The drought is over.
The Blackhawks are a playoff team for the first time since 2017, although it comes with an asterisk.
The NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced its 2019-20 season return-to-play plan in a televised special Tuesday afternoon. The NHL abandoned the rest of the season and go straight to a 24-team format.
The Blackhawks, the No. 12 seed in the Western Conference, will play a best-of-five “qualifying round” series against the No. 5 seeded Oilers in a to-be-announced Western hub city. Chicago was 2-1 with a plus-1 goal differential against Edmonton during the regular season.