Oliver Moore’s AHL dominance made Blackhawks find NHL spot for him

SEATTLE — When the Blackhawks sent highly touted prospect Oliver Moore down to Rockford to start the season, general manager Kyle Davidson gave him a message: “Make us make a spot for you.”

Moore did just that over the course of nine AHL games, tallying six goals and three assists. His line with fellow rookie Nick Lardis and veteran Brett Seney was probably the most dangerous line anywhere in the AHL in October.

Moore was called up by the Hawks on Sunday and will make his NHL season debut Monday against the Kraken, building upon the experience he gained playing in the last nine games of last season.

“One of the positives, when you get sent down, is you have an opportunity to really gain confidence,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “He has gone down there and played well, so I think he comes back at a point where his confidence is really high. That’s good. Hopefully he can add to our forward depth and make an impact with his tenacity, his speed and his overall compete [level].”

The 20-year-old forward was lacing up his skates before the IceHogs’ Sunday matinee against Grand Rapids when he got the news. He promptly hopped on a flight to Seattle and then laced up again for Hawks morning skate Monday.

“I didn’t get a ton of sleep last night, but I don’t think that matters,” Moore said. “I’ve got a lot of energy.”

His blazing speed was a major difference-maker at the AHL level, where few players were capable of keeping up with him. That wasn’t a surprise.

It was encouraging, though, how efficiently he converted scoring chances, considering finishing was a knock on him coming out of college. That’s something he worked on during the offseason, and it appears to be paying off.

He also followed a healthy mindset about the AHL assignment. It’s his scrappiness, work ethic and hockey IQ that — combined with his speed — make him such an interesting prospect, and those traits were evident every night in Rockford.

“You look down the roster of [Stanley] Cup-winning teams, and there’s a lot of guys who have played in the American league before,” Moore said. “I tried to not look at it as a step back [but as] a step forward for my development.”

Dickinson goes home

Considering the success of Frank Nazar’s Rockford-to-Chicago journey last season, it had seemed like the Hawks would likely hold Moore in the AHL at least until December, which is when they called up Nazar last year.

Jason Dickinson re-aggravating his (presumed) shoulder injury this week, however, might’ve changed those plans. He was placed on injured reserve Monday, having flown back to Chicago to rehab it. Blashill described Dickinson as “week-to-week.”

Landon Slaggert’s ineffectiveness after returning from injury might have affected the plans, too. The Hawks sent Slaggert down to Rockford in another transaction Monday, hoping he can rebuild his confidence there.

Lardis next?

With Moore up, the focus will shift to Lardis and when he might get the opportunity to make his NHL debut. He actually leads Rockford right now with 13 points in 10 games, which puts him just one point off the AHL scoring lead.

Moore raved about how Lardis “finds ways to put the puck in the back of the net,” which he certainly did many times last season en route to leading the OHL with 71 goals in 65 games.

Lardis is smaller and lighter than Moore, so it makes sense he might need longer to adjust to the physicality of pro hockey. There’s nonetheless plenty of excitement surrounding his future, too.