The Blackhawks are only one game into the season and Jeff Blashill is already sorting through a center puzzle that could shape the roster once Connor Bedard is back.
Chicago opened with a 5-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, and Blashill did not stick with the same forward combinations he used in training camp. He has already gone back to the drawing board ahead of tonight’s matchup with the Utah Mammoth. That kind of line shuffling has become familiar territory for the Blackhawks in recent seasons, especially during the Luke Richardson era, but this stretch feels especially important because Bedard is out to start the year.
Until Bedard returns, Blashill is essentially auditioning options down the middle. The question is not whether the Blackhawks have centers.
They do. The question is which ones actually belong there.
Anton Frondell is the most complicated case. When the Blackhawks drafted him, he said he would play whatever position Bedard does not play.
That has not really been the reality so far, outside of his first three games with the club last season. Chicago has been trying to develop him as a center, and the appeal is obvious: he has the size for the job and a strong two-way game that fits what you want from a second-line center.
But there is a stylistic question here. Frondell is not known for his speed, while his shot is the tool that jumps off the page.
Once Bedard is available, putting Frondell on his wing might make more sense, giving Bedard’s pace and playmaking a finisher who can also win puck battles.
Roman Kantserov is in a similar spot, though the path may be a little clearer. He was expected to play wing, but Blashill has started him at center.
That looks like a short-term experiment more than a permanent answer. Kantserov has already shown he can handle both spots in the KHL, and the Blackhawks are now trying to see whether that versatility carries over to the NHL.
Long term, wing seems like the cleaner fit. It is also notable that he has been pulled off the Patrick Kane line for now, even though the two were together throughout camp.
Frank Nazar, meanwhile, looks like the safest bet to stay in the middle. He has spent most of his Blackhawks career at center, so keeping him there makes practical sense.
It would also give Blashill more room to shift Frondell and Kantserov to the wing when Bedard comes back. That setup could help the rookies settle in, though there are obvious concerns about rolling out Bedard and Nazar as the top two centers because of their smaller builds.
Oliver Moore adds another layer to the decision. He has played both center and wing, but he has looked better at center.
Even so, he has opened the season on the wing. There is a case for giving him the third-line center job, which would let Frondell and Nazar remain in the top six.
Blashill has leaned toward spreading talent around the lineup so far, but there is a strong argument for keeping the best pieces together and letting chemistry develop.
Ryan Greene is the one Blackhawk who seems to have a defined role right now. He is being used as the fourth-line center between Jordan Greenway and Cole Smith, and that has been Chicago’s most stable line.
It is also the only trio that has stayed intact after spending weeks together in training camp. Greene’s defensive game makes him a natural fit in that shutdown role, though he has also seen time on the wing.
A future look with Moore and Nick Lardis on his wings is at least a possibility, and that could open the door for Ryan Donato to slide into the 4C spot.
Blashill has plenty to sort through, and the center logjam will not disappear on its own. He has to decide which players truly belong in the middle and which ones are better used on the wing.
That becomes easier when Bedard returns. For now, it is a balancing act built around talented but still unproven young players.
In Other News...
Blackhawks Young Lineup Already Looks Exposed After Another Rough Night
The Blackhawks youth movement got another hard lesson Friday night in Salt Lake City, where Chicago was overwhelmed from the start in a 6-0 loss to the Utah Mammoth at Delta Center. It was the clubs second defeat of the season, and it came with the kind of uneven, ragged play that can make a rebuilding roster look even younger than it is when the opposition starts dictating every shift.
Utah piled up offense from Dylan Guenther, Michael Carcone, Nick Schmaltz, Anders Lee and Daniil But, while Chicago never found a foothold and kept paying for defensive mistakes. With key players already out, the Blackhawks were left trying to survive pressure they could not consistently absorb, and the night only added to the sense that the early-season growing pains are arriving faster than the club would like. [Read more 🡒]
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For a team that has been leaning heavily on its prospects, the added depth should matter just as much as the headlines. Bedards injury only sharpened the focus on how fragile that workload can be, and a more balanced roster should ease some of that pressure when he returns. Chicago still has plenty to prove, but this is the first version of the roster in a while that looks capable of helping its best young talent instead of asking them to do it all themselves. [Read more 🡒]
Blackhawks Walk Into A Sabres Home Opener With Real Pressure Building
Buffalos season opener did not go the way the Sabres wanted, and the early fallout has put some immediate pressure on their visit from Chicagos perspective as well. The Blue Jackets handed Buffalo a 6-3 loss in a game where the Sabres had trouble in goal, on defense and on special teams, leaving a lot to clean up before they step onto the ice for their home opener.
The Blackhawks arrive with a chance to catch a team still searching for answers, but Buffalo will be looking to sharpen the areas that let them down and get more out of the players expected to drive the offense. For Chicago, it is the sort of early-season test that can turn into an opportunity if the Sabres are still sorting out their structure and trying to settle into a better rhythm. [Read more 🡒]