We’re still waiting on some big contract news to come out of the Chicago Blackhawks’ camp, including Connor Bedard’s expected mega-deal and ideally a splash move to get him some help on the top line. But in the meantime, the Blackhawks are taking care of business on the back end.
On Monday afternoon, Chicago signed 23-year-old goaltender Drew Commesso to a cheap two-year deal. It’s a uniquely designed contract that will carry an $875,000 cap hit. Year one is a two-way contract, so he’ll be expected to remain on the IceHogs for another season while Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom take up the Blackhawks’ two spots. But year two is a one-way deal.
With just one year left on Soderblom’s contract, Chicago is seemingly showing its hand that Commesso is its goaltender of the future. The contract certainly makes it seem like he’ll start this year in Rockford, but doesn’t give the Blackhawks much flexibility in 2027-28. Chicago’s front office must be pretty confident in Commesso’s future, and much less so in that of Soderblom.
Commesso has been stout in net since he took over the net for the IceHogs in 2023, posting save percentages of .906, .911, and .901 in the last three seasons. He was brought up for three total games with the Blackhawks last season, putting on an abysmal performance against Washington before an electric 36-save shutout the following night in Nashville. In March, he picked up another win, allowing two goals on 25 shots.
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It’s interesting that this deal comes shortly after it was announced that Commesso had elected to not file for arbitration despite being eligible, and it’s only slightly over the league minimum. Making the second year of his contract a one-way deal is likely the result of some pretty technical financial bargaining, and will afford Commesso the opportunity to be an NHL goaltender a year from now.
With Commesso’s contract now out of the way, the Blackhawks only have three RFAs to get signed this summer: Connor Bedard, Kevin Korchinski, and Ethan Del Mastro.
