The Chicago Blackhawks announced today that they’ve assigned Wyatt Kalynuk (23) from the Taxi Squad to the Rockford IceHogs. They recalled Madison Bowey to the Taxi Squad in his place. 

I have mixed feelings on the move. I was looking forward to seeing Madison Bowey playing for the IceHogs. If you go back to my piece about him, I thought he could come in and make an impact this season. It’s likely that we’ll see him in Rockford at some point this year. We’ll just have to wait a bit longer. 

On the other hand, I’m very excited to see Wyatt Kalynuk in game action. The pre-season chatter about him was very positive and a lot of people who have seen him play think very highly of him. He served as Captain last season for the University of Wisconsin to round off a productive 3-year college career with the Badgers. 

2017-18: 37GP 3G 22A 25P

2018-19: 37GP 9G 16A 25P

2019-20: 36GP 7G 21A 28P

Kalynuk was originally a 2017 7th round draft pick of the Philadelphia Flyers. If you’re new to From Center Ice, I love a late round draft pick that turns into a good prospect. Cole Moberg is another 7th rounder on the blue line for the Hogs this season. He was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2019.

Here’s a great piece about Kalynuk as a developing prospect from 2018: Under the Radar A look at four late round picks in 2017 who have made big strides in development by Bill Meltzer

“The offensively skilled and late-blooming Kalynuk, who turned 21 on April 14, enjoyed a strong freshman season for the Wisconsin Badgers in 2017-18. Drafted by the Flyers from the USHL last summer in the seventh round (196th overall) of the 2017 NHL Draft, Kalynuk made an immediate offensive impact as a freshman. He showed himself quickly to be a mobile defenseman with good puck skills, who can trigger a breakout and also make plays up-ice.”

A more recent piece from after Kalynuk signed with the Blackhawks: Wyatt Kalynuk Scouting Report and What Signing Means For the Blackhawks via NBC Sports Chicago

In Wyatt Kalynuk, it seems that we have a prospect who can play in all situations and is steadily progressing. Being an offensive defenseman for Wisconsin, we’ll likely see him on the power play. He could be paired with Cody Franson or quarterback the second power play unit.

There are 3 defensemen on the Blackhawks roster that saw time with the Rockford IceHogs last season - Nicolas Beaudin, Adam Boqvist, and Lucas Carlsson. The hope is that Kalynuk can follow a similar path and pave his way to the NHL to be an effective blue-liner for Chicago.

It’s still to be seen if he’ll be in the starting lineup on Friday with the IceHogs kick off their season against Cleveland. If he isn’t, it won’t be long until we see him in action. This Rockford blue line has a lot of potential.

It’s going to be a fun season!