DRAFT PROSPECTS HOCKEY

Tag: anton frondell

  • Anton Frondell was a bright spot in Blackhawks’ third straight loss

    Anton Frondell was a bright spot in Blackhawks’ third straight loss

    The Blackhawks are going into their home opener on Tuesday 0-3-0. The fact that they are win-less isn’t the issue, it’s how the losses have looked.

    Last night in Buffalo was their best effort so far, they had the lead for most of the game, and didn’t trail until the game-winning-goal late in the third, but that kind of effort still isn’t going to be enough to beat most teams in the NHL.

    There were a few promising individual performances from Alex Vlasic, Spencer Knight, Frank Nazar, and Anton Frondell.

    Frondell assisted on two of the three Blackhawks goals, both of which were primary assists. He finished the night with two assists, a +2 rating, one SOG, one hit, and 16:06 of time on ice.

    His first assist in particular was very impressive. It all started with a great defensive play behind his own goal line to start the breakout, which turned into a rush led by Alex Vlasic. The puck eventually found Frondell wide open in front. The entire arena thought Frondell was gonna shoot that puck, but instead he sent a perfect no-look pass to Tyler Bertuzzi back door.

    His second assist came from a two-on-one with Oliver Moore. Frondell send a perfect pass to Moore who made no mistake putting it home.

    There has been a lot of discussion about whether or not Frondell should continue playing center or move to the wing, and while he hasn’t been great so far this season, last night was a promising sign. Although, his faceoffs still need work. He was only six for ten on the dot, a measly 37.5%.

    “It’s boring to lose games. That’s not what we want to do. But I think today just shows that we can play better.” Frondell after 4-3 loss to Buffalo (Via Mark Lazerus on X).

    Frondell struggling early was never anything to worry about, he’s only 19 years old and is getting throw into a top six center role on a sub par team that is missing their best player.

    There were moments last night when Frondell was on the ice that made you think “oh, there is the raw talent, that’s why he went third overall”.

    It sems as though the Blackhawks will be missing Connor Bedard for at least a couple more weeks, so if there were ever a time for Frondell to find his game, it’s right now.

    The entire team, including Frondell, hope to build on their effort in the home opener. The rival St. Louis Blues are in town, this is a great chance for the Blackhawks to get back on track.

  • Blackhawks vs Mammoth game preview

    Blackhawks vs Mammoth game preview

    After a forgetful game one in Vegas on Tuesday, the Blackhawks are in Utah and look to get back on track. It felt like a rivalry in the making last season. Every time these two teams played it was chippy and emotional on both sides.

    It’s only the second game of the season and we have already seen three different forward lineups. Andrew Mangiapane will not play on the rest of the road trip after getting hurt in the second period vs Vegas, Teuvo Teravainen will slot in as a replacement.

    Projected Blackhawks lines:

    Bertuzzi – Frondell – Kane

    Teravainen – Kantserov – Lardis

    Donato – Nazar – Moore

    Smith – Greene – Greenway

    Vlasic – Byram

    Kaiser – Levshunov

    Cole – Rinzel

    Korchinski – Del Mastro*

    Knight

    *Korchinski and Del Mastro took reps in practice, it is unknown whether they play tonight or not.

    These lines do make more sense than what Jeff Blashill put out in Vegas. Frondell gets his chance at first line center, where he will play with a distributor in Patrick Kane, and a puck retriever in Tyler Bertuzzi.

    Teravainen goes from healthy scratch to the second line, giving the Blackhawks more playmaking options. Teravainen is playing with two shooters in Kantserov and Lardis. A defensively reliable second line with speed and two players who can score.

    The third line is all speed with Ryan Donato, Frank Nazar, and Oliver Moore. Bumping Donato out of the top six is probably the right decision as he is best used as a depth scoring option.

    The fourth line stays intact, as it was easily their best trio on Tuesday.

    Watch for Bowen Byram to have a bounce back game. Byram looked great in the preseason, but the nerves of game one got to him. “I just think we weren’t necessarily dialed in on what we had to do, and it showed in the first…30, 45 minutes of the game” (via Ben Pope on X)

    The key for Chicago is simple hockey. They tried to be way too fancy in Vegas, firing blind passes up the middle. If the Blackhawks can make the short, simple plays tonight, they will see more success.

    Utah is a team with a lot of speed who will be looking to attack off the rush, something the Blackhawks struggled to defend against Vegas on Tuesday.

