The Chicago Blackhawks will take on the New York Islanders in game number 39 of the regular season.
The Chicago Blackhawks are 1-7 in their last 8 games played. Their one victory was an impressive shootout win over the Dallas Stars, who are one of the best teams in the NHL right now. However, things have been a major struggle without Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar.
Now, the Blackhawks will host the New York Islanders, who are one of the NHL’s surprise teams this season. With the number one pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, Matthew Schaefer, in the mix, things have been fascinating for that franchise. At 21-14-4, their 46 points put them in second place in the Metropolitan Division.
Scouting New York Islanders
The New York Islanders have some sneaky good players at every corner of their roster, which has contributed to their status as a top-three team in their division.
Lee-Barzal-Holmstrom
Drouin-Horvat-Heineman
Duclair-Pageau-Shabanov
MacLean-Cizikas-Gatcomb
Schaefer-Pulock
Pelech-DeAngelo
Warren-Mayfield
Rittich
Hogberg
Matthew Schaefer is looking like he has the potential to be an all-world player on New York's blue line. The fact that he's only going to get better is scary, but that's what you hope for when you make a number one pick.
Mat Barzal and Bo Horvat as the 1-2 down the middle is solid for the Islanders. With JG Pageau and Casey Cizikas as the 3-4, their center depth can go toe-to-toe with most teams.
In goal, they have been using David Rittich because their superstar, Ilya Sorokin, has been out with an injury. Whether they use Rittich or Marcus Hogberg remains to be seen, but the Blackhawks will need to have a good forecheck, be smart with the puck, and create a good net front presence if they want to score on Patrick Roy's team.
Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago
The Chicago Blackhawks, without Frank Nazar and Connor Bedard, don't have a winning roster. However, they do have a handful of great role players who will be with this team when they are a winner down the road.
There are also a handful of veterans in the lineup who do a great job of setting an example for the young and inexperienced players. Currently, they are going through a hard time and need to find their way out of the slump.
Bertuzzi-Greene-Burakovsky
Teravainen-Moore-Lardis
Donato-Dickinson-Mikheyev
Foligno-Dach-Slaggert
Extras: Lafferty, Toninato
Vlasic-Crevier
Kaiser-Levshunov
Grzelcyk-Murphy
Extra: Del Mastro
Knight
Spencer Knight is going to start for the Blackhawks against the Islanders. He wasn't at his best in his most recent start, but he has been incredible for the entire season as a whole. Balshill isn't giving his number one goalie much time before allowing him to try and bounce back.
The most interesting thing about these lines is Teuvo Teravainen getting Nick Lardis on his line. Lardis is a shoot-first type of player so being on a line with Teuvo who passes everything could lead to more goal scoring. Oliver Moore is going to play center on that line, which is something he learned to do in college.
Before practice on Monday, Connor Bedard took a skate. He stick handled and skated with speed, but he didn't take any shots. Frank Nazar has also upgraded to eating solid food, confirming that he broke his jaw.
How To Watch
The game can be heard locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. To view this game, it can be found locally on CHSN. Nationally, it can be streamed on ESPN+ or NHL Network. The puck will drop shortly after 7:30 PM CT.
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