The Blackhawks are still going to be featured on national TV despite rebuilding

The Chicago Blackhawks have been occupying the Central Division cellar for years, but they continue to be featured on national television.

This season is not going to be any different.

The Blackhawks announced that 15 of their games will be televised nationally.

That is the same number of games the Hawks were featured nationally last season. That was a season where the Hawks were only better than the San Jose Sharks in the standings.

Maybe the national appeal of Connor Bedard is not wearing off after all. There was some concern that Bedard's perceived sophomore slump (he still finished with over 60 points) was dimming his star appeal after ESPN decided to air the Maple Leafs vs. Panthers in late April instead of Hawks vs. the Penguins.

However, the Maple Leafs and Panthers were battling for the top spot in the Atlantic Division while the Penguins and Hawks were jockeying for position in the NHL Draft Lottery.

The number of Hawks' national TV games is still interesting, considering they are still rebuilding. The Sharks will be on national television just six times, and they have a young emerging star to feature in Macklin Celebrini. The Sabres have been rebuilding for years and will be on national TV just seven times.

The Hawks do play in the NHL's third-biggest market. They are an Original-Six franchise, too. They still have Bedard, who could have a superstar season. Those three factors can still be a ratings draw.

15 national TV games are sort of an artificial number

Technically, seven of those games are exclusive to ESPN+/Hulu, which would still be available to subscribers not in the local market if it were being televised regionally. You would just need the NHL Power Play on the ESPN App to have access to Hawks games if you live outside of the team's local coverage area.

Really, the Hawks will be featured nationally eight times. They are against some brand-name teams.

The Hawks' first regular-season game will be on ESPN when the Panthers raise their Stanley Cup banner on October 7 as part of ESPN's Opening Night coverage.

TNT can never go wrong broadcasting a Chicago vs. St. Louis rivalry matchup, especially early in the season before the Hawks' talent deficiency catches up with them and sends them tumbling into last place in the Central Division. TNT will feature the Blackhawks and Blues rivalry again in January.

Featuring two young stars like Connor Bedard vs. Jack Hughes battling it out when the Blackhawks and New Jersey Devils face off in November was also a good call by TNT.

It was also a good idea for TNT to have two Original Six teams celebrating their centennial seasons featured nationally, like when the Hawks host the Rangers in December.

If the Hawks are as bad as expected when they face the Tampa Bay Lightning in January, ESPN can always tap into the Hawks' centennial legacy.

Notice the Blackhawks are not going to be ABC this year.

It is still smart to tap into Connor Bedard's drawing power and the Chicago market. It is also smart to limit a potentially bad team like the Blackhawks to basic cable.

Although ABC is leaning into the East Coast bias with its slate of games. The Rangers, Penguins, Washington Capitals, Detroit Red Wings, and Boston Bruins will be featured multiple times on ABC's Saturday lineup. Colorado, Dallas, and Vegas are the only teams outside of the Eastern Time Zone to be featured on ABC's Saturday featured game.