Blackhawks 2026-27 projected forward lines, without Bedard

The Chicago Blackhawks have a lot of new faces to work with for this upcoming 2026-27 campaign. With these additions, and the incremental development of some of their younger players, the organization is hoping to ice a better team than last season. Let’s look at the forward group today, and then dive into the defensive corps in a separate piece.

To review, the Blackhawks lost forwards Jason Dickinson, Nick Foligno and Colton Dach at the trade deadline. They also parted ways with Ilya Mikheyev, Andre Burakovsky and Sam Lafferty in free agency. But they added four new faces at forward in Roman Kantserov, Jordan Greenway, Cole Smith and Patrick Kane.

Unfortunately, franchise cornerstore Connor Bedard had offseason surgery to his left shoulder, with a timeline to return somewhere in early November. That’s a tough blow for the Blackhawks, but others will need to step up in his absence. With that said, let’s look at some projected forward lines, sans Bedard but with the new additions to the roster. I’ve included my projections below, along with some explanation for each line.

Roman Kantserov – Anton Frondell – Patrick Kane

Tyler Bertuzzi – Frank Nazar – Nick Lardis

Teuvo Teravainen – Oliver Moore – Ryan Greene

Jordan Greenway – Ryan Donato – Cole Smith

1st line thoughts

Kantserov – Frondell – Kane

There’s been a lot of debate in the hockey world about whether Frondell or Nazar will receive first line center honors with Bedard out. I’m going to give the nod to Frondell, for a couple of reasons. First off, head coach Jeff Blashill has done nothing but rave about Frondell’s skillset since he joined the team in late March.

“We've moved him to center last game, and will play him at center again today. I just think, long term, when you have that ability to kind of defend the ice 200 feet and bring his offense … I want to do it now instead of wait till next year. And I thought he did a good job with it.”

Frondell also usurped Nazar in the second line center role at the end of last season, so I believe the top line center role will be his. Also, Frondell’s aforementioned defensive responsibility could come in handy playing with Kane. For all the elite offensive creativity Kane possesses, he’s never been one to rush back to defend. This is where Frondell would come in. Plus, he’s a big strong body. That could be help balance out the more diminutive frames of Kane and Kantserov.

Everyone has super high hopes for Kantserov, and most believe he had all the tools to be Bedard’s long-term sidekick. This is why I’ve placed him on the top line. Might as well get him used to it! And who better to ease Kantserov into the NHL than Kane? He’s certainly played that role before.  

2nd line thoughts

Bertuzzi – Nazar – Lardis

It’s possible Nazar earns the top line center spot after all. He’s also practiced a bit with Kane in the past. Kane mentioned in his introductory press conference he’s working on building some chemistry with “Frankie”, just in case.

But I believe the trio of Bertuzzi, Nazar and Lardis would make an excellent line as well. Each player brings something a little different to the table. Bertuzzi is good at hounding pucks and being a net front presence. Nazar can push the pace with his speed and Lardis can provide a scoring punch. According to my game notes from last season, these three played together for four games, from March 22 through March 27. In that span, Lardis scored three goals.

“Yeah, he's been really good, said Bertuzzi of Lardis. “He battles hard for a smaller guy. He's physical and gets it on the forecheck. Obviously he can score goals, that's what he does. So I've been enjoying playing with him.”

Plus, Bertuzzi and Nazar were deployed together a ton last season. They already have a ton of chemistry and they love playing with each other.

3rd line thoughts

Teravainen – Moore – Greene

In discussing Moore as a young player to watch, I touched on how the Blackhawks are hopeful he can take over the checking line center role that Dickinson previously held. He seems to play best at the center position, and his speed and intensity could be assets in a shutdown capacity.

Greene is versatile in that he can play center or wing, and he prides himself on his two-way game. He’s also a left-handed shot compared to Moore being a right-handed shot, so the two could switch things up on faceoffs to gain an advantage on their opponent.

Teravainen didn’t have the best 2025-26 campaign, but this should motivate him to have a bounce-back season. He’s also a very smart player and defensively sound. He could easily be the veteran presence on this line, mentoring the more green (yes, pun intended!) youngsters. This could be a very strong shutdown line with an added threat to score when they’re on the ice.

4th line thoughts

Greenway – Donato – Smith

This is your grit line, and who better to play that role than newly added Greenway and Smith? Both are big, physical players that will be hard to play against, and could also serve as enforcers for the Blackhawks. Donato always brings energy and intensity, plus he can play center.

Granted, I could easily see both Smith or Donato (likely on the wing) on the third line as well, depending on performance, chemistry or injuries. The versatility of both players is a positive. But for now, this makes a formidable fourth line.  

Thoughts on extra forwards for the Blackhawks

Slaggert, Mangiapane, Boisvert

Slaggert has been with the organization for three seasons now, splitting time between the Blackhawks and the Rockford IceHogs. While he’s strong on the puck and plays a physical game, the additions of Greenway and Smith don’t spell good news for him. He’s going to have to have a very strong training camp to beat these two veterans out, especially since they were specifically added in the offseason. However, it’s certainly not impossible.

Mangiapane plays with an edge as well. But there’s just too many grit guys in the mix now. His size doesn’t do him any favors either. I see the 5’10” forward as the Sam Lafferty of last season, mostly healthy-scratched and just kept around for injury purposes.  

Boisvert could definitely factor in later in the season. He could easily be the fourth line center of the future for the Blackhawks. But I’m guessing he spends most of 2026-27 earning his strips down in Rockford.

This is my best guess at the forwards lines for the Blackhawks to start the 2026-27 season, while they wait for the return of Bedard in early November. Training camp will be here before you know it, and then we’ll have a better idea of what line combinations Coach Blashill is thinking of.

Stay tuned for defensive pairing projections, coming soon!

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