The Chicago Blackhawks are going to open their season on Tuesday night. They seem to have shaken up the forward lines on the eve of the season.
There were whispers late in the Chicago Blackhawks off-season that they may try Roman Kantserov at center. He played there during his 2025-26 KHL season, in which he led the league in goals.
Most assumed that he'd play wing in North America because of his goal-scoring acumen, but his ability to line up down the middle is notable.
When training camp started, he lined up on the wing with Frank Nazar in the middle and Patrick Kane on the other side. Obviously, things are fluid without Connor Bedard, but it seemed to be a formidable line.
However, with Nazar out of the lineup in the final preseason game, Jeff Blashill used Kantserov at center. He must have liked what he saw. At practice on Monday, their last in Chicago before the flight to Vegas for the season opener, Kantserov centered Oliver Moore and Patrick Kane.
This is a line with a lot of speed, skill, and an ability to fire pucks on net. Behind Kantserov, Frank Nazar, Anton Frondell, and Ryan Greene remained at center. Moore moving to the wing is where Kantserov's spot went. The lineup as a whole looked like this:
Moore-Kantserov-Kane
Donato-Nazar-Lardis
Bertuzzi-Frondell-Mangiapane
Smith-Greene-Greenway
Teravainen*
Vlasic-Byram
Kaiser-Levshunov
Cole-Rinzel
Korchinski-Del Mastro*
Knight
Soderblom
During practice, it sure looked like Teuvo Teravainen was the 13th forward. That would mean he wouldn't dress in the first game in favor of Andrew Mangiapane, who was on the third line with Tyler Bertuzzi and Anton Frondell.
The Blackhawks seem to be going with 8 defensemen on the team. Kevin Korchinski and Ethan Del Mastro earned the opportunity, but practice indicated that they will still have to work their way into the lineup for a regular-season game.
Things can still change between now, the morning skate on Tuesday, and warmups for the game on Tuesday night, but signs are pointing to the lineup looking a bit different than it did during the preseason. Now that the games are going to begin for real, Jeff Blashill will do what he feels gives his team the best chance to win.
Connor Bedard Update:
We know that Connor Bedard's initial timeline put him at a November return. Bedard has been skating and practicing on his own for weeks now, which has raised the thought that he may return sooner than expected.
On Monday, Jeff Blashill said he would accompany his teammates on their road trip, but he is not cleared by the doctors to practice with the team. He is not expected to clear during the trip. When they return home, things may be different.
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