The Blackhawks rebuild just entered its most aggressive phase yet. Kyle Davidson stripped the roster at the March 6 trade deadline, shipping out Connor Murphy, Jason Dickinson, Colton Dach, Nick Foligno, and Lukas Reichel for a haul of picks headlined by a conditional 2027 first-rounder. Chicago's 22-26-9 record tells you everything — this team isn't competing anytime soon, and Davidson isn't pretending otherwise.
But the deadline deals were just the start. Three players still technically in the organization won't be part of the Blackhawks rebuild going into 2026-27. Their departures — through free agency, retirement, and roster housekeeping — will open the door for the prospect wave that Davidson has been stockpiling for three years.
The 3 Blackhawks Rebuild Casualties
1. Sam Lafferty — UFA, Not Worth Re-Signing
Age: 30 | Cap Hit: $2M | 2025-26 Stats: 22 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 P
Lafferty was supposed to be a cheap, reliable fourth-liner. Instead he was a ghost. The Blackhawks acquired him from Buffalo last summer for a sixth-round pick, banking on his speed and penalty-killing ability to provide veteran depth. What they got was 22 games, two points, and zero reasons to bring him back.
At 30 with an expiring contract, the Blackhawks rebuild has no room for a bottom-six forward producing at a 7-point pace over 82 games. Davidson needs those roster spots for prospects like Landon Slaggert and Paul Ludwinski who are knocking on the door from Rockford. Lafferty will hit unrestricted free agency in July and nobody in the Chicago front office will lose sleep over it.
2. Pat Maroon — Retired
Age: 37 | Career Cups: 3 (2019, 2020, 2021 with Tampa Bay)
Maroon played his final NHL game on April 12 and walked away with no regrets. The three-time Stanley Cup champion brought exactly what Davidson wanted — a veteran presence in the room who could teach kids like Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar what winning culture looks like. But the on-ice production dried up years ago, and at 37, the body simply couldn't keep up anymore.
His retirement was expected and planned. The Blackhawks rebuild needed Maroon's mentorship during the darkest stretch of the teardown, and he delivered. But that chapter is closed. The roster spot he occupied belongs to someone from Rockford now.
3. Ryan Ellis — The LTIR Cap Maneuver
Age: 35 | Cap Hit: $6.25M | Status: Hasn't played since October 2021
Ellis is the strangest name on this list because he was never actually part of the Blackhawks rebuild in any meaningful way. Chicago acquired him from San Jose in the Laurent Brossoit trade deadline deal — a salary dump that sent Brossoit ($6.6M) and prospect Nolan Allan to the Sharks in exchange for Ellis's dead contract, defenseman Jake Furlong, and a draft pick upgrade.
Ellis hasn't played an NHL game since 2021 due to a chronic lower-body injury. His $6.25 million cap hit runs through 2026-27, but it will sit on LTIR and actually helps Chicago hit the salary cap floor without spending real dollars. Once the contract expires, he's gone. There's no return to hockey in the cards — this is pure cap accounting.
Key Takeaways
- Sam Lafferty's UFA departure opens a roster spot for AHL prospects in Rockford who have outproduced him all season
- Pat Maroon's retirement closes the book on a veteran mentor role that was always meant to be temporary during the Blackhawks rebuild
- Ryan Ellis's LTIR contract ($6.25M) helps Chicago hit the cap floor without spending real money, and expires after 2026-27
- The Blackhawks have $54 million in cap space and five open roster spots heading into the offseason
- Connor Bedard (27 G, 35 A in 52 GP) remains the franchise cornerstone as Davidson builds around a Bedard-Nazar-Moore forward core
What the Blackhawks Rebuild Looks Like in 2026-27
These three departures are just the final cleanup of a roster that Davidson has been systematically gutting for three years. The real story is what comes next. Chicago has one of the cleanest cap sheets in the NHL — $54 million in projected space with only 14 players under contract for next season.
The forward core is starting to take shape. Bedard came back from a broken jaw and still posted 27 goals and 35 assists in 52 games. Nazar and Moore are developing into legitimate top-nine pieces. Burakovsky, Bertuzzi, and Teravainen provide the veteran scoring touch. And the deadline haul — including that conditional first from Edmonton for Dickinson — gives Davidson even more ammunition.
The Blackhawks rebuild also benefited from keeping Ilya Mikheyev past the deadline. Davidson held firm, betting that re-signing the 31-year-old Russian winger on a team-friendly extension is smarter than flipping him for a mid-round pick. If Mikheyev re-signs in the $3-4 million range, he fills a middle-six role that none of the current prospects are ready for.
Blackhawks Rebuild: Roster Projection 2026-27
| Position | Locked In | Competing for Spots |
|---|---|---|
| Centers | Bedard, Nazar | Slaggert, Ludwinski |
| Wings | Bertuzzi, Burakovsky, Teravainen | Mikheyev (UFA), Frondell, Vanacker |
| Defense | Korchinski, Vlasic | Furlong, Del Mastro, Kuzmin |
| Goalie | Spencer Knight | Soderblom |
Five roster spots are wide open. Davidson has said publicly that prospects who produce in Rockford will get every opportunity to earn NHL jobs. Anton Frondell, Marek Vanacker, and Landon Slaggert are the names to watch. The Blackhawks rebuild isn't just about subtracting veterans anymore — it's about whether the kids Davidson drafted can actually play.
What's Next for Davidson This Summer
The Blackhawks rebuild enters a critical summer. Davidson has the cap space to be a player in free agency, but don't expect him to overpay for marquee names. The strategy is clear: re-sign Mikheyev, add two or three mid-tier free agents on short-term deals, and let the prospects fight for everything else.
Chicago also holds a likely top-five pick in the 2026 draft, which could add another franchise piece to a prospect pool that's already among the deepest in the league. The departures of Lafferty, Maroon, and Ellis are minor in isolation. But combined with the deadline trades and the incoming prospect class, they represent the final chapter of a teardown that's been three years in the making. Phase two of the Blackhawks rebuild — the part where they actually start winning — begins this fall.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Blackhawks players are not coming back next season?
Sam Lafferty (UFA, not expected to re-sign), Pat Maroon (retired after his final game on April 12), and Ryan Ellis ($6.25M LTIR contract, hasn't played since 2021) are the three players not expected to return for the 2026-27 season.
How much cap space do the Blackhawks have?
Chicago projects to have approximately $54 million in cap space for 2026-27 with only 14 players under contract. GM Kyle Davidson has five open roster spots to fill through free agency signings, trades, or promoting prospects from the AHL's Rockford IceHogs.
What is the Blackhawks rebuild timeline?
GM Kyle Davidson has described the 2026-27 season as the beginning of Phase 2 of the Blackhawks rebuild — the roster construction phase. The core of Bedard, Nazar, and Moore is in place, and Davidson has said publicly that the team will start adding complementary pieces rather than purely stockpiling assets.
Will Ilya Mikheyev re-sign with the Blackhawks?
Davidson kept Mikheyev past the trade deadline and expressed hope of working out an extension before free agency on July 1. The 31-year-old winger fills a middle-six role and is expected to re-sign in the $3-4 million AAV range on a short-term deal.
