Blackhawks eliminated, miss playoffs for fourth time in five seasons

The Chicago Blackhawks failed to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second consecutive season.

Chicago (24-35-11) was eliminated from contention when the Nashville Predators and the Dallas Stars each gained a point in their respective games Tuesday.
After qualifying for the playoffs nine straight seasons and winning the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015, the Blackhawks have made the playoffs once in the past five seasons.
Here is a look at what happened in the 2021-22 season for the Blackhawks and why things could be better next season.

The skinny

Potential unrestricted free agents: Sam Lafferty, F; Calvin de Haan, D; Erik Gustafsson, D; Collin Delia, G; Kevin Lankinen, G
Potential restricted free agents: Dominik Kubalik, F; Dylan Strome, F; Kirby Dach, F; Reese Johnson, F; Philipp Kurashev, F; Caleb Jones, D
Potential 2022 Draft picks: eight

What went wrong

Bad start: The Blackhawks were playing catchup as soon as the season began, going 1-9-2 in their first 12 games. Chicago's 5-1 loss at the Winnipeg Jets on Nov. 5 was the end for coach Jeremy Colliton, who was fired the next day and replaced by Derek King, who had been coach of Rockford, the Blackhawks' American Hockey League affiliate.
Relied too much on goaltending: To be more specific, the Blackhawks put too much of an onus on goalie Marc-Andre Fleury before he was traded to the Minnesota Wild on March 21. Fleury started 45 of the Blackhawks' 63 games, facing 28.2 shots per game. He went 19-21-5 with a 2.95 goals-against average, .908 save percentage and four shutouts.
Rough second periods: The Blackhawks struggled a lot in second periods this season, scoring 56 goals (30th in the NHL) and allowed 81 goals (tied for 25th).

Reasons for optimism

Alex DeBrincat: The forward is having another outstanding season. He has scored 67 points (39 goals, 28 assists) in 70 games, second on the Blackhawks behind forward Patrick Kane with 80 points (22 goals, 58 assists) in 66 games. DeBrincat, 24, has one season remaining on the three-year, $19.2 million contract ($6.4 million average annual value) he signed Oct. 3, 2019, and his game just keeps getting better.
Kane's still got it: Sure, the 33-year-old forward isn't putting up 100-plus points a season like he did in 2015-16 (106 points) and 2018-19 (110), but he still scores consistently and draws a good deal of attention from the opposition. The question is, does Kane want to be part of the rebuild? He has one season remaining on the eight-year contract he signed July 9, 2014 and has said he loves Chicago and would like to end his NHL career there. If he stays, he'll be valuable in bringing young players along.
Lukas Reichel: The 19-year-old forward got a taste of the NHL, playing in five games this season. But Reichel, the No. 17 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, has been great for Rockford, scoring 49 points (21 goals, 28 assists) in 49 games. The Blackhawks have said they won't rush Reichel.