There are real reasons to believe the Blackhawks can take a step forward this season. But there’s no sugarcoating the other side of the equation: the 2026-27 campaign can go sideways in a hurry, and plenty stands in the way of Chicago turning promise into progress.
Start with the most obvious hurdle - the team’s recent track record. The Blackhawks are still in the middle of a rebuild, and the standings have made that plain.
They haven’t played a postseason game since 2020, and even that playoff appearance comes with an asterisk in the source’s own framing. General manager Kyle Davidson has been more aggressive than he has in most summers, but asking this group to vault out of the basement and into the mix is still a massive leap.
Chicago would need at least 10 more wins and 20 more points just to get there, and that’s a steep climb.
There’s always the temptation to say a turnaround is due after four straight seasons finishing 30th or worse. At some point, the bottom has to give way. Surely.
But even before the season gets rolling, the Blackhawks are staring at a major problem: Connor Bedard won’t be there to start it. His shoulder surgery was made public in early July, and the timeline attached to it was four months, putting a possible return in November if rehab moves smoothly.
However that plays out, it’s a significant setback. Patrick Kane’s arrival helps soften the blow, but it doesn’t erase the fact that Chicago faces a tough opening stretch without its best player.
The Blackhawks could easily be well under .500 by the time Bedard is back, which would leave them chasing the rest of the way. And there’s still the question of what his game looks like once he returns - whether rust shows up and how long it takes him to get rolling.
The youth movement also comes with plenty of uncertainty. There’s no shortage of optimism around the talent in this group, but talent on paper doesn’t automatically become wins.
Frank Nazar is a name many are hoping breaks out, though injuries could still interrupt that. Anton Frondell and Roman Kantserov are expected by many to be in the rookie-of-the-year mix, but they’re also being asked to handle top-six responsibility right away, and that kind of pressure can go sideways fast.
Ice time is going to be tight, too, which could make it harder for young players like Nick Lardis and Oliver Moore to earn coach Jeff Blashill’s trust over more established veterans.
The blue line raises another red flag. Ian Cole is the oldest defender on the roster at 37, while the rest of the group is 25 or younger.
Davidson is clearly banking on Bowen Byram taking a big leap and becoming an elite defenseman, but that’s far from a sure thing. If the doubts around Byram hold up, then the burden only grows on Artyom Levshunov, Sam Rinzel and Kevin Korchinski, all of whom still have a lot of development ahead.
That kind of inexperience could make life difficult for Spencer Knight behind them.
And then there’s the division. Chicago is stuck in what looks like the league’s toughest neighborhood.
The Central is loaded, with the Colorado Avalanche coming off a Presidents Trophy and being viewed by many as the Stanley Cup favorite, the Dallas Stars still banging on the door, and the Minnesota Wild looking like a frontrunner. The Utah Mammoth have built a strong future core, while the St.
Louis Blues and Nashville Predators remain competitive. Even the Winnipeg Jets, just a year removed from a Presidents Trophy, are still in the mix despite signs they’re trending the wrong way.
That’s the problem for the Blackhawks: they don’t get the cushion of a softer path. This isn’t the Pacific. The road to a breakthrough is a lot steeper, and that makes the margin for error awfully thin.
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Alex Vlasic has quietly become one of the most important pieces on the Blackhawks blue line, and his rise has been about more than just minutes. During the 2023-24 season, he logged more ice time than any other Chicago defenseman and gave the club a steady presence in its own end, the kind of reliability a young roster can lean on when the game starts to tilt. His value has also shown up off the ice, where his leadership has helped define the tone around the team.
As the Blackhawks look ahead to next season, Vlasics role figures to grow even more central. New head coach Jeff Blashill has already pointed to Vlasics professionalism and the way he leads by example, a sign that Chicago sees him not just as a top defender but as a player who influences the room every day. For a team still building its identity, having that kind of presence on the back end matters just as much as the matchup work on the ice. [Read more 🡒]
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As the Blackhawks head toward the 2026-27 season, the opening of camp carries the familiar weight of a rebuild that is still trying to find its shape. Connor Bedard remains the centerpiece of the conversation, but Chicago is also watching the next wave closely, with Roman Kantserov and Sam Rinzel among the prospects viewed as possible difference-makers if they can translate promise into NHL impact.
Preseason will arrive quickly in mid-September, giving the staff an early look at how those young players fit around a roster still sorting out leadership and expectations. The camp mood figures to be as much about roles and responsibility as raw talent, with the Blackhawks hoping the right mix starts to reveal itself before the games begin to count. [Read more 🡒]
Blackhawks Have A New Name In Their Biggest Top Six Battle
The Blackhawks center puzzle is still coming into focus as camp approaches, and the latest wrinkle is a new rookie name pushing into the conversation. With Chicago still sorting out how to align its most promising young forwards, the battle for top-six roles is shaping up to be one of the teams biggest early-season storylines, especially with several players capable of handling both center and wing duties.
Roman Kantserov has emerged as part of that mix, adding another layer to a competition that already includes Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar and Anton Frondell. Jeff Blashill and Kyle Davidson have both made clear the club intends to experiment before settling on a final arrangement, and the eventual answer may come down to chemistry as much as pure pedigree. [Read more 🡒]