Kyle Davidson (born July 1, 1988) is a Canadian sports executive who currently serves as the

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division i ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) since October 26, 2021.

Life

Davidson graduated with a bachelor's degree in Sports Administration (SPAD) from

Laurentian University Laurentian University (french: Université Laurentienne), officially the Laurentian University of Sudbury, is a mid-sized Bilingualism in Canada, bilingual public university in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, incorporated on March 28, 1960. Lau ...

. After graduating in 2009, he began working for the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

(NHL) in their supporter relations department. The following year, Davidson became an intern with the Chicago Blackhawks as a video analyst. Between 2012 and 2018, he worked for the ice hockey organization's administration and held various positions, participating in two

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

wins in the

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

and 2014–15 seasons. In 2018, he was appointed assistant to general manager

Stan Bowman Stanley Glenn Bowman (born June 28, 1973) is a Canadian-American former ice hockey executive. He previously worked as the general manager of the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is the son of Hockey Hall of Fame member, ...

. The following year, Davidson was promoted to assistant general manager, and in October 2021 he took over on an interim basis after Bowman stepped down from his positions with the Blackhawks. On March 1, 2022, the Blackhawks removed the interim tag, and formally named him as their general manager. Taking over in the midst of a very poor 2021–22 season, and with the Blackhawks having very limited talent in their development pipeline, Davidson opted to initiate a full rebuild of the roster. Controversially, this involved trading away or declining to retain much of the franchise's existing young talent. Davidson traded

Alex DeBrincat Alexander DeBrincat (born December 18, 1997) is an American professional ice hockey Winger (ice hockey), right winger for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round, 39t ...

to the

and

Kirby Dach Kirby Dach (born January 21, 2001) is a Canadians, Canadian professional Centre (ice hockey), ice hockey centre who currently plays for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). Dach was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks with th ...

to the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

in deals based primarily on the acquisition of first-round picks in the

2022 NHL Entry Draft The 2022 NHL Entry Draft was the 60th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on July 7–8, 2022, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. Montreal were originally scheduled to host the 2020 draft but were unable to do so due to the COVID-19 pandem ...

, and acquired a third first-rounder in agreeing to take goaltender Petr Mrazek from the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

, using those picks in turn to draft Kevin Korchinski, Frank Nazar, and Sam Rinzel. He had also traded

Brandon Hagel Brandon Hagel (born August 27, 1998) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward for the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL). After making his NHL debut with the Chicago Blackhawks on March 11, 2020, the NHL season was pos ...

to the

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play th ...

in exchange for two first-round picks in subsequent draft years. After the draft, he allowed

Dylan Strome Dylan William Strome (born March 7, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey center for the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League. Ahead of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, Strome was considered a top prospect, and was selected third ov ...

and Dominik Kubalik to hit unrestricted free agency. The cumulative effect of these transactions meant that the Blackhawks lost five of their seven highest-scoring forwards from the prior season. Dubbed a "blatant

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engin ...

-job" by one critic, this was aimed at the

2023 NHL Entry Draft The 2023 NHL Entry Draft will be the 61st NHL Entry Draft. The draft is expected to be held on June 28–29, 2023, at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Eligibility Ice hockey players born between January 1, 2003, and September 15, 200 ...

and the possibility of drafting prospective star players

Connor Bedard Connor Bedard (born July 17, 2005) is a Canadian junior ice hockey centre for the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League (WHL). Bedard was selected by the Regina Pats first overall in the WHL Bantam Draft in 2020 as the first WHL player of exc ...

Matvei Michkov Matvei Andreyevich Michkov (russian: Матвей Андреевич Мичков; born 9 December 2004) is a Russian professional ice hockey centre currently playing for HC Sochi of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), on loan from fellow KHL clu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davidson, Kyle 1980s births Living people Chicago Blackhawks executives Ice hockey people from Ottawa Laurentian University alumni Ottawa Senators