To Chicago

The other day I saw an interview with Connor Ingram, who recently retired, and he said something that really stuck with me. He was talking about how, when people would ask him what he does for a living, the first words out of his mouth were, “I play.” Not “I do.” Not “I work for.” I play hockey. And just how cool and how rare that is. 

And I guess that’s been on my mind a bit, over these last few days, as I try to figure out what it is that I want to say to you guys.

As I try to put in words what it means to me to be the next Chicago Blackhawks captain. 

I love this game so much, you know? Like I remember sitting there back in July, about to sign my extension, and thinking to myself, “Man….. I really hope they can’t hear my thoughts right now. Because I’d probably play for free.” But that’s just how it’s always been for me with hockey. Whether it’s playing on the pond with my dad as a kid growing up in BC, or in the United Center for a Blackhawks game, or at a local rink for the Chicago beer league I hope I’m in like 30 years from now, I’m never not going to feel lucky to put on a pair of hockey skates.

But I also think that at the start of my career, especially my first two seasons, there were times where I maybe over-corrected. Where I was trying so hard to please everyone, and to take on certain expectations, that I kind of tired myself out from the stress of that. So then when the wins weren’t coming……. Honestly, I think there were moments where it affected me to the point that I forgot to have fun. 

And if I look back on the impact that Nick Foligno had here as captain, I could talk for a while about what a great leader he was. But one of the most important things Nick did was show me how to find the right balance. How to balance taking my responsibility to the team and to the city seriously, while also not forgetting how fun it is (and how lucky I am) to get to play this game I love every day. To get to be on a hockey team for our job.

And of course the other side of that balance is I know I do have this big responsibility, which is to help bring the Blackhawks franchise back to where it belongs. Playing tough, winning hockey. Making deep playoff runs. And most importantly — and I can promise you it’ll happen — competing for Stanley Cups. 

We’re going to get there.

The thing is, I think it’s easy for people to look at the last three seasons and see them all as the same. But for me, last season was different. Obviously it didn’t go how we wanted it to, especially in the second half. But I felt like the energy in our room was something new. For the first time, there was this sense of anger about us falling short. And I think that’s because there were moments last season where we really did put it all together. And where we caught a glimpse of the level that this group is capable of reaching … and the support that Chicago will give us when we get there.

So when things ended how they did, with us falling out of the playoff race, we skipped right past disappointment and went straight to being pissed off about it. It’s almost like our entire organization went into the offseason with this chip on its shoulder. Where we all just kind of decided, Nah. That’s enough of that. Let’s go win some damn hockey games. You saw it with trading the fourth overall pick for Byram, who is going to come right in and be our #1 defenseman and make our lives so much easier. You saw it with bringing back Kane, whose resume in this city speaks for itself. And I think you saw it with my extension….. which, to be honest, some people read too much into the timing of. It was probably the easiest negotiation in NHL history haha. All I want is to be here, and win here, and I’m so glad it’s out of the way.

I feel like the main reason we’re about to turn a corner, though, it isn’t a list of transactions or whatever. It’s the energy coming from our locker room. It’s the work our young guys have been putting in, and the growth we’re showing on and off the ice, to prove that we already have a lot of the puzzle pieces. And that the foundation of the next great Blackhawks team is right here in our building. Man........ we’ve got such a tight group. There’s so much trust, and there’s no one I’d rather go into battle with. But I also know we’re hungry for those battles to finally become playoff battles. And I hope that me wearing the C now, it’s just another piece of that puzzle.

The best way that I can put in words here what it means to me to be named Blackhawks captain ... it might be to say there are no words. Honestly, when Kyle and Jeff brought me in to tell me the news, I could barely get a full sentence out. I was just so excited, and so honored. I know the tradition of this franchise, and the lineage I’m a part of now. To follow in Nick’s footsteps, and legends like Toews and Chelios, it’s incredibly special. It’s the proudest I’ve ever felt in my life. 

And it’s funny, because the team told me a few days ago, so I’ve had to keep this mostly a secret. But they did let me call my family. And when we FaceTimed, those conversations were kind of similar to the one I had with Kyle and Jeff. My dad was at work so he was decked out in his lumberjack clothes, and trying to get some privacy, but I could see it on his face that he was just over the moon. And my mom, I don’t think she’ll mind me sharing this, she got very emotional and couldn’t really say much. But it’s almost like we didn’t have to say much, if that makes sense. Because we’re all such big hockey fans, and we’ve all been on this journey together since I was a little kid. So you really don’t have to “find the words” about an Original Six team telling you you’re wearing the C. It’s just…… yeah. Wow. This can be a pretty cool sport sometimes.

Quick story and then I’ll wrap it up. One of my favorite things that Nick did when he was captain, is he invited all of the young guys over to his house one night. And we’re all just hanging out with him and his kids, eating some dinner. Then after dinner, he had his kids set up this trivia game for us. It’s teams of three or four, and they gave us microphones. And I think we’re all figuring it’s gonna be one of those classic “get to know your teammates” exercises, you know, where they ask us questions about each other. But it actually ended up not being that at all. Nick’s kids just asked us a bunch of trivia questions about themselves — like, from the conversations we had with them that night, hanging out. That was the whole game. His kids making sure we were listening to them when they talked. It was so funny. 

And something about that night just stands out to me, for some reason, as an example of what it means to be a captain. How we all thought that Nick was about to have us do this big team-building thing … and then by the time we were ready for it, it turned out we’d already done it. Hanging out, having dinner, learning about his kids, that was The Thing. And I actually think that’s kind of how hockey is in general. Where so many times it’s the thing before the thing that ends up being what matters. The pass before the pass. The shift before the shift. The practice before the game. The offseason before the season. And when I think about what kind of captain I want to be, that’s something I’ll try to keep in mind. Because I know we might not get all the results we want right away. We might not be lifting the Cup in June. But I also know we have a group here that’s in it for the long haul……… and we’re going to keep putting in work, and keep pushing each other, and keep repping this city. And eventually that’ll end up being what matters.

Let’s go win some damn hockey games.

—Connor