TORONTO — The Chicago Blackhawks started the 2023-24 campaign with three rookie defensemen on their Opening Night roster, and Alex Vlasic technically still qualifies as one despite appearing in 21 total games across each of the last two seasons.
But he sure hasn't looked like one through the first four games of this season.
Vlasic turned in a strong all-around performance in Monday's 4-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena, which was one of his best games with the Blackhawks to date.
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"I think it's up there," Vlasic said. "Could be one of my best for sure."
Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson seemed to agree.
"Vlasic was excellent," he said after the game.
Perhaps the highlight of the night came from Vlasic's long stretch pass to Corey Perry, who buried the breakaway for what would eventually become the game-winning goal. Vlasic was at the end of his shift and almost talked himself out of the pass because of it.
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"I was tired," Vlasic said smiling. "I wanted to honestly throw it off the glass at first, and I saw the D kind of pinch down the wall thinking I was going to, so I just thought I would send a Hail Mary sauce pass and it landed perfectly right on his tape. I’m pretty happy about that one."
Vlasic acknowledged that his growing belief in himself is a reason why he felt confident enough to make that pass.
"Last year, [I'm] probably wiring that off the glass," he said. "But this year, definitely have a little bit more confidence, a little bit more mojo. I felt pretty good today. So, yeah, I think that definitely had something to do with it. "
Vlasic played the majority of last season with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League, where he played in all situations. Towards the end of the season, they even put him on the top power-play unit.
You can see how those responsibilities in the AHL have helped him as he adjusts to top-pairing minutes in the NHL with Seth Jones.
"The repetition last year of being the main guy like he was tonight in the American League really helped," Richardson said. "At the end of the year, he came up and played well and felt more confident than his first stint, which I wasn't here for the year before.
"He's gotten bigger and stronger and he's paying attention to some detail. I think him and Seth are playing excellent right now, so just a little bit of repetition and a little bit of maturity and he's come a long way."
During exit interviews last season, the Blackhawks challenged Vlasic to be harder to play against and to increase his physicality in his own end, specifically. Rather than just using his long reach to steal pucks, they wanted him to use his body to push opponents' around, too. You can see how he's taken that to heart.
It's still early, but the Blackhawks have to be encouraged by Vlasic's progression so far.
"I think [I’ve] just taken the next step," Vlasic said. "As the season’s gone on, I've been able to progress. I'm definitely going to have ups and downs, but I think as long as I'm headed in an upward trajectory, I should be in good shape."