Chicago Blackhawks 2025-26 Player Ratings: Arvid Soderblom – Hockey Writers – Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks finished their 2025-26 campaign in 31st place in the league, with a record of 29-39-14 and 72 points. It was an improvement over last season’s total of 25-46-11 (61 points), but the organization had progress in mind when it began this campaign. The good news is that the Blackhawks ended up winning with more points than last season. They also feel that they have taken a good step in the growth and development of a number of young players, who can be a big part of a successful future.

In this summer series, we will give individual grades to every player on the team. Today we highlight goalkeeper Arvid Soderblom.

Soderblom Season Statistics

Win/Loss Rates: 8-13-3 in 26 games played, .880 Save Percentage (SV%), 3.80 goals against average (GAA), 1 shutout

Contract Status: The contract runs through the 2026-27 season, for a total of $2.75 million

Season overview

It is not easy to be a backup goalkeeper, you have to be always ready and never be able to find a groove. But such is the life of the number 2 person, whether it is good or not. Since Spencer Knight is the true starter, Soderblom has no choice but to accept his role and do his best every night. After all, it’s a small sample size, so he has to make the most of his start to prove his worth.

Soderblom had an up and down campaign, that’s for sure. There was a 5-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Nov. 9. where he stopped 45-of-46 shots, and a 4-3 win against the New York Islanders on Mar. 24 where he stopped 44-of-47 shots. The Swedish netminder also earned his first shutout on March 1, stopping all 22 shots in a 4-0 win over the Utah Mammoth.

However, there were tough contests, such as a 9-3 loss at the hands of the Buffalo Sabers on November 21, a 7-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on December 7, and a 7-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Dec. 28. Admittedly, not everything can be attributed to the goalkeeper. When head coach Jeff Blashill was asked late in the season about Soderblom’s stats, he said, “In his case, to be honest, we had a few, really bad games where he was in net, and I think that kind of threw the numbers off. I left him in Buffalo; that didn’t help his numbers.

However, there were eight times this season when the 26-year-old conceded five or more goals. That’s not a good look. While Soderblom struggled, his puck tracking was sloppy, and his rebounding control wasn’t always the best.

This is not new to him either. Soderblom has served as a Blackhawk backup for the past three seasons. During that time, he had a combined .886 SV% and 3.63 GAA. Also, it’s not very encouraging. He also dipped this past season from his 2024-25 numbers (.898 SV% and 3.18 GAA).

Soderblom is signed with the Blackhawks for one more season, and is expected to serve as Knight’s backup again. However, Rockford IceHog netminder Drew Commesso has inked a two-year extension with the organization. this offseason. He will be knocking on the door, pushing Soderblom to be better.

But Soderblom knows all this. He has an even hand, which is a trait that is much needed in a goalkeeper. As fellow goaltender Knight said of his teammate in net, “He’s very quiet, but he’s got great work ethic.” For his part, Soderblom says he’s never satisfied. After stopping those 44-of-47 shots on March 24, he discussed his attitude.

You have to keep doing the things you do every day. Just keep playing your game, even if you get a lot of shots and sometimes you might get a little bored. But it’s even more important to hang in there and keep fighting, and stay focused all the way through and don’t let the focus slip away.

Soderblom will be fighting an uphill battle this coming season, as he tries to prove his worth to the Blackhawks, or any other future team.

Quoted Quote

Coach Blashill at Soderblom, before the game with St. Louis Blues on April 11,

I’m completely comfortable with where his game is, I’m comfortable that if we put him in certain games, I believe he’ll give us a chance to win, like everybody else, some nights he plays better than other nights. But I’d bet most of you get off to a rough start if you’re a backup.

When you’re the backup for the best team in the league, it’s easier on those rough starts. When you support a team coming out of a rebuild like us, that’s very difficult, so it’s very stressful for them. I’ve been on different teams and I’ve seen a lot of different guys in his role, and he’s got the ability and the mindset that makes him really good at it.

Soderblom’s Final Grade: C

Soderblom was a serviceable backup last season, trying to make the most of a difficult role. But the truth is that he has never had a save percentage above .900 in his NHL career. Can he turn things around this season, with a better team in front of him? Will some more competition from Commesso burn hotter under him? The pressure will be on Soderblom to show more improvement and consistency in 2026-27.