Defenseman Alex Vlasic will miss the Chicago Blackhawks’ final three preseason games with a lower-body injury suffered Sunday against the Minnesota Wild, but coach Jeff Blashill hopes the 24-year-old will be ready for next Tuesday’s season opener versus the Florida Panthers.
Early in the third period in Minnesota, a skate cut into Vlasic’s side, sidelining him for the remainder of the game. Keeping him out for the rest of the preseason will give the wound time to heal, Blashill said.
The Hawks play the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday night at the United Center and also host the Wild on Friday and the St. Louis Blues on Saturday.
Blashill said he will speak with his team regarding cut-resistant equipment. He wouldn’t characterize Vlasic’s injury as a “freak” incident.
“I can’t say it’s freak anymore because it happens more often than not,” Blashill said. “We had a certain level of cut-resistant socks on, (but) maybe there’s a higher level that he’ll go to and it’s something we will talk about with the team.”
Vlasic is going into his third season as a top-pairing defenseman and likely will share the ice with Sam Rinzel. The Wilmette native posted career highs in 2024-25 in goals (four), assists (26), points (30) and average ice time (23 minutes, 16 seconds).
The Hawks open on the road against the two-time defending champion Panthers, who will be without two of their stars for an extended period.
Left wing Matthew Tkachuk is out until December as he heals from summer surgeries on a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia. And captain and center Aleksander Barkov had surgery last week to repair the ACL and MCL in his right knee, with a recovery timeline of seven to nine months.