The Blackhawks need a lot of work if they feel like even remotely contending in 2025-26, meaning there will be a few roster revamps.

Mar 3, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Alec Martinez (25), center, celebrates his goal against the Los Angeles Kings with teammates during the first period at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

The Blackhawks remain a team in transition and it’s something fans are probably getting tired of hearing. Still, they found one more roster and lineup combination that didn’t work, so they can take some positivity from that.

But when you’re as dismal as this team’s been over the past four seasons at least, with another awful year in 2024-25, it means a lot of turnover is a requirement. So, which players will be out once the 2025-26 league year begins and why?

Below, I got one ineffective forward whose drop-off was nothing short of spectacular but in the worst ways. Another player is a solid but aging defenseman who looks like the odd man out in the group. And the third is a goaltender who will lose the numbers game with a pair of youngsters in the crease now for the Blackhawks.

1 – Philipp Kurashev

Oh yes, Philipp Kurashev has long since worn out his welcome in the Windy City in a season that comprised one of the more shocking drop-offs. Kurashev had gone from a 54-point, 18-goal scorer in 2023-24 to a player who’d tacked on just 10 points and six goals.

He’d lost nearly five minutes of ice time this past season, and it’s easy to understand why when you look at what is right now a 44-point drop-off. So, will general manager Kyle Davidson even bother re-signing the restricted free agent?

Yeah, probably, but only for purposes in which he’d trade Kurashev elsewhere, much like what we’d seen over in New York this season regarding Kaapo Kakko. While Kakko wasn’t moved until well after the regular season started, everyone knew his days in a Blueshirts sweater were numbered.

In Kurashev’s case, I don’t even see him lasting that long. But if there’s any upside regarding potential interest in him, it’s that he still put up a decent season in 2023-24. And that’s more than what even Kakko’s most die-hard proponents can say.

2 – Alec Martinez

Alec Martinez was a stopgap, so if I were writing this piece in October 2024, he would’ve been a strong candidate to be a one-and-done player. That said, the former three-time Stanley Cup winner put up a respectable season with Chicago so far, with 12 points and five goals in 42 games.

He also blocked 80 shots, proving he still has a nose for where the puck’s going when an opponent tries to fire it toward the net. The problem here is that Martinez will be entering his age-38 season with what is still a rebuilding team.

Sure, he’s already won his Stanley Cups, but logic states Martinez wants to make another run or two while he still can as opposed to droning through this rebuilding effort in Chicago. But even if he wanted to come back, would Kyle Davidson want an aging defenseman to take part in a rebuilding project?

There’s no way, especially when you have talents like Artyom Levshunov and other youngsters like Wyatt Kaiser and Ethan Del Mastro potentially going full-time in the NHL. Others in the defensive rotation are under contract for next season, leaving Martinez as the odd man out.

3 – Laurent Brossoit

Wow, what a difference nine months makes. Here I was, thinking Arvid Soderblom was finished, and that Petr Mrazek and Laurent Brossoit would at least provide a patchwork alliance in the crease.

Now, Mrazek is in Detroit, Soderblom figured out how to play goaltender in the NHL, Spencer Knight came over in the Seth Jones trade, and Brossoit spent the entire season on injured reserve. Hey, Brossoit is a good goaltender, but he’ll end up resuming his role as an elite backup goaltender for a contender.

In the meantime, this is Knight’s and Soderblom’s net, and Blackhawks fans everywhere should rejoice that Kyle Davidson fixed at least one unit. Or, at least it seems like he fixed it. But with that being said, Brossoit’s services will no longer be needed.