Why Blackhawks’ Wyatt Kaiser has become the perfect partner for ‘unpredictable’ Artyom Levshunov

The cacophony contained within the glass of an NHL rink can be difficult to describe, let alone comprehend. There are up to 20,000 rabid people raining down their emotions from all angles, a dozen sticks clattering, two dozen skates carving, all those burly bodies bumping into each other and banging into the boards, plus an endless stream of screaming and grunting and cursing.

And Artyom Levshunov is kind of a soft-spoken guy.

Yet somehow, amid all that noise, Wyatt Kaiser can hone in on and pick out Levshunov’s voice, like Superman zeroing in on a Lois Lane distress call from miles away.

“I find that when you play with a guy for a little bit, you can pick his voice out of a crowd,” Kaiser said. “It’s almost like a trust thing. You start looking for that voice. So when I hear Arty’s voice, I’ll pick that out. If someone else who doesn’t talk a lot yells, sometimes I won’t hear it. But he talks, I hear it.”

Not that Kaiser ever really knows what the heck Levshunov is going to do next. No one ever does.

“You want to do the right things and be predictable — but sometimes I am unpredictable,” Levshunov said with a smile. “That’s what I’m saying: Be ready. It’s an important thing for the (partner) to feel your brain. It takes time. Wyatt, I don’t know, we just understand each other.”

Thanks to Jeff Blashill’s fondness for icing 11 forwards and seven defensemen, there aren’t really any set pairings for the Blackhawks. As Levshunov himself pointed out, he’s been playing with just about everyone since returning to the lineup after being scratched for the home opener. But Kaiser and Levshunov are about the closest thing Chicago has to a permanent pair. The two have been largely attached at the hip since late last season.

And for good reason. Kaiser seems to moderate Levshunov’s most reckless tendencies, and Levshunov seems to bring out a more creative side of Kaiser. They were solid late last season, but they’ve been dynamite together early this season. Levshunov is tied for the league lead in five-on-five goal differential, as the Blackhawks have outscored opponents 6-1 with him on the ice in nearly 55 minutes of play. Kaiser is right behind him, with a 5-1 five-on-five differential. About two-thirds of Levshunov’s even-strength ice time this season has come alongside Kaiser, and the Blackhawks haven’t been scored on in those minutes, while significantly out-chancing opponents.

The unassuming defensive-minded Kaiser and the goofy go-for-it Levshunov just seem to bring out the best in each other.

“He’s a little more offense, I’m a little more defense,” Kaiser said. “And we both skate well to help each other out. I maybe latch on to him when we get in the O-zone a bit, and he latches on to me when we’re gapping up.”

Kaiser loves the combo, which could be part of a long-term top four with Sam Rinzel and Alex Vlasic on the top pairing. And it’s not simply a situation where an offensive player is paired with a stay-at-home guy, to be there as a safety net for the inevitable bad pinch or turnover. Levshunov’s aggression actually forces Kaiser out of his comfort zone, and it’s making him a better all-around player.

“You just play off of it, right?” Kaiser said. “It’s like, either flow with the river or don’t get in it. So if he starts going, I’m in with him. If he starts trying to get aggressive and making plays, I’m right there trying to support him, making the plays with him. I like that he gets aggressive — he’s trying to make a play, he’s trying to make things happen. Which I think helps my game, because sometimes I struggle to create a little bit. But playing with Arty, he makes things happen and it’s like, boom, I’m right there to support him and make the plays with him.”

Levshunov has earned Kaiser’s trust, but he’s still working on earning Blashill’s. The first-year coach wants to see a little less recklessness from Levshunov, noting that the 19-year-old’s natural ability to break out of the defensive zone and his knack for getting shots through from just inside the blue line will create all the offense he and the Blackhawks need. Blashill sent a clear message with the benching against Montreal after two sloppy, penalty-filled games, and Levshunov has responded well.

“The whole game for me is risk-reward,” Blashill said. “That’s what the whole game of hockey is. What we’re trying to learn is when to take a risk, and is the reward worth it?”

But Levshunov’s never going to become a reserved, cautious blueliner. The Blackhawks drafted him second overall in 2024 instead of Ivan Demidov because of his creativity and offensive instincts. When Kevin Korchinski was a 19-year-old full-time NHLer, he became so preoccupied with holding his own in the defensive zone that he all but lost the offensive flair that made him the 2022 No. 7 pick in the first place. Two years later, Korchinski’s back in Rockford, still trying to find it.

It’s all about striking a happy medium. It was notoriously difficult to play center for Patrick Kane, because he played right wing differently than just about any player on the planet. He liked to be the one to carry the puck up ice, and then he’d do things with it that most players would never anticipate. But when he’d develop a mind-meld with linemates, whether it was Brad Richards and Kris Versteeg or Artem Anisimov and Artemi Panarin, the results were spectacular.

That’s what Kaiser and Levshunov are trying to achieve.

“You just have to be ready for him,” Kaiser said. “Ready for whatever.”

That includes after the whistle, too. Kaiser still laughs when he thinks back to a goal he scored in Vancouver on March 15. Levshunov led Kaiser into the offensive zone with a clean pass, and Kaiser buried the shot. It was Levshunov’s first NHL point. He was on his way to the bench for a change when the puck went in and came racing down the ice to celebrate.

“I think he was celebrating harder than I was,” Kaiser said.

That boyish glee was evident again Monday against Utah. When Ilya Mikheyev scored the opening goal of the game in the second period, Levshunov — who didn’t even pick up a point on the play — leapt in the air like the Blackhawks had just won a playoff series. It was particularly amusing considering he was leaping into the arms of Mikheyev, easily the Blackhawks’ most demure player.

Levshunov said he’s just being himself, with his play and his reactions.

“You don’t need to worry about what others are saying,” he said. “Do the job and work hard. Win your battles. Be engaged. When we all do these things, it will be good.”

It’ll be good. And it’ll be fun. And it’ll surely be an adventure. With Levshunov, it always is.

“It’s enjoyable playing hockey with him,” Kaiser said. “Sometimes, when you get into systematic, winning hockey, it’s the same thing over and over again a lot of the time. With Arty, sometimes it’s a little unexpected and it makes me smile. Like, what was that? Wow, that was a sick play. Just different things will randomly happen that’ll make the game more enjoyable. There’s a little freedom to his hockey, an expressive, creative way of looking at it. I love it.”

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