When Johnny Oduya left the Chicago Blackhawks in the offseason, General Manager Stan Bowman went outside the organization to find a replacement. That move, along with the poor defensive play recently, has made light of an glaring issue plaguing the Blackhawks system: The Blackhawks lack NHL-ready depth on defense. While the Blackhawks have won three championships in the last six seasons, they’ve also shipped out their previous top three defensive prospects and one young NHL defenseman in the last three years.
Remember when the Blackhawks had three-NHL ready defensemen? Adam Clendening was sold to Blackhawks fans as a defenseman of the future.