Chicago Blackhawks
Top Line: Alexander Nylander, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane
The Blackhawks aren’t going to stay down forever. They have a nice prospect pool that’s going to help them return to relevancy very soon. As for their top line, it has two familiar faces in Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. You can’t underestimate veteran leadership and elite offensive players that have been doing this for a long time.
Whether you like him or not, Kane is one of the best wingers in the game. The organization around him struggled in recent memory, but that’s not at all his fault. He’s remained an elite offensive weapon and doesn’t appear to be losing any steam.
Kane had 44 goals last season, just two short of his career high. As the team around him gets better, he’ll get better as well. No player can do it all on their own, which is why we love hockey. So the Blackhawks have Toews at center, who remarkably just put up his career high in points in year 12 of his career.
As for now, Alex Nylander will be on the left wing opposite Kane. He’s a former top-ten draft pick in 2016, and comes via trade over the offseason from the Buffalo Sabres. Interesting trade that didn’t get a ton of publicity. Nylander is looking to start fresh with a new organization, and what better way than to play alongside Toews and Kane? He’ll have plenty of opportunities to boost his offensive numbers.