It should be time for Anton Frondell to do what he was expected to do for Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks drafted Anton Frondell in last year's draft at third overall, which is looking to be a better pick than initially expected. He had a strong end to his season and seemed to have found himself an effective line with Tyler Bertuzzi and Ilya Mikheyev. This line was known for its speed, forecheck, and ability to pounce on turnovers. Had this line been a thing to start the year, they honestly could have carried the Blackhawks during Connor Bedard's injury recovery.

While it would be nice to see Frondell develop into a Jonathan Toews-esque player for the future, I would also like to see what he can do with Bedard. Clearly, Bedard has been in a type of lineup hell since he arrived, being expected to carry a line entirely on his own more often than not. Andre Burakovksy and Ryan Greene will not help Bedard improve; it only holds him back (the number of misses Greene had alone was nauseating).

Why not add him to Bedard's line early?

When drafted, I expected Frondell to develop in the Swedish system, then make his way over near the end of last season, as he did, but on a line with Bedard, not a checking third line. This way, both would open up room for the other, as you can't leave either player alone on the rush. You leave Frondell uncovered, and his one-timer will murder you, leave Bedard by himself, and he'll just... murder your entire defense pair.

The Blackhawks desperately need bigger forwards; they would be physically bullied in the offensive zone and puck battles. Adding Frondell to Bedard's line means the team has to acquire another top-tier forward with some size to go alongside them. I think there are a few ideas here.

Overall, Frondell, in my mind, was meant to come from the Swedish system to give Bedard a viable linemate. He, instead, centered his own line, and while he did succeed, he had more help on that line than Bedard did on the so-called first line. In order for the development of these forwards to improve as expected, they should play together rather than apart. Look at what happened when Nick Lardis finally made the top six as an example.

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