The Chicago Blackhawks front office is continually watching other organization’s hiring their next head coach this offseason. The franchise has a few important matters to attend to this summer, but getting the right guy behind the bench is arguably the most important decision they need to make. Luke Richardson was relieved of his duties as the Blackhawks’ head coach in December after spending nearly two and a half seasons in the role.
Anders Sorensen was brought up from Rockford to serve as Chicago’s interim head coach for the rest of the campaign, and he could now be a prime candidate to keep the job for this upcoming season. Fans are growing frustrated that the Blackhawks front office doesn’t seem to have a sense of urgency in hiring for their most important coaching job in recent memory. It appears that they aren’t the only ones that are asking questions about the organization’s process in this coaching cycle.
Nobody knows what the Chicago Blackhawks are going to do
Hockey insider Elliotte Friedman didn’t have an extremely positive update on Chicago’s coaching search on the latest installment of, 32 Thoughts: The Podcast.
“I’ll freely admit, I don’t have a great handle of where Chicago is right now,” Friedman said.
When the top NHL insider can’t firmly put his finger on the direction of an organization’s head coaching search, there is reason for concern. Five vacancies have now been filled in this cycle, making Chicago just one of four openings left across the league. The latest two positions that were filled on Wednesday, with former Vancouver bench boss Rick Tocchet taking the Flyers job, and top Canuck assistant, Adam Foote, been promoted as the lead man in Vancouver.
Jay Woodcroft might be the Chicago Blackhawks’ best option left
If Chicago doesn’t want to stay in-house with Sorensen, Woodcroft would be a logical candidate to pursue with what little is left on the market. The 48-year-old has spent parts of three seasons as the head coach of the Oilers and had a stellar 2022-23 campaign. It was Woodcroft’s only full year at the helm in Edmonton, and it he made it count with his 50-23-9 record and 109 points. The Toronto native took over after the Oilers had a rough start to the 2021-22 season and turned the ship around by posting a 26-9-3 record in 38 games.
Woodcroft has worked with stars like Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, so the Blackhawks front office knows they can trust him with the development of young guys like Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar. At the end of the day, it would be good for Chicago to bring in a head coach who has had any type of success at the NHL level. Woodcroft certainly fits that description, despite having a short stay in Edmonton.
Chicago Blackhawks have a new plan in place to celebrate their historic franchise ahead of its’ 100th season
Read MoreFor More Great Chicago Sports Content
Get the latest Chicago sports news, analysis, and breaking stories on the Bears, Bulls, Blackhawks, Cubs, White Sox, Sky, and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News, so you never miss a story on your favorite Chicago teams.
Follow us on Twitter at @chicitysports23 for more great content. We appreciate you taking time to read our articles. To interact more with our community and keep up to date on the latest in Chicago sports news, JOIN OUR FREE FACEBOOK GROUP by CLICKING HERE
