According to the latest NHL Power Rankings, the Chicago Blackhawks are the worst team in the NHL. Despite making a few key selections in the draft and a trade, they have done nothing to really improve themselves and may have even gotten worse. At the very least, it seems like the San Jose Sharks, who finished with a worse point total last season, have passed them by.
Chicago Blackhawks get unenviable power ranking spot
Per Bleacher Report insider Lyle Fitzsimmons, there is no hockey team in a worse position right now for 2025-26 than the Chicago Blackhawks. After not spending much of their salary cap this offseason, it seems like the Hawks are just bereft of talent.
“The Blackhawks are far closer to the salary-cap floor than its ceiling, so the quest to add firepower alongside Connor Bedard is apparently still pending,” Fitzsimmons said plainly. Bedard is still young, but the Blackhawks have yet to splurge to surround him with a lot of talent.
However, the addition of Anton Frondell, whenever he makes it to the NHL level, might help. “Something of a jolt may arrive courtesy of Swedish import Anton Frondell, who was ranked as the No. 1 international skater by NHL Central Scouting when Chicago grabbed him third overall at the draft,” the analyst added. “The 6’1″, 204-pounder has been compared to New York Rangers forward J.T. Miller and likened to a ‘military tank’ by one scout.”
The Blackhawks made a conscious effort not to spend in free agency, even though they, based on the salary cap, could’ve afforded virtually everyone on the market. No player was too rich for them this year, but they didn’t want any of them.
Privately, they were not pleased with how the veteran additions last offseason panned out, so they’re aiming to utilize their young players all year long. Rather than fill out with veterans who won’t be around long, the roster is going to be comprised of players who could one day be crucial cogs.
It doesn’t hurt that being bad in 2025-26 isn’t the worst thing, because Gavin McKenna is likely to be the number one pick, and he’s been tabbed, like Bedard, as a franchise-changing generational prospect.
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1 Comment
What type of return should hawks receive from Canucks for the Russian forward ?