As part of our THW Chicago summer series, we’ll introduce you to all the players the Chicago Blackhawks acquired via free agency and trades this offseason. In this latest edition, we take a look at forward Pat Maroon, whom the Blackhawks signed on July 1 to a one-year, $1.3 million contract.

The 36-year-old forward split the 2023-24 season with the Minnesota Wild and Boston Bruins, scoring four goals and 12 assists for 16 points in 51 regular-season games, as well as two assists in 13 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Bruins last spring.

Through 13 NHL seasons, Maroon has recorded 121 goals and 183 assists for 304 points in 780 career regular-season games with the Wild, Bruins, St. Louis Blues, New Jersey Devils, Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Anaheim Ducks.

Stanley Cup Pedigree

The St. Louis, Mo. native has the distinction of being the only NHL player in the 21st century to have won three consecutive Stanley Cup championships, winning with the Blues in 2019 and the Lightning in both 2020 and 2021. He also appeared in the Stanley Cup Final with Tampa in 2022, making him the first player since those who were members of the New York Islanders in the early ’80s to appear in four consecutive Finals.

You might be wondering, “Hey, random hockey writer on the internet, how big of a contribution did Maroon have on those Cup-winning squads?” And hey, random hockey fan reading this column on the internet, that’s a fair point.

During those three championship runs, Maroon averaged just 11:31 of ice time, scoring six goals and 11 assists for 17 points in 74 Stanley Cup Playoff games. A regular fourth-line winger who could lay a hit and be a nuisance in front of the opposing net: it ain’t much, but it’s honest work.

Big Rig is a Blackhawk 👊 pic.twitter.com/k85hV5VRw9

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) July 1, 2024

But when you sign a grizzled veteran like Maroon, someone who will likely be healthy scratched at random points in the season, who might never see more than a dozen minutes of ice time on any given night, you’re not expecting the world. No, what you’re expecting is a professional who knows how to come to the rink every day, prepared with a rigid routine, who can show the younger players in the lineup what it takes to be someone who can keep a job in the greatest league in the world.

“He’s really liked by his teammates in the dressing room,” Blackhawks’ head coach Luke Richardson told reporters on July 1 after the signing was announced. “He’s big, tough, but he has good hands around the net, and it’s hard to find those guys.”

Maroon’s Physical Presence

Richardson, who will be entering his third season with the club in 2024-25, also said a player like Maroon is noticeable out on the ice and can bring a physical element to a Chicago lineup that’s been desperate for that type of player.

“He makes things happen, he keeps everybody honest on the ice, too. He’s old school tough,” he said.

Richardson’s next comment was something I think gets overlooked by some fans and other media covering the club as we gear up for another season.

“He just seems to settle things down out there. Sometimes the guys who don’t have to get into fights or physical altercations because of their reputation is even more valuable, because it just settles everything down,” he said. “I can just send him out on the ice at any time if things are getting a little out of control … and he’s the type of guy that can change the curve of that game.”

Look, if you’ve read my stories in the past, including the one where I made the case that fighting will always be part of the NHL, you know what my opinion on its place in the game is. But as Richardson pointed out, it goes beyond two guys squaring up and throwing hands at one another. Maroon isn’t coming in to be Ryan Reaves.

After covering the Blackhawks during the 2023-24 season, on many nights it was clear that the team wasn’t equipped to protect itself against some of their more physical opponents. This isn’t a knock against the 6-foot-6 defenseman Jarred Tinordi, who dressed in 52 games for the team last season, or Nick Foligno, who’s never been afraid to drop the gloves if need be.

But for a team that had seven players under the age of 24 play at least a few dozen games, many of them NHL rookies, they were getting pushed around. This applies tenfold when one of them was Connor Bedard, the Rookie of the Year and the next generational talent in the league.

Having someone like Maroon who can protect his teammates is invaluable for a franchise still finding its footing after finishing near the basement of the NHL standings for multiple seasons. As I’ve mentioned ad nauseam in previous columns, no one is expecting this group to compete for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in April 2025.

This upcoming campaign is going to be filled with frustrating losing streaks, blown leads, costly errors and highly skilled young skaters who Richardson decides to put in the press box for a night or two, maybe after a few too many turnovers. There will be flashbacks of 2023-24 and the season prior.

But fans and those who follow the team will be witness to great moments, as well. Bedard will continue to take strides, as will Philipp Kurashev, Alex Vlasic, Lukas Reichel, Kevin Korchinski and I’m sure someone else whom I’m forgetting, and after this story is published, I’ll remember and think, “Ah crap, I forgot so-and-so, and such-and-such.”

A big reason why those players will be able to take a step forward is because a player like Maroon will pave the way for them. There aren’t many players like him anymore, and maybe in the next few seasons, guys like him will be out of the game.

But as the old adage goes, “Smoke ’em if you got ’em.” Right now, the Blackhawks got ’em.