Blackhawks Vs Jets: Projected Lineup, How To Watch, & More Ahead Of Game 8

The Chicago Blackhawks (2-5-0) are set to host the Winnipeg Jets (4-1-1) at the United Center on Thursday night. This will be the third game at home in a row for Chicago, as they look to improve on their 2-1 home record early in the year. 

Winnipeg will be the second division rival to visit the United Center in the early going, and they are off to a much better season than anybody anticipated. It will be a tough match for the young Blackhawks, but not one that they see as an impossible feat. 

Scouting Winnipeg

The Winnipeg Jets won't have Jonathan Toews in their lineup, as he famously retired after his one season playing for the hometown team. He has mostly been with the Blackhawks since his short stint in Winnipeg. 

Toews' absence is not the reason that most saw the Jets as a non-playoff team coming into the year, however. It isn't only their lackluster season that they had a year ago, either. They are without superstar goalie Connor Hellebuyck. 

Hellebuyck, who is one of the greatest goalies of all time, has requested a trade and is refusing to report to the Jets. He was respectful and private about the situation at first, but he felt the need to go public with it ahead of training camp starting. 

Instead of letting this adversity get to them, the Jets have come out incredibly strong to begin the year. Is it possible that the wheels fall off at some point? Certainly. However, nobody told the players who did report that they must have a bad year. 

Connor - Scheifele - Perfetti

Niederreiter - Björck - Vilardi

Rosén - Lowry - Iafallo

Namestnikov - Barron - Koepke

Samberg - DeMelo

Ferraro - Pionk

Fleury - Bauer

Skinner

Stevenson

Mark Scheifele, Cole Perfetti, and Kyle Connor are the usual suspects when it comes to their most dangerous players, but there are a couple of other faces involved that have been helping them get the job done. 

A guy to keep an eye on is Viggo Björck, who was selected 8th overall in the 2026 NHL Draft. Some people had him as an option for the Blackhawks at 4th overall before they traded it to the Buffalo Sabres in the Bowen Byram deal. 

Björck doesn't have an NHL point yet in six games, but it's coming soon. In this game, he'll be on a good second line with experienced veterans against a Blackhawks team that has been known to give up some chances.

Josh Morrissey, Winnipeg's most dynamic defenseman, is not expected to play after missing the last couple of games. He is an important piece for the Jets, but he is dealing with a wrist issue that has hindered him. As of now, consider him week-to-week. 

Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago

The Blackhawks are going to be without Bowen Byram in this game. He is dealing with an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day. Frank Nazar is back after serving a two-game suspension, which will get him right back into the mix as a center on the team. 

Kantserov-Bedard-Kane

Bertuzzi-Frondell-Teravainen

Moore-Nazar-Donato

Smith-Greene-Greenway

Del Mastro-Levshunov

Vlasic-Cole

Kaiser-Rinzel

Knight

Nazar is notably not in the top six. While he was out, Anton Frondell was magnificent with Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen. Also, Connor Bedard came back, so this will be the first game with both Bedard and Nazar in the lineup. 

With Oliver Moore and Ryan Donato (who was fabulous against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday), this trio could give the Blackhawks the much-needed depth they were anticipating before the season began. Dominic Toninato is coming out of the lineup in favor of Nazar, and the fourth line will remain exactly the same. 

Bedard sticks with Patrick Kane and Roman Kantserov. At even strength and on the power play, this trio got the job done against the Penguins. 

Frondell's line saw a lot of Crosby last time out, and now they have the challenge of dealing with Mark Scheifele, who is also an incredible two-way center. Blashill will try to match those lines up a lot as the home coach. 

With Byram out, Ethan Del Mastro is expected to draw in his place on the top pair with Artyom Levshunov. If Levshunov can keep up his much-improved play, especially in the offensive zone, they won't miss a beat. The other two pairs remain the same, which is what a team wants when one guy goes out for whatever reason. 

A defenseman will not take Byram's spot on the power play. They are going to go with five forwards on the top unit whenever they draw a penalty and play 5-on-4, which is becoming a trend in the NHL lately. 

Teuvo Teravainen, who is coming off his best game of the season, will quarterback the top unit. It's a lefty with experience running a man-advantage group, and a chance for Teravainen to continue feeling good about his offensive game. This move gives them the best chance to carry on the momentum that the top unit built in the win over Pittsburgh. 

Spencer Knight will start again, making it his third straight. This breaks the mold of Arvid Soderblom going in every Thursday game, but the Blackhawks do consider Knight the number one who will play when they feel he is rested enough. 

How To Watch

You can hear the game locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. You can see it locally on CHSN. Nationally, you can stream it on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 7:00 PM CT. 

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