Frank Nazar, rest of Blackhawks youngsters have things to prove during stretch run

DENVER — Second-year forward Frank Nazar remembers how the Blackhawks’ strong finish to last season changed the mood of the offseason.

Going 4-1-1 in their last six games of 2024-25 — despite the small sample size — gave the Hawks and their fans a fleeting glimpse of the success they think lies ahead.

Entering the final stretch of this season, Nazar is keeping in mind how just a little bit of winning can make a big difference.

‘‘[We were] having fun, [creating] a lot of optimism coming into the year, and look at the start we had, right?’’ Nazar said Thursday. ‘‘That has a lot of things to do with it. Obviously, everyone wants to have a great end of the season. But when the sun comes out and you get to play hockey while it’s nice out in Chicago, that’s the best time.’’

Nazar, 22, and many of his equally young (or younger) teammates are motivated to prove some things before the Hawks’ regular season finale April 15.

A 4-2 defeat Thursday to the Predators didn’t represent a great start to this 25-game run, and things won’t get any easier Saturday against the Avalanche.

But as center Connor Bedard put it, ‘‘Every team you play is going to be good [because] it’s a good league.’’ The Hawks eventually will have to figure out how to conquer this steep competition.

‘‘What I’m focusing on right now is to play the rest of the year the right way and take steps forward, as a group, to become a great hockey team,’’ Nazar said. ‘‘It might not happen this year, but if we make steps right now . . . then coming into next year, we’ll be even better.’’

For rookie forward Ryan Greene, the coming weeks offer a crucial opportunity to prove he’s not only a good-enough temporary option on Bedard’s wing — where he unexpectedly has spent much of this season — but a legitimate top-six NHL player for the long haul.

The arrivals of forwards Anton Frondell and Roman Kantserov will increase competition for those roles. But Greene, also 22, has one advantage: He’s already 59 games into his NHL development curve.

Greene admitted he was ‘‘running on fumes’’ before the Olympic break, but he has looked rejuvenated since. He stood out in practices and followed that up with a quality performance against the Predators, highlighted by a nifty assist on Bedard’s goal.

‘‘The more [Ryan] can prove he’s a guy that can add value to that line, the better off he is, especially as we continue to the future,’’ coach Jeff Blashill said. ‘‘There will be different options that we’ll have, and he wants to . . . show he’s the best option.’’

For rookie defenseman Sam Rinzel, the end of last season also has been on his mind. That’s when he played his best in the NHL so far.

This season has been more of a roller coaster for Rinzel, which isn’t surprising for a 21-year-old with a less-than-filled-out body trying to compete against pros for 82 games rather than nine. Still, he hopes to demonstrate he at least can climb back to that peak.

‘‘I knew there were going to be bumps, but [this season] didn’t go the way I thought or wanted it to go,’’ Rinzel said. ‘‘Getting sent down, as a player, it’s really frustrating. I’m happy with . . . how I went about it, looking in the mirror and trying to see what I needed to get better at. Nothing has ever been linear for me.

‘‘If the first half didn’t go the way I want, I want to make sure to have a strong second half, so that’s fully what I’m focused on. It doesn’t have to be a big leap. [I want to] just keep playing smart, playing how I know how to play.’’

More on Nazar

Although Nazar has his mind on a strong season-finishing run for the Hawks, the team could really benefit from a strong season-ending run by Nazar himself.

He has just one goal and two assists in nine games since returning from his broken jaw in January, although he has recorded a healthy 27 shots on goal during that span.

One factor working in his favor could be his weight. He lost about eight pounds due to eating difficulties right after the injury. He finally regained the last missing pound during the Olympic break.

Another factor could be the Hawks' altered defensive-zone and breakout systems, which were altered in part to create more transition offense — an area where Nazar thrives.

But within those systems, Nazar still must be careful. One prevailing talking point after Thursday and Friday concerned Nazar and Oliver Moore not giving rookie defenseman Artyom Levshunov enough support during a failed breakout Thursday that led to a Predators goal.

Nazar took off too aggressively up the middle toward the neutral zone right away, which eliminated him from being a passing option for Levshunov after he bobbled the puck behind the net.

"As forwards, we have to read off the 'D' and how much pressure is on him," Ryan Greene explained. "If there's a lot of pressure on him, we've got to be closer to him. If he's got time and he's skating with it, we can get going up the ice a little earlier."