Chicago Blackhawks Chairman and CEO Danny Wirtz spoke with the Tribune on Tuesday regarding the team’s rebuild, contract situations and more.
Here are some highlights of that conversation, with questions and answers lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
Thoughts on general manager Kyle Davidson’s tenure so far?
Kyle is very deliberate. It was very clear what his objectives were, which was to rebuild our talent pipeline. We’re in a promising place relating to that pool of talent and prospects. We’ve moved into more of a developmental time where we need to take these players from prospects into true NHL players, and we’re seeing that in every game.
(Davidson) has continued to deliver what he says he’s going to deliver on. We all have higher aspirations for where we want this to go, but it has to be done one step at a time. I can’t hold him accountable to win a Stanley Cup until he’s doing all the things he needs to do right now to get to that goal. That is to win a Stanley Cup — make no mistake — but we have to go one step at a time and we have to do it with a plan in mind. I think he’s executed that plan precisely, and I’m excited about where we’re heading.
Is there a timetable for leaving the development stage and entering a playoff-contending one?
That question comes up a lot, and I understand. Unfortunately, we are at the mercy of how these players develop, and we will do everything we can to make sure we are giving the resources, the coaching and the support to move these players along. Every player has their own timeline for their development, and our success will be predicated on when those players are developed.
We are starting to see some of those early contributions. Our young players are playing a bigger role on our team, contributing to how we’re playing early on in the season. I would love for it to go fast, but we are at the mercy of the development process. I’m encouraged that we’re starting to move in that direction where we expect more from a team performance standpoint.
You’ve said you could make a hard call when you need to. What does that look like?
If there’s a chance to acquire a player, or if there’s a chance to improve our team, Kyle is in a position to where he’s had to make some tough calls. At the end of last season, he was able to execute an amazing transaction that allowed us to bring goaltender Spencer Knight in and a first-round draft pick.
Those are the hard things that I’m always very supportive of, even if they are harder to execute or harder from an emotional standpoint. I have Kyle’s back to go and make those tough decisions as it relates to improving and making our team better.
What do you think of the job that president of business operations Jaime Faulkner has done?
She’s done a terrific job. She started as we were coming out of COVID and we had to reinvent so many aspects of how our business was conducted. We’ve been able to bring in new leadership and fresh perspective across the board, from marketing to sales to analytics.
The business engine of our team is in a really good spot. As the team continues to get better on the ice, you’re going to start to see all that groundwork that she did over the last several years start to pay off even more than they are now.
Unfortunately, we can’t control what happens on the ice, so we need fans to come and have the best night of their life despite the outcome, and that’s an area where Jaime and her team have invested and spent the time to make sure that every second of that fan experience is thought through.
Is there anything you would change regarding the rough start to CHSN airing Hawks games?
We have a Comcast deal now in addition to several other providers and our direct-to-consumer app. A year from where we were last year, we are available in more places for our fans to see our games.
There’s a lot of things happening in this space, so regardless of what happened at the end of our last contract with NBC Sports (Chicago), we were going to be facing this new world of sports media. We placed a bet for our over-the-air to be a solution, but it did not pan out that way. We were able to maintain a good distribution base with our partners and create a direct-to-consumer app that I think is exciting for fans that want to go deeper.
While Davidson said there’s no concern regarding a Connor Bedard extension, why wait while other young players have signed?
This is sort of how it plays out between the representatives and us. It’s not a lack of desire or timing. It’s usually a question of finding common ground at the right time. We think the world of Connor, who he is, what he’s done and more importantly where he’s going to go. We’re excited about that, as we are with all the other players that we were able to extend.
Kyle’s in contact with all the players and agents all the time, both formally and informally. I assume there’s a constant flow of information, and there’s often not a rush when both sides intend to get something done.
What’s the overall goal for the 2025-26 season?
We want to see players take the next step in their careers, just as we’ve seen over the last couple of years. We want our young players to each take a step because as that happens, the points start to follow. The more that we can see from this group of players, the team success starts to flow.
We want the fans to continue to come back, both to celebrate our centennial and to witness the next great hockey team, find their new favorite players and get to know this exciting group. I’m encouraged by the attendance that we anticipate having this season and taking one more step on our journey to win another Stanley Cup.