Patrick Kane will not play when the Chicago Blackhawks host the Minnesota Wild on Monday night at the United Center in Chicago. Jeff Blashill said Kane, Slaggert, Del Mastro and Korchinski will all be held out of the preseason game, trimming a lineup that had been expected to look close to the club’s NHL group.
The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT and comes eight days before the Blackhawks open the regular season, which is why the roster decision matters now. A preseason home game at this point is less about auditions than about a final look at the team that could start next week, and the Blackhawks had already begun narrowing their camp group to 47 players after weekend moves that sent Ryan Roobroeck, a 2026 second-round pick, back to junior.
That makes Kane’s absence the clearest change in the lineup. Blashill did not offer a detailed reason, only the blunt answer: “Patrick Kane won’t play tonight.” The Blackhawks were still expected to lean on a mostly NHL-caliber group, but the decision leaves the game with a different shape than the one many expected when the matchup was set.
The matchup also reflects where both teams are in the preseason. The Wild are bringing a more AHL-heavy group to Chicago than an NHL roster, while the Blackhawks appear to be using the game to manage bodies rather than chase the most complete dress rehearsal. Knight looked like the starting netminder, and the game will be available on CHSN, + and WGN 720.
For Kane, the bigger question is no longer whether he was expected to dress Monday. It is how much of the Blackhawks’ final preseason run he will actually see before the regular season begins eight days later.
