Blackhawks' Alec Martinez, Laurent Brossoit To Remain Out Through October
10/30/2024 05:06 PM
The Chicago Blackhawks will need to continue leaning on their youth, with defensemanAlec Martinez and goaltender Laurent Brossoit out for at least three more games per Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Blackhawks have three games remaining on a five-game road trip that neither Martinez nor Brossoit will join, meaning the next chance for either to return will come when Chicago hosts Detroit on November 6th. The duo is currently being replaced by Nolan Allan and Arvid Soderblom.
Brossoit began the year on IR following knee surgery in late August. He missed the entirety of training camp and opening day because of the injury, receiving a four-week prognosis in September that will now be pushed into five weeks or more with the latest update. Brossoit will make his Blackhawks debut whenever he does return, joining the team on a two-year, $6.6MM contract this summer after co-winning the William M. Jennings Trophy alongside Connor Hellebuyck last season. While Hellebuyck is certainly an all-time great, Brossoit has flashed tons of upside of his own – posting a .927 save percentage through 34 games across the last two seasons. He’s up to a .911 save percentage across 140 career games, though he’s yet to appear in 25 games in a single season. Brossoit could leapfrog over Soderblom when he returns, and may even find his way into a starting role with Hawks starter Petr Mrazek boasting a measly .896 through eight games this season.
Martinez will also prove a notable addition when he returns. He filled a top-pair role through Chicago’s first four games and proved impactful, even despite recording just one assist. Martinez spent the last five years with the Vegas Golden Knights, where he routinely handled top-end minutes – when he was able to stay healthy. He scored 49 points across 221 games in Sin city, but missed a total of 91 regular season games with injury. He’ll try to buck the trend, while still handling plenty of responsibility, when Chicago returns home.
