or lack of trust between the coaching staff and Korchinski, and it’s resulted in him being an outsider again this year.
Since getting rushed to the NHL level as a 19-year-old in 2022-23, Korchinski has played just 20 games for the Blackhawks over the last two seasons. Only four have come in 2025-26. He’s mostly been developing and fine-tuning his game in the AHL, but he’s yet to get a legitimate chance to showcase any growth in the big leagues.
One has to wonder what general manager Kyle Davidson’s future plans are for Korchinski at this point. Still only 21 years old and with a swift skating ability, there are reasons to believe he can be a puzzle piece in the Blackhawks’ rebuild. However, the organization seems reluctant to hand him an opportunity to prove it, for whatever reason(s).
If not now, when will be the time for Korchinski to get a full-time NHL role? The Blackhawks are currently 11 points back of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference and have a 0.1 percent chance of reaching the postseason, according to MoneyPuck. Why is 32-year-old Matt Grzelcyk, who’s not going to be brought back as an unrestricted free agent this summer, still playing over Korchinski?
The top priority over the final 21 games SHOULD be to give the young players additional minutes, and that will likely be the case for all the former high-end draft picks now on the professional scene… except for Korchinski.
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