Connor Bedard
Bedard is the Blackhawks' first-line center and their main offensive driver, but the shoulder issue means his availability is the open question, and I found no update beyond the wire note.
Role
Chicago Hockey Now's lines page (indexed about a day ago) has him centering Kantserov and Donato on line 1. Ben Pope's warmup report from Boston, via gamedaytweets, shows the same trio. ESPN's line page, about 8 days old, has him on power-play unit 1 with Kantserov and Kane. The Morning Puck page, about 16 days old, shows him at 22:07 of ice time in one game, the most of any Chicago forward on that page. His right wing has changed over the last few weeks: Kane on 16 and 20 October, Donato in the more recent lines. The Daily Faceoff line page loaded only a shell, last updated January 2026, so I am not reporting what it says. Frondell, Nazar and Moore are the other centers on the page, but I found no report of any of them competing for Bedard's spot. The wire note says he might be available Tuesday against the Penguins. I found no practice report or club statement on the shoulder.
He is the unquestioned top-line center, on power-play unit 1 and getting the most ice time among Chicago forwards in the one box score I saw. Bleacher Nation argues that strengthening the lines behind him, such as Frondell between Bertuzzi and Kane, would take pressure off Bedard and Kantserov.
The Blackhawks are still searching for the right mix up front, and Bleacher Nation says so on 2 November. The wing next to him has rotated between Kane and Donato. Chicago lost its last game 1-4 at Detroit. He is also nursing a shoulder issue with no confirmed return date.
Where analysts split
The open question is who plays right wing on Bedard's line (Donato or Kane, or Frondell moved up). Ben Pope's suggestion of putting Frondell with Bedard is the one concrete alternative I found. The shoulder is the other: the wire note says only that he might play Tuesday.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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