CHN Daily
Jack’s Daily: Blackhawks Brutal December; Frondell Scores Twice in Exhibition
Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! The NHL’s Christmas Break is now in effect, with no games across the league for the next three days.
The break perhaps comes at a perfect time for the Chicago Blackhawks, who’ve lost six consecutive games after a 3-1 defeat to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night at the United Center. It’s been a devastating month of December so far, with a 2-8-1 record in 11 games and a pair of crushing injuries to Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar.
Predictably, the Blackhawks’ offense struggled in their first game without both Bedard and Nazar against the Flyers. More in the links for the recap of a hard-fought battle that ended up in another loss due to a lack of run support.
Also in Blackhawks news, top prospect Anton Frondell looked sharp in an exhibition match for Team Sweden ahead of the World Junior Championship, which begins on Friday. Chicago also has a couple of players in the organization who will represent their countries at the Spengler Cup.
Around the league, the Sabres have now won seven games in a row, Steven Stamkos ended his 1,200th NHL game in style, and the Panthers scored five unanswered goals to storm back against the Hurricanes.
All that & more in the Daily!
Chicago Blackhawks Recap, News & Tidbits
Chicago Hockey Now: Life without Bedard and Nazar for the next few weeks puts the Blackhawks’ offense in a bind. There isn’t enough speed and creativity left on the roster to get consistent goal scoring, and that was on display in Tuesday’s 3-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. Chicago was credited with only seven high-danger chances in all situations. Yikes.
More CHN: The Blackhawks were due for some positive injury news eventually. Captain Nick Foligno is knocking on the door for his return to the lineup. Foligno has been out since Nov. 15 with a hand injury. While he won’t be a major help offensively, it will be great to have the team’s chief leader back on the bench and in the locker room again.
With the 2026 World Junior Championship just a few days away, Blackhawks prospect Anton Frondell and Sweden faced off with Switzerland in a pre-tournament exhibition match on Tuesday. Frondell scored twice to help Sweden win 7-3. The 2025 No. 3 overall pick figures to play a sizeable role for the Swedes over the next couple of weeks.
The 2026 Spengler Cup is also set to begin later this week, and a few Blackhawks will represent their respective countries in the tournament. Goalie prospect Adam Gajan will play for the U.S. Collegiate Select Team, while Rockford IceHogs’ skaters Nolan Allan and Brett Seney will play for Canada. The Spengler Cup runs from Dec. 26-31, so Allan and Seney will miss a few games for the IceHogs.
NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now
NHL.com: Nathan MacKinnon has led the NHL in points for most of the season, but a recent hot stretch from Connor McDavid has vaulted him ahead of the Avs’ forward. McDavid assisted on all five Oilers goals, while Leon Draisaitl scored a hat trick in a 5-1 win over the Calgary Flames on Tuesday. McDavid now has points in 11 consecutive games and is six points clear of MacKinnon with 67 on the year.
The Hockey News: While playing in his 1,200th career NHL game, Steven Stamkos scored the overtime winner to lift the Nashville Predators to a 3-2 victory over the red-hot Minnesota Wild. Stamkos has now scored the game-winning goal in three straight outings.
Toronto Hockey Now: What does the future hold for GM Brad Treliving and head coach Craig Berube with the Toronto Maple Leafs? According to an insider, the recent firing of assistant coach Marc Savard should be considered a “warning shot” for the rest of the organization.
Vegas Hockey Now: Mitch Marner scored twice in the Vegas Golden Knights‘ pre-Christmas beatdown of the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday.
More NHL.com: Bowen Byram scored the overtime winner to give the Buffalo Sabres seven consecutive wins. Don’t look now, but the Sabres are suddenly just two points back of a wildcard playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Boston Hockey Now: After falling 6-2 to the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, the Boston Bruins head into the Holidays riding a four-game losing streak.
New Jersey Hockey Now: The New Jersey Devils are another team in need of the Christmas break. Their struggles continued on the eve of Christmas Eve against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena in a 2-1 loss.
Florida Hockey Now: Paul Maurice does not light into his team on the bench very often, but when he does, the Florida Panthers usually kick it into gear. As was the case on Tuesday night in Raleigh, where the Panthers rattled off five unanswered goals to storm back from a 2-0 deficit against the Carolina Hurricanes.
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