Chicago Blackhawks rookie blue liner has been progressing nicely in his first NHL stint

Growth is the important thing to look at with the Chicago Blackhawks as the team enters the final stretch of the 2024-2025 season. Despite the front office not moving off every veteran piece possible, plenty of young faces have gotten their chances to play significant minutes in the final stretch of the regular season.

The growing pains for each young player have certainly been there, but the coaching staff has reached a point where playing guys that will be a part of the team’s future is more beneficial than playing veterans. General manager Kyle Davidson did his due diligence by bringing in a slew of established players in free agency, but the results did not follow.

The goal for the Blackhawks this season was to get out of the league’s basement this season and their veteran adds were not enough to get them out of that hole. While Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen have been good to have for Chicago’s middle six this year, the younger pieces on the roster have taken a bit more time to develop and the other veteran signings did not bring much to the table.

When looking on the defensive side of things with the current roster, young names are all over the blue line. Six defenseman on the active group are 23 or younger which is super promising for the future. The team’s second overall draft choice this past summer has now played in eight games since being called up nearly three weeks ago and has looked strong in a bigger role than what was originally expected of him.

Chicago Blackhawks more impressed by Artyom Levshunov

Artyom Levshunov made his NHL debut on March 10 against the Colorado Avalanche on the road. He has four assists while still searching for his first NHL goal. Two of those assists for Levshunov came in Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to the Devils at the United Center. Interim head coach Anders Sorensen has seen Levshunov’s progression in such a short time at the NHL level.

“His progression has been good in a lot of areas,” Sorensen said. “Is he perfect? No. But…the progression’s been good.”

Just by watching Levshunov play one can tell that he carries himself with confidence. He relies heavily on his technique and always right with his assignment on the defensive end. He has rarely been a step behind in his coverages and plays much older than his age and experience shows.

Levshunov spent last year playing his lone season of collegiate hockey at Michigan State and was with the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL (United States Hockey League) the year prior. It’s impressive to see Levshunov’s game grow along with his ability to adapt playing at three different levels in as many seasons.

Artyom Levshunov has already cemented himself

Levshunov has already received major ice time on the Blackhawks blue line. He has logged over 20 minutes of play in six of the eight games that he has seen action in so far. The former Spartan is quarterbacking the team’s top power play unit and was with the empty-net man-advantage unit late in the game against New Jersey on Wednesday night.

It’s clear to see that the front office and coaching staff are in lockstep with giving Levshunov as many opportunities as possible to get his footing in the NHL before the season comes to a close.