The Chicago Blackhawks are going through a tough stretch of losing as we come to the end of 2025. They’ve lost eight of their last nine games, as they struggle to create offense due to the losses of star players Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar. It’s a bad way to end the calendar year, sitting last in the league after a surprisingly decent start to their 2025-26 campaign.
Injuries are certainly part of the equation. But there are no excuses in the NHL. The next man up mentality has to come into play, despite most of this squad being insanely young and very inexperienced. But the good news is the Blackhawks really are improving. Anyone who’s paid close attention can see them progressing, individually and as a team. It’s just not showing just yet in the way of wins.
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But a new year is on the horizon, which is always a good time for fresh starts and resolutions. Let’s look at some of the Blackhawks’ New Year’s resolutions that could jump start improvement, and winning, in 2026.
Get Better at Defense-First Mentality
This has been something head coach Jeff Blashill has been harping on since training camp as a recipe for a better team. So much so, it’s been noticed by others in the NHL. When the Blackhawks faced the Winnipeg Jets on Oct. 30, the Jets’ head coach Scott Arniel had this message for his team. “This is a well-coached group that has bought in first to defending.”
As we all know, Bedard is the new face of the franchise and the Blackhawks’ No. 1 superstar. His specialty is obviously on the offensive side of play, but even he has bought into a defense-first mentality. He recognizes that for the team to win they can’t cheat on offense. As he said back in November,
I think the better we play defensively, the more offense we get, because we’re getting the puck back. If we’re kind of cheating it on our own end, every now and then it’ll work, and you’ll get it, you’ll get a look. But I think for us, just trying to get the puck back from our own end and not be hemmed in there, and that comes from our structure and our pressure, and we can continue to keep getting better at that.
The Blackhawks’ defensive group is also getting stronger every day. Alex Vlasic and Louis Crevier have formed a formidable top pairing that uses their long reach to shut down plays, and also help contribute more offensively. Artyom Levshunov has put a lot of pieces together and can be trusted how with more minutes and responsibility.
If the Blackhawks can continue to improve their defensive mindset, it could go a long way.
Find Success on the Power Play
The Blackhawks’ power play has been a big bone of contention of late. Considering Bedard is second in both goals (5) and assists (8) and also tied with Tyler Bertuzzi for the most points (13) on the power play, this is to be expected.
In the last eight games since Bedard has been out of the lineup, the Blackhawks have only converted on two of 22 power plays for a dismal 9% success rate. This just isn’t going to cut it. Incidentally, the two goal-scorers were Andre Burakovsky (Dec. 20) and Nick Lardis (Dec. 30).
If the Blackhawks can find a way to convert more on the power play, that could be the difference between winning and losing a lot of games. Obviously this will be easier once Bedard and Nazar return. Heck, everything will be easier once Bedard and Nazar return. More on this in a minute.
Win More Back-to-Back Games
Here’s another big theme with the Blackhawks that they can work to resolve. The team has had four sets of back-to-back games so far this season. They’ve lost all but one of them. I guess the good news is they did win on Dec. 27 against the Dallas Stars (4-3 in a shootout). But that was the first game of the back-to-back. They lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins 7-3 the very next night (Dec. 28).
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Coach Blashill was asked after the Penguins game how he planned to address playing better in back-to-back contests.
When we played Buffalo (9-3 loss on Nov. 21) and when we played Anaheim (7-1 loss on Dec. 7), we got outplayed grossly early. I think the puck went in for them (this game against the Penguins), and it didn’t go in for us on our chances. We need to make sure just fundamentally, I still think we need to improve a lot defensively, just so that you’re not even giving those (goals) up. That’s one fundamental. That way you just never risk that you have to chase the game. But that’s just as a group, we got to get better at that. Whether it’s structure or just individual fundamentals. But so to me, it was a little bit different than some of those other back-to-backs, to be honest with you.
In other words, they’re not losing as badly as they were previously. I know, I know! That sounds a little too much like a moral victory, and moral victories don’t win games. But the Blackhawks are actually improving. They just can’t seem to find a way to win said games just yet. Hopefully that will come.
With the condensed schedule because of the Olympics in February, the Blackhawks have a whopping eight more back-to-back outings. They will have plenty of opportunities to get better in this area.
Capitalize With the Rookies
When injuries happen, it’s always an opportunity for other players to step up. That can very much be said about rookies Ryan Greene, Oliver Moore and Lardis. Let’s take the Blackhawk’s last game of 2025, a 3-2 shootout loss to the Islanders, as an example.
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Greene has been with the Blackhawks since the beginning of the season. He was initially sent down to the Rockford IceHogs, but called up due to injuries to Ryan Slaggert and Joey Anderson. His play has grown in leaps and bounds. Versus the Islanders, he served as the team’s top line center. A player who was initially got sent to Rockford! He provided the secondary assist on Lardis’s power play goal and added three shots and five shot attempts of his own. He took the most faceoffs on the team and played a healthy 18:38 minutes, which was the third highest among forwards.
Moore served as the team’s No. 2 center in this game. He provided assists on both the goals scored, and won 8-of-11 faceoffs for a 73% success rate. By the way, he’s never been tasked with playing center for the Blackhawks before this game. According to Natural Stat Trick, his line with Teuvo Teravainen and Lardis had four shots for to zero against, and nine shots attempts for to four against in 8:58 minutes of ice time. That’s not a line that’s under water; that’s a line that’s thriving!
Lardis, for his part, scored a power play goal and logged a team-high five shots on goal and eight shot attempts. Oh, and he threw in two hits for good measure!
when you realize you have 3 seconds left on the clock⏱️ pic.twitter.com/MgAtaZFsqx
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 31, 2025
If the rookies can continue to contribute like this, it’s great news for their growth and development. And great news for the Blackhawks.
Make the Most of Bedard & Nazar’s Returns
It’s tough to deal with all the losing the Blackhawks have been doing, and the fact that they’re last place in the standings right now. But what seems to be forgotten is that Bedard and Nazar are coming back. Bedard is supposed to be evaluated after the new year. He skated before practice on Dec. 29, albeit without taking any shots. Still, this is a good sign.
Nazar has graduated to eating solid foods after being hit in the face with a puck on Dec. 20, but his timeline is still unclear. If he’s out four weeks as initially predicted, that would have him returning somewhere around Jan. 19.
Both Bedard and Nazar are young and driven and likely can’t wait to get back on the ice even more than the fans. They will be back, and they will be hungry to prove their worth. That, along with an improved and resilient team around them, could make for some fun hockey down the stretch. Shucks, maybe they’ll even start winning some games!
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2025 didn’t end so great for the Blackhawks, and injuries have likely derailed any playoff hopes for the 2025-26 season. But we’re embarking on a new year and an opportunity for a fresh start. If the team can make progress on the above resolutions, 2026 could be rather bright!
