The NHL standings are tight for teams fighting for playoff spots in both conferences, but in the Western Conference, the race is amongst weaker teams. The cutoff for the wildcard in the West is 45 points and the seven worst teams in the NHL are all in the West as well. The Chicago Blackhawks are one of them.
The Blackhawks had a surprising and impressive start to the season, but then Connor Bedard cooled off a tad and Frank Nazar cooled off more. Combine that with injuries to both, the Blackhawks started to fall down the standings and were in last for a brief time not too long ago.
Without Bedard and Nazar in the lineup, the Blackhawks have now strung together three wins and have jumped three teams, having them sit in 29th place and one game under .500.
Chicago has passed the Winnipeg Jets, Vancouver Canucks, and Calgary Flames with their current win streak, and have an easier schedule coming up with the sub-.500 St. Louis Blues, wildcard Washington Capitals (who are a good team), and .500 Nashville Predators., followed by the Edmonton Oilers, Flames, and Boston Bruins next week.
Playoffs are still within reach, though many may think that is a reach. If Bedard and Nazar come back just as good as they were at the start of the season and the other players continue to play like they have been while holding down the fort lately, all signs could point up.
But another viewpoint is that the Blackhawks aren't ready this season and need another 1-2 to make the jump into the playoffs. I would agree with this way of thinking and would think it's smart for the Blackhawks to sell this season, but there's still time for the team to figure out their course of action before the trade deadline.
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