{"id":462716,"date":"2026-02-19T00:30:41","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T00:30:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/462716\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T00:30:41","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T00:30:41","slug":"blackhawks-news-rumors-kaiser-korchinski-rinzel-bedard-more-the-hockey-writers-chicago-blackhawks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/462716\/","title":{"rendered":"Blackhawks News & Rumors: Kaiser, Korchinski, Rinzel, Bedard, More – The Hockey Writers – Chicago Blackhawks"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Chicago Blackhawks <\/a>are finally back to practices again after nearly two weeks off for the Olympic break. Tuesday (Feb. 17) was a very well-attended optional practice, and the first mandatory practice was Wednesday. The Hawks will have a mini training camp of sorts, with practices every day for the rest of this week (with the exception of Saturday). They\u2019ll likely also get a few more practices in next week before traveling to face the Nashville Predators on Thursday, Feb. 26, the start of a four-game road trip.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s get caught up with the latest news and rumors coming out of the break. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Kaiser Injury Update<\/p>\n

Defenseman Wyatt Kaiser<\/a> exited the Blackhawks\u2019 last game on Feb. 4 with an apparent knee injury that didn\u2019t look good.<\/p>\n

A closer look at the Wyatt Kaiser injury. Doesn’t look great. #Blackhawks<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/iDtcIsBiD6<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) February 5, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n

Sure enough, head coach Jeff Blashill confirmed on Tuesday that Kaiser will NOT be available once games start up again. He wouldn\u2019t give any timeline beyond \u201chopefully it\u2019s not going to be March.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaiser has emerged as one of the team\u2019s most reliable defensemen. He\u2019s also done an excellent job mentoring D-partner\u00a0Artyom Levshunov<\/a>, as well as Sam Rinzel <\/a>more recently. Kaiser leads all defensemen on the team with five goals, which is quite impressive considering he\u2019s more of a defensive defenseman. If he\u2019s out for an extended amount of time, it could be a tough loss for the Blackhawks.<\/p>\n

Defensemen Korchinski & Rinzel Recalled<\/p>\n

On Wednesday (Feb. 18) the Blackhawks officially placed Kaiser on injured reserve<\/a>, and recalled Rinzel and Kevin Korchinski<\/a> from the Rockford IceHogs. Both young defensemen were at practice that morning.<\/p>\n

Rinzel started the season with the Blackhawks but was sent down to the IceHogs on Dec. 8. He was, however, called up for three games before the break. In 31 games this season, he\u2019s contributed two goals and nine points.<\/p>\n

\"SamDefenseman Sam Rinzel was called back up to the Chicago Blackhawks on Feb. 18. (Photo by Joe Sargent\/NHLI via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Korchinski, on the other hand, has played most of the season with the IceHogs. He was called up to the Blackhawks for two games in early January when the flu bug was going through the Blackhawks\u2019 locker room. Korchinski recorded one assist while he was with Chicago.<\/p>\n

Said Blashill of the two call ups instead of just one, \u201cI want them to make sure, if they\u2019re gonna play games down the stretch here, that they\u2019re ingrained in everything we\u2019re doing.\u201d He also said it\u2019s hard to run practices with just six defensemen.<\/p>\n

\"KevinKevin Korchinski has only played in two games for the Chicago Blackhawks this season, but he\u2019ll be looking to add to that after the Olympic break. (Matt Marton-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

It\u2019s really no surprise both blueliners were recalled. Korchinski is a natural left-shot defenseman, so he would likely replace Kaiser (also a left-handed shot). Levshunov (a righty) has been struggling and was scratched the last three games before break. Rinzel is a right-handed shot as well. It\u2019s possible Blashill will run with a seven-defenseman lineup<\/a> like he did at the beginning of the season. Plus, one or both of veteran D-men Connor Murphy (right) or Matt Grzelcyk (left) might be moved at or before the trade deadline on Mar. 6.<\/p>\n

