Even though the Chicago Blackhawks aren’t playing for anything important in the last month of the six weeks of the season, there are still meaningful things that need to be sorted out. Seeing more young faces draw into the lineup on a daily basis is good to see as the organization looks toward the fall.
A big issue with Chicago’s forward group this season regardless of who is acting as head coach has been the constant line shuffling. This is tough especially for franchise cornerstone Connor Bedard, who more often than not has not been able to find his footing this season due to playing with different combinations of wingers every night.
One fellow young forward has been playing on Bedard’s wing for the past few weeks and it appears that interim head coach Anders Sorensen plans to keep the two together for the rest of the campaign. Chemistry is everything for a phenom like Bedard, and nothing else matters if he can garner a connection with wingers that allow him to be the best version of himself every night.
Frank Nazar and Connor Bedard need to stay together
Frank Nazar has put together a solid season since being called up in December. In 33 games this season, the 21-year-old has four goals and 10 assists. Nazar’s season numbers don’t tell the whole story though, as he has been one of the top rookie scorers since mid-January.
The former Michigan Wolverine plays the best 200-foot game on the Blackhawks right now, which is why he works so well with Bedard. Nazar’s aggressiveness on both ends creates more avenues for Bedard to be creative in generating chances for himself and the rest of the line. While Bedard is currently in another scoring drought, he and Nazar are looking more fluid together as the games go on.
The connection between these two is very apparent and it helps that they play at a similar speed. Bedard’s biggest issue with line mates in his rookie season were that he played at a speed well above them. Having a guy like Nazar on his wing helps him in the fact that they will likely be in the exact places that they need one another to be in at the right time.
The Chicago Blackhawks have a few choices for their top line
With Bedard and Nazar locked in for the rest of the year, the next thing to keep an eye on is who joins them. Landon Slaggert has gotten most of the action on the opposite wing of Nazar since he got paired with Bedard, but there are a couple other options that could be explored in the last six weeks of the campaign.
Colton Dach started Wednesday night’s game against Ottawa on the top line before Slaggert began rotating in as early as the second period. A veteran on the squad to keep an eye on as well to jump up to the top line is Tyler Bertuzzi. The first year Blackhawk had a good scoring stretch with Bedard around the holidays and the coaching staff could look to tap into that again if the 19-year-old’s scoring drought continues.
Chicago Blackhawks should test the trade market for 2 physical veteran forwards
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