TLDR: The season opens on Tuesday, September 29 in the desert, and Chicago shows up without its captain. Connor Bedard is still skating by himself after shoulder surgery, so the Blackhawks bring Patrick Kane, a young top line and a penalty kill they have been drilling on purpose into T-Mobile Arena.
Chicago opens its season in Vegas without captain Connor Bedard, who is still skating on his own after July shoulder surgery. The Blackhawks' hopes rest on a Kane-Nazar-Kantserov top line and a penalty kill that looked sharp in the preseason, while an 0-for-5 power play shows how much Bedard's absence costs them. Vegas is at home, in a building built for openers, and the board has it as a heavy favorite.
Everything in Chicago this week has been about who isn't there. Bedard had shoulder surgery on July 9 with a 4-month timeline, and Jeff Blashill said on September 23 that his return to team practice is "obviously not forthcoming in the next little bit." He has been cleared to take slap shots and is working with skills coaches, but that is individual work, not a lineup spot. The Blackhawks' second-youngest captain ever will watch the opener.
The top line is where it gets interesting. Kane skated with Frank Nazar and Roman Kantserov in his only preseason appearance, and the Sun-Times said the line generated consistent chances, with the Kane-Kantserov connection carrying over from practice. The rest of that night was the problem: a 1-0 loss in St. Louis, 0-for-5 on the power play. Jordan Greenway also left practice early with a lower-body tweak, and he is expected to play Tuesday. The board has Vegas as a big home favorite, which is about what you would expect.
There is a real case for Chicago, and it has nothing to do with scoring. The Hawks killed all 7 penalties they took against the Blues, and Blashill said they have "practiced it a lot on purpose" because special teams can steal points early. Arvid Soderblom, the backup, was their best player in that game with 35 saves. Chicago has not said who starts in net Tuesday, but that is the blueprint: defend, kill penalties, keep it close, and hope the Kane line finds 1 or 2.
Vegas's camp was shorter than usual. The new CBA cut the preseason from 7 games to 4 and pushed the regular season to 84 games, and the Golden Knights played the Kings, Utah and San Jose twice before trimming the camp roster. They also get to open at home, where the building will be loud, against a team that finished last season badly.
Take that form card as last season's ending, not this season's start. Chicago went 1-4 over its last 5 in April, including a 7-2 loss to Carolina and a 5-1 loss to Buffalo, both at home, before beating San Jose 5-2 in the finale. It was a long summer, and the one player who can change that picture is still in a sling. Puck drop is 7:30 PM PT.