Related \u2013 Blackhawks\u2019 Rinzel Showing Confidence & Growth After Recall<\/a><\/p>\n

Lots of moving parts on the blue line to be keeping an eye on.<\/p>\n

Bedard Back to Taking Faceoffs<\/p>\n

Coach Blashill did confirm, as he hinted before the break, that Connor Bedard<\/a> will be taking faceoffs again. He indicated, \u201cI think the plan right now, and the plan always was in his (Bedard\u2019s) mind, to start taking face-offs coming out of this break. So, I\u2019d expect to see him kind of playing more of a true center role where he\u2019s taking face-offs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ConnorConnor Bedard is expected to take faceoffs again as soon as the Chicago Blackhawks resume play after the Olympic break. (Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Centerman Jason Dickinson<\/a> and Bedard were practicing faceoffs at the optional practice on Tuesday, and Bedard lined up as the top line center during line rushes on Wednesday. He verified after practice Tuesday that this is the plan. \u201cIt\u2019s nice to play your full position, for sure.\u201d When asked if it was nice to take a break from the faceoff circle and concentrate on getting back with the rest of his play, his response spoke volumes.<\/p>\n

No. No, I don\u2019t think so. It was more kind of precautionary a little bit. But like I said, you want to play your full position.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s safe to say Bedard is ready to get back to full-on centering and faceoffs duties again, and he\u2019ll be hungry to find some success once games resume.<\/p>\n

Blackhawks\u2019 Initial Lines & Pairings at Practice<\/p>\n

Speaking of which, here are the forward lines and defensive pairings that were run in practice on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Greene-Bedard-Burakovsky<\/p>\n

Moore-Nazar-Bertuzzi<\/p>\n

Donato-Dickinson-Mikheyev<\/p>\n

Dach-Foligno-Slaggert<\/p>\n

Lafferty<\/p>\n

\u00a0Vlasic-Crevier<\/p>\n

Grzelcyk-Murphy<\/p>\n

Korchinski-Rinzel<\/p>\n

Levshunov<\/p>\n

Not Present: Teravainen (Olympics), Kaiser (lower body)<\/p>\n

As a disclaimer, Coach Blashill said he\u2019s given zero thought to the lineup for next Thursday\u2019s game. But it should be pointed out that the above forward lines are very similar to what was clicking earlier in the season before Bedard and Nazar sustained their injuries. Said Blashill,<\/p>\n

The most success we\u2019ve had this year has been Connor (Bedard) and (Andre) Burakovsky with either (Ryan) Greene or Bert (Tyler Bertuzzi), and Frank (Nazar) on another line. And obviously Frankie had real success in the early part of the year with Turbo (Teuvo Teravainen) and Bert. So we\u2019ll kind of play that out.<\/p>\n

That could mean that Oliver Moore<\/a> is just a placeholder for Teuvo Teravainen on that second line. Although, Moore and Nazar have been deployed together before because of their speed factor. Teravainen has also had success on the third line with Dickinson and Ilya Mikheyev. More to follow on the forward lines as that first game gets closer. <\/p>\n

Regarding defense, Korchinski and Rinzel are likely just paired together to get acclimated, since they both just came down from Rockford. They actually weren\u2019t deployed together with the IceHogs. I would also assume Blashill will want to get Levshunov back into some games sooner rather than later. There are a lot of practices before the Blackhawks play again, so a lot could change.<\/p>\n

Related \u2013 Blackhawks Hoping Olympic Break Rejuvenates Them for Final Stretch<\/a><\/p>\n

The Blackhawks were happy to rest and reset over the last few weeks, but it\u2019s obvious they\u2019re ready to get back to work again. As mentioned above, a four-game road trip starts against the Predators on Feb. 26, and the first home game back is against the Vancouver Canucks on Mar. 6. Stay tuned for more of the latest news and updates as more practices commence throughout the weekend and beyond. \u00a0<\/p>\n

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