The Chicago Blackhawks’ record says one thing. The people inside the room are saying something else.
At 4-10-1, Chicago has opened the 2026-27 season in ugly fashion, getting blown out by multiple goals in almost every game they’ve played. The numbers are hard to dodge, and the standings are even harder to ignore. Still, the Blackhawks are not sounding like a team ready to fold.
There’s plenty of frustration in the building, but not a shortage of belief. That’s the line coming from Connor Bedard, who made it clear after Tuesday’s loss that the group hasn’t lost faith in itself.
“I’d be lying if I said there was no frustration,” Connor Bedard said after Tuesday’s loss. “I don’t think there is a lack of belief or a lack of effort in here.
That’s never the question. It’s just finding out game.
We believe in our group, we believe in each other. We think it’s going to start swinging the other way.
We just have to stick with it, stay behind each other, stay positive, and do what we need to do to not force things too much.”
That’s the kind of answer you’d expect from a player who’s been one of the team’s bright spots. Bedard is not the problem here, and as the main leader on the roster now, he’s also in the spot where his tone matters.
He sounds frustrated, sure. But he also sounds like someone who still sees a path forward.
Head coach Jeff Blashill is in that same camp. He has pushed back before on public stats, saying the team’s internal numbers tell a different story. Whether those internal figures line up with what everyone else is seeing is another question, but the coach’s belief in his group hasn’t wavered.
The bigger concern is whether the issues on the ice are structural. The defensive system has looked shaky, and the 5-forward power play has been underwhelming as well.
A change may be coming eventually, especially if the road trip ends with three straight regulation losses, but midseason system fixes are rarely simple. Bowen Byram’s return should help, though the source of the problems appears to run deeper than one player can solve on his own.
Even with all that hanging over them, the Blackhawks still talk like a team that expects the tide to turn. That belief matters, because the season is still young enough for a reset. Winning changes everything in pro sports, and Chicago knows it has talent in the room.
The issue is that talent alone doesn’t guarantee progress. The Blackhawks have skill, but they also have a roster short on players who have spent enough time winning in the NHL. That gap in experience could end up being the thing that hurts them most.
For now, though, the message from inside the room is straightforward: the belief is still there, even if the results haven’t shown it yet.
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