While on CHSN’s coverage of Sunday’s game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Utah Mammoth, hockey analyst Frank Seravailli projected Chicago’s lineup for the 2026-27 regular season. His lines were as follows:
Ryan Greene — Connor Bedard — Andre Burakovsky
Anton Frondell — Frank Nazar — Roman Kantserov
Tyler Bertuzzi — Oliver Moore — Nick Lardis
Ryan Donato — ???????? — Teuvo Teravainen
Alex Vlasic — Artyom Levshunov
Wyatt Kaiser — Louis Crevier
Ethan Del Mastro — Sam Rinzel
The “challengers”
Samuel Savoie, Landon Slaggert, Colton Dach, Kevin Korchinski
“When you start to see all this come together … the calvary’s not coming in terms of who’s going to bail this group out,” Seravalli said. “They’re going to need to figure out how to create offense and win as they’re currently constituted.”
When addressing the forward challengers and possibly adding where he left question marks on the fourth line, Seravailli said, “I don’t know that they want to get tangled up in long-term commitments, but someone like a Michael McCarron … his archetype … they need more bite.”
Addressing the defense, Seravalli explained keeping the group young.
“They’ve all kind of come together pretty quickly … the key is gonna be getting Artyom Levshunov to take the next step forward in terms of consistency.”
Reactions
Reactions to the lines on social media have been all over the place. Some have shown displeasure at the idea of Burakovsky remaining on the first line. Others have lamented about not adding significant skill, especially to the top six. Still, Seravalli’s lines may show how the Blackhawks will handle the offseason.
Analysis
It is clear by the lines that the Blackhawks may be going all in on a youth movement at the NHL. With prospects like Frondell, Kantserov and Lardis projected to start next season in with Chicago, the era of stopgap players littering the Blackhawks’ roster is over. No more will Chicago bring in players like Pat Maroon, Craig Smith and TJ Brodie. With expiring contracts possibly moved by the deadline, the youth movement may begin as soon as Friday.
With the only open spot being the fourth-line center role, and three challengers already with the organization, key roster spots are left open for young skaters. It would not be a surprise if Burakovsky is also moved this offseason to give even more space for prospects.
Along with the youth movement, it would be useless to project big-name free agent signings and trades. Some believe the Blackhawks should be looking to swing big for Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson. As intriguing as Robertson is, what use is it to project trading for Robertson? Even if Dallas were trading him this offseason, and the Blackhawks were interested in trading for him, it is of no use to assume Robertson, or any first-line winger, is going to be acquired this offseason.
Don’t stop in Chicago
Seravalli’s lines brings up an interesting idea. The youth movement should not be limited to the NHL. With how many prospects aging out of juniors, and with Sacha Boisvert coming over to the organization after Boston University’s season is over, the IceHogs could practically drown in prospects. Using PuckPedia’s PuckGM feature, I attempted to predict the IceHogs’ 2026-27 opening lineup with this idea in mind.
Flooding Rockford with prospects like Marek Vanacker, AJ Spellacy and Jack Pridham reflects what Seravalli projected for Chicago. Letting expiring contracts leave and replacing them internally creates runway for key Blackhawk prospects. In back-to-back seasons, the Blackhawks started key prospects in the AHL, only for them to force their way up. Giving multiple highly-touted prospects that same opportunity next season should be a priority for this organization.
Final thoughts
It is easy to criticize projections. Honestly, I cringed seeing Burakovsky still projected on the first line next season. Still, there is logic in Seravalli’s projections. Last season, the criticism was that Chicago was one of the oldest rosters in the NHL. Now, with the chance to embrace the youth, criticism still remains. Creating internal competition and avoiding commitment to marginally skilled skaters makes sense for where the Blackhawks’ organization currently is.