Blackhawks’ team of the future gets even closer with Sacha Boisvert’s NHL debut

PHILADELPHIA — When Alex Vlasic made his NHL debut on March 19, 2022, Kyle Davidson was just weeks into being named the Chicago Blackhawks’ permanent general manager. But even then, Davidson had already laid a rough outline for a rebuild, and it included time and plenty of draft picks. Vlasic had an idea what he and the organization had in store for them.

Four years later, Vlasic has witnessed 17 players make their own NHL debuts. Two came just this week. Anton Frondell, a 2025 first-round pick, made his NHL debut on Tuesday. Sacha Boisvert, a 2024 first-round pick, made his debut Thursday.

The Blackhawks’ rebuild is by no means complete — a 5-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday was the latest example of their youthful inconsistencies — but they are getting closer to Davidson’s vision, at least in terms of who is now on the roster.

“For the most part, we have a lot of the guys that are going to be here for the next however many years,” Vlasic said after morning skate on Thursday. “Hopefully we’re all a part of it because I think it’s going to be a really special time for this organization and for the city of Chicago. But yeah, it’s exciting to get Frondell the other night and then Boisvert tonight. It’s pretty special to see them play. I’m hoping they’re going to be huge parts of our team. They look like really good players already from what I’ve seen, so I think we’re all pumped to kind of get out there with them and play.”

The team the Blackhawks put out on the ice Thursday was their youngest yet. Their 20-man roster has an average age of 24.05 and included 11 players who are 23 or younger. It could have been even younger if 21-year-old Oliver Moore was healthy.

At 24 Vlasic now falls on the veteran side of the roster. He was asked if he felt old now.

“Yeah, a little bit,” he replied. “It’s crazy how fast things have kind of turned around. But no, I still feel pretty young. It feels like we’re all around the same age for the most part, so it’s been a lot of fun.”

When Jeff Blashill interviewed for the Blackhawks head coaching job last offseason, he started to learn about the prospects in the pipeline and the names who were expected to be part of the team when it turned the corner. As this season has gone on, Blashill has welcomed a number of those players to the NHL and kept them in the lineup.

Ryan Greene was originally supposed to go to Rockford but stayed up due to an injury and has spent a lot of the season on the top line. Moore and Nick Lardis began the season in Rockford and worked their way into top-nine roles. The majority of the Blackhawks defense has been young all season and only gotten younger. Frondell immediately got placed on the top line.

“I don’t want to look out into the long future, but even in the next year, this is basically going to be our team with the exception of a guy in, a guy out,” Blashill said. “Certainly (Roman) Kantserov, a name that’s still out there that has an opportunity to potentially be with us next year. So you start to kind of see what we are as a young group.

“I think the most important thing though is those young guys have to grow. So that’s what we’re focused on, is the growth of those young kids. Because if they’re the same player three years from now that they are today, we’re not a better hockey team. But if they grow exponentially, we’re a way better hockey team.”

Boisvert had to wait more than a week for his NHL debut because his work visa took some time after leaving Boston University and turning pro, but the wait was worth it Thursday as he jumped on the ice for a solo first-game lap in warmups and then played in his first NHL game.

“Was a lot of fun just looking around, looking at all the people here, and just kind of knowing it was my moment,” said Boisvert, who recently turned 20. “It was awesome.”

Boisvert played on the fourth line with Teuvo Teräväinen and Landon Slaggert. He didn’t play a lot, seeing 9:03 of ice time, but he created a few chances, including almost scoring late in the second period, and got a first taste of the NHL.

“He did a good job,” Blashill said. “He didn’t obviously play a ton, but in the bit he played, I thought he did a solid job. It’s a hard game when you’re not on either special team to get in the flow; I think he played nine minutes. But I thought he did a solid job.”

Boisvert’s first impressions?

“Guys are bigger, just look like men,” he said. “I would say that’s the biggest part.”

Frondell played 17:08 in his second NHL game. He had six shot attempts, including four on goal. He recorded his second NHL point when he attempted a wraparound from the left side of the net in the second period and it somehow found Connor Bedard on the right side for a clear shot.

Despite that goal Bedard felt he could be playing better alongside Frondell.

“He’s looked great so far,” said Bedard, whose goal was his 30th of the season. “It’s a quick turnaround for him flying, play right away, but he’s handled everything great. I think I’m a little frustrated myself. I think I can help him out more. I probably haven’t played my best since he’s been here. You want to make it as easy as you can on any new guy coming in. We’re just going to keep trying to do that. He’s doing everything right. He’s playing well. It’s fun to see him here and making an impact.”

Just like Tuesday against the Islanders, the Blackhawks fell behind 1-0 in the opening minute against the Flyers. But unlike the Islanders game, the Blackhawks didn’t battle back Thursday. The Flyers scored the game’s first three goals and scored their fourth goal less than two minutes after the Blackhawks scored their one.

It was the type of performance where Nick Foligno would have normally spoken after as the team captain. On Thursday, Bedard was the member of the team leadership who stood before the media and held himself and his team accountable.

“I thought they played more intense than us,” Bedard said. “I thought we didn’t really match that, for whatever reason. Obviously something we got to do better, just kind of learn from that. When you play teams that every game for them is do or die, they’re going to come out hard. We got to have the same urgency.”

Some of the Blackhawks’ mistakes Thursday were self-inflicted. On the Flyers’ first goal, there was a miscommunication between goalie Spencer Knight and his defense as Knight passed directly to an opponent and the puck ended up in the net. André Burakovsky committed a defensive-zone turnover that led to the second goal.

“We made a couple tough errors that end up in the net, and then it’s a grind — now you’re fighting momentum on the road,” Blashill said. “I thought we clawed our way back a little bit, and then made another couple tough errors and now it’s a real uphill battle. I just thought collectively, we didn’t have enough guys closer to their best. It’s a hard league when you don’t have that. It’s part of what we’re learning, how to have your A and then your B+ game, so it’s just part of the process.”

• Defenseman Louis Crevier had a scare when he got cut in the face by an opponent’s skate during the third period. With blood pouring off his face, he quickly went to the locker room. Blashill had positive news about him after the game.

“I think Louis is going to be just fine,” Blashill said. “Obviously he got a skate up in the face, so he got a cut that at first he thought — we all thought it might’ve been worse. So thankfully he’s going to be just fine.”

• Blackhawks prospect John Mustard’s college season ended Thursday with Providence losing in the NCAA tournament. Mustard, a 2024 third-round pick, and the Blackhawks are expected to soon discuss whether he wants to turn pro now.

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