    “You either have to be right down on the puck down the walls or you have to be inside the dots. If you’re in between at all, which we were a couple of times, they fly out of the zone and it’s going to be a 2-on-1 instantaneously.” Jeff Blashill on defending the rush (Via Ben Pope on X).

    Projected Mammoth lines:

    Keller – Schmaltz – Trocheck

    Lee – Cooley – Guenther

    Crouse – Hayton – McBain

    O’Brien – Stenlund – But

    Sergachev – Weeger

    Schmidt – Marino

    Simashev – Peeke

    Vejmelka

  • Blackhawks throw lines into blender ahead of season opener

    Blackhawks throw lines into blender ahead of season opener

    Throughout the majority of the pre-season and training camp, head coach Jeff Blashill has been relatively consistent with his forward lines. With players being in and out of the lineup due to preseason game limits for veterans, there have been natural changes. Today, however, the lines in practice left fans pondering.

    The first official regular season practice was today and these were the forward lines:

    Moore – Kantserov – Kane

    Donato – Nazar – Lardis

    Bertuzzi – Frondell – Mangiapane

    Smith – Greene – Greenway

    Extra: Teravainen

    Other than the pairing of Patrick Kane, Roman Kantserov, and the fourth line entirely, the forward group has a whole new look.

    Kantserov played one preseason game at center and he clearly impressed Jeff Blashill “Got to see Roman at center; feel confident he can play center in the NHL” Blashill said after practice.

    Adding Oliver Moore to the top line is interesting, as Moore has historically looked better down the middle. However, his speed and tenacity on the puck may gel very well with Kane’s slower paced style of playmaking, and Kantserov’s goal scoring, net driving ability.

    The now third line, which was the second line the other day, stays intact. Anton Frondell looked his best in preseason playing with Tyler Bertuzzi and Andrew Mangiapane, so it makes sense to keep them together.

    Nick Lardis and Anton Frondell were a second-line pair through most of camp, which I believe hindered both of them, as are both elite shots and would benefit as the lone shooter on a line, ideally with a playmaker.

    Ryan Donato also gets the bump back into the top-six. “I think Frankie [Nazar] can carry his own line” Jeff Blashill’s reasoning for putting Nazar between a inexperienced Nick Lardis, and sub-par top-six scorer in Donato. Watch for Nick Lardis to have a major impact early.

    These will likely be the lines to open up the regular season tomorrow in Vegas. Connor Bedard is set to travel with the team, however, he is not practicing with them yet.

  • Uncertainty on whether or not Anton Frondell is a center or winger remains

    Uncertainty on whether or not Anton Frondell is a center or winger remains

    When Anton Frondell was drafted third overall in 2025, many people assumed he would be the much-needed linemate for Connor Bedard. The pair played together in only three of Frondell’s 12 NHL games last season. Jeff Blashill gave the young Swede a shot at the second-line center position, where he thrived. Frondell drove a second line with Tyler Bertuzzi and Ilya Mikheyev. 

    It seems Blashill really liked what he saw, as Frondell has played center in both of his preseason appearances so far and is set to do so again in tonight’s final preseason game. 

    Unfortunately, Frondell hasn’t looked nearly as dangerous as he did in the regular season last year. Jeff Blashill commented on Frondell’s play so far.

    “I don’t think he’s got to his A-game yet, which is ok. I thought he played his A-game when he came over [last season]… At times, you’ve taken so much information in, you’ve just got to kind of let it happen a little bit. He’s going to be a really good player. There’s no doubt in my mind. He’s still 19 years old. There’s going to be ups and downs, and we just have to have realistic expectations.” 

    Fortunately, Frondell’s defensive game has remained solid, which usually isn’t the case for teenagers in the NHL. Frondell is a 200-foot player who has often been compared to Aleksander Barkov, so it’s reasonable to expect him to have a defensive impact right away. Frondell has an elite shot as well, which is what makes him such a complete player.

    So far this pre-season, Frondell has been paired with Nick Lardis, another pure goal scorer. However, their games seem to clash, rather than complement each other. Both of them are shooters who need a linemate who can go to the dirty areas and win puck battles. 

    Tonight, those two will be split up for the first time this preseason. Frondell will center the top line with Bertuzzi and Mangiapane. Mangiapane is a “puck-pursuit type player”, according to Blashill. Nick Lardis will play on the third line with Roman Kantserov and Teuvo Teravainen. 

    Whether or not Frondell is a full-time center or winger is still a mystery.