Blackwell's arrival in the NHL with the Nashville Predators is a tale of persistence.

The 5-foot-9 center, a native of Lawrence, Massachusetts, was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the seventh round (No. 194) in the 2011 NHL Draft. He opted to attend Harvard, but his career was marred by a concussion that forced him to sit out for a season. After finishing his career at Harvard in 2015-16, Blackwell signed with San Jose of the American Hockey League for the 2016-17 season. He signed with Rochester of the AHL for 2017-18 and finished with 45 points (17 goals, 28 assists) in 61 games. That was enough to attract the attention of the Nashville Predators, who signed him to an NHL contract on July 3, 2018.

Blackwell spent most of the 2018-19 season with Milwaukee of the AHL, but he earned a midseason callup and made his NHL debut on Jan. 19, 2019. He was scoreless in six games before being returned to Milwaukee.

After starting the 2019-20 season in Milwaukee, Blackwell was called up by the Predators in mid-December. He got his first NHL point, an assist, against the Arizona Coyotes on Dec. 23, 2019, and scored his first goal against the Chicago Blackhawks on Jan. 9, 2020.

NOTES & TRANSACTIONS

• Signed as a free agent by Nashville, July 3, 2018.
• Signed as a free agent by NY Rangers, October 9, 2020.
• Claimed by Seattle from NY Rangers in Expansion Draft, July 21, 2021.
• Traded to Toronto by Seattle with Mark Giordano for a 2nd-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, 2nd-round pick in 2023 and 3rd-round pick in 2024, March 20, 2022.
• Signed as a free agent by Chicago, July 13, 2022.