Sam Rinzel is going to be one of the defensemen who make the Chicago Blackhawks roster out of camp. He will make it alongside Alex Vlasic, Connor Murphy, Artyom Levshunov, and Wyatt Kaiser. The rest is still being sorted out.

With just nine games played so far in his NHL career, it’s impressive to have the status that he does at just 21 years old. Being a former first-round pick, he’s always had the pedigree, but now we’re seeing it show on NHL ice.

Those nine games came at the end of last season, following the end of his collegiate career at the University of Minnesota. He recorded five assists but has yet to score his first career NHL goal.

As a young defenseman, his main concern is learning to play the position well in the NHL. He skipped the AHL because of his abilities; now he’s looking to get to another level. 

Rinzel plays a two-way style that could allow him to be an impactful top-pair defenseman in the best league in the world. Still, at such a young age, there are going to be ups and downs. 

Even if Rinzel is a legitimate top-pair guy right away, it won’t be without rookie mistakes. We saw some of that in Tuesday night’s preseason game. Right after looking skilled, poised, and mature on the power play, he made a soft play that led to a Detroit Red Wings goal. 

When Jonatan Berggren came out of the box, he made a play to steal the puck from Rinzel, which set up a goal for Lucas Raymond. Rinzel would like to be more prepared for that as Berggren was coming out of the box. As he develops, he will be harder on the puck with more consistency. 

"I just think I've got to be better in that situation, just getting back to it, and I think knowing my outs, knowing what I've got to do."

Rinzel is well aware of the things that need to be better in his game. For being as young and inexperienced as he is, it seems like he's confident that his rookie mistakes won't linger. 

Part of being a young guy on a young team can be many other players on your pair throughout camp and preseason. Rinzel seems to think that he can help complement anyone's strengths as their partner, no matter who it is. 

"It doesn't matter who's your partner. Our whole [defense] core is tight-knit, so I don't think it matters who you're playing with. I just think everyone's game kind of has [its] own little niche, so I just think it's playing to your strengths, and it always complements each other well."

There is no denying the fact that Rinzel buys into whatever the Blackhawks ask of him in his game. Although he is clearly going to have those rookie lapses from time to time, and it won't end right when his first year is done, there are plenty of tools there for him to have a significant role right away. 

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