![\"Blackhawks](\"https:\/\/www.sportsmockery.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/USATSI_23028217-1-scaled.jpg\")
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Throughout this season, the Blackhawks have made more than their fair share of moves. From shaking up the lineup on a nightly basis all the way to firing their head coach, the team has been a revolving door in which no one quite knows what to expect.<\/p>\n
Still, a few moves are more predictable than others. On Friday morning, the Blackhawks finally made their most highly anticipated transaction of the year, calling up their top prospect. Forward Frank Nazar was brought up to the big show and will make his season debut Saturday against the Devils.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s no secret that Chicago is willing to try anything to spark its offense. After all, it\u2019s fair to say that the offense is probably the reason head coach Luke Richardson was fired last week \u2013 he\u2019s a more than capable defensive mind, but his team just couldn\u2019t score. The Blackhawks have been slightly better under interim Anders Sorensen, but a large part of that is due to a late surge in Thursday\u2019s loss to the Islanders.<\/p>\n
After three games of getting a feel for the lineup he was given, it certainly appears that Sorensen asked GM Kyle Davidson for a bit of help \u2013 and that\u2019s exactly what the young general manager gave him. Nazar\u2019s 24 points this season are good for sixth in the entire AHL, and his showing on the ice has matched that elite mark \u2013 after dominating with the IceHogs up to this point, he seems ready to take the next step.<\/p>\n
Now that Nazar is with the big club, they\u2019re throwing him right in. With Craig Smith out tomorrow with a lower back injury, the youngster is slotting in on the second line, centering Taylor Hall and Tyler Bertuzzi. He\u2019ll be on the top power-play unit as well.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s an argument to be made that bringing Nazar to the Blackhawks too early could disrupt his confidence and \u201cruin\u201d him, but it certainly seems like the best thing for him. He\u2019s dominating the AHL \u2013 the same argument was made for Kevin Korchinski a year and a half ago when the team was deciding whether to leave him in the WHL for another season, but he had nothing left to learn. Meanwhile, I wrote Thursday that a change is needed in Rockford to put someone with actual coaching experience at the helm of the IceHogs. If the Blackhawks refuse to do so, getting Nazar out as soon as possible is the best thing for him. Couple that with the fact that he\u2019ll be rejoining Sorensen, who helped Nazar transform into the consistent, mega-talented player he is today, and you get a perfect storm of reasons Nazar belongs at the game\u2019s top level.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no telling what the future holds with Nazar. The corresponding move to this one was to place defenseman Alex Martinez on injured reserve, so who knows how long he\u2019ll be in the NHL. He may not even be the first man on the chopping block when an IR player returns \u2013 Seth Jones should be back sometime soon, but Chicago could send down Louis Crevier when he does so. If the Blackhawks are looking to remove a forward from the NHL roster, they could shed Joey Anderson, who has already cleared waivers. This move may not be permanent, but it certainly makes the Blackhawks a bit more exciting moving forward.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
On Friday morning, the Blackhawks finally made their most highly anticipated transaction of the year, calling up their top prospect.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6453,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6452","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chicago-blackhawks"],"yoast_head":"\n