The youth is taking over for the Chicago Blackhawks, and that spells success for a long time. The team has started the season much better than expected with a 4-3-2 record. There aren't only young players doing well on the Blackhawks, but notable starts to the season for three other prospects outside of the NHL.
In the NHL, the Blackhawks are seeing great starts from Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar, and Spencer Knight.
Bedard has three goals and eight points in nine games while playing nearly 22 minutes as a 20-year-old. He is also on the top line, matching up against the opponents' best every night, and doing it without much help on the wings. He is a +2 on the season, which is a major turnaround from his first two seasons to this point. While he's just under a point-per-game, he's showing that he can be a point-per-game player already.
Nazar is a bigger surprise because he played just 56 games in the NHL prior to this season, but has four goals and nine points in nine games. He's leading the second line and is on the top power play, but he already looks like an experienced NHL player. The Blackhawks have to be extremely pleased and relieved that he not only broke out this early in his career, but right after signing a long-term deal.
Knight played well when he came over from the Florida Panthers last season, but not nearly to the level he's at right now. He is fifth in the NHL with a 1.97 GAA and third in the league with a .937 SV%. Knight has already proven without a shadow of a doubt that he is the starter and his new contract is also looking very good for Chicago.
Moving over to the prospects, Roman Kantserov is playing at an elite level in the KHL this season with 13 goals and 21 points in 20 games. The 2023 second round pick leads that league in goals and is fourth in points at age 21.
While Kevin Korchinski has put up four assists in six AHL games and both goalies in the AHL, Drew Commesso - .922 SV% and Stanislav Berezhnoy - .944 SV%, are playing well in net, the two prospects that need the most attention are Nick Lardis and Oliver Moore.
Moore is on the cusp of breaking into the NHL and staying. He recorded four assists in nine games last season, but didn't make the Blackhawks out of camp and has five goals and seven points in seven games. He will very likely be the next player called up.
Lardis came right out of junior after putting together an amazing 2024-25 season. He scored 71 goals and 117 points in 65 games last season and typically, the transition to professional hockey takes a little bit of time. Not for Lardis, as he has two goals and nine points in seven games so far. A year in the AHL will do him good, but I can see him getting a short look in the NHL near the end of the season if there's space.
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