3 Positives To Blackhawks Participation In IIHF
The Blackhawks regular season may have come to an end, but for three Blackhawks players, they still have a bit of hockey to go. Seth Jones, Sam Lafferty, and Lukas Reichel are all apart of the 2022 IIHF World Championship taking place this year in Finland. Jones and Lafferty are both on Team USA, with Jones actually captaining the squad. And Reichel is representing his home nation of Germany. Believe it or not, some organizations are against their players participating in these international tournaments. While it is somewhat understandable from an injury standpoint, one could argue that the pros outweigh the cons. Here's three positive takeaways from the Blackhawks participating in IIHF World Championship.
1) Seth Jones Leadership Showcase
Seth Jones is getting the distinct honor of wearing the C for Team USA. A responsibility like this is the perfect test for Seth Jones at this point in his career. He started off that test with a bang, scoring in Team USA's opening game against Latvia. Through Team USA's first 5 games, he has a total of points with that goal and three assists to go along with. The reason this is a good test for Jones, is because the C could find the way to his sweater in Chicago as well. Is it a long shot? Absolutely. However, the stars could align depending on what moves the Blackhawks make during the rebuild going forward. And a good showing as captain for Team USA would certainly be a good message to show the coaching staff and front office that he is capable of that title.
Check out Seth Jones goal in the opening game against Latvia:
2) Sam Lafferty Chance To Show He Was Worth It
The Chicago Blackhawks made the very wise decision of extending Sam Lafferty through the 2023-2024 season. Ever since his arrival via trade from Pittsburgh, he has shown nothing but heart and hustle every second that he has been on the ice. If you want to see one play that embodies the kind of player that Sam Lafferty is watch this goal he had against Buffalo earlier this season.
Absolutely levels a dude in the corner, pops right back up, re-direct into the net. That's the kind of hard nose play you can expect from Sam Lafferty, and he has done no different with Team USA. He only has 1 point so far through the first five games, a goal in the opening game against Latvia. But just like Sam Lafferty wasn't extended to come back and score a ton of goals, he wasn't put on this squad to do that either. He has played his role and that 3rd to 4th line guy who can come in and put a body on someone if he needs to and get you the occasional goal or two. Which is exactly what the Blackhawks should want him to do as well going forward.
3) Extra Hockey Is Never A Bad Thing
Ask all three guys over there playing, and I doubt any of them will tell you that they would rather not being playing extra hockey. All three guys needed it, for different reasons. For Jones, his season with the Blackhawks was certainly lackluster compared to what was expected, and he would honestly probably tell you that. This time with Team USA with an even more significant role as captain is very beneficial to him. When it comes to Lafferty, this is the perfect opportunity to show the Blackhawks front office that they made the right move by extending him. And so far, he has done just that. And lastly when it comes to Lukas Reichel, he spent some time in the NHL this season, but not a ton. He only played eleven games this year at the NHL level, which is not a bad thing by an means. No reason to rush him to this level. But playing in this tournament gives him the chance to play with quite a bit of NHL level guys, which is definitely beneficial for him
