CHICAGO — Anton Frondell took the opening faceoff for the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday. When he got off the ice, Connor Bedard jumped to replace him at center. When Bedard finished his shift, Frank Nazar came on.

Blackhawks coach Jeff Blashill is in an experimentation phase with Frondell at center — Tuesday marked his second game there after playing wing in his first three NHL games — but Blashill’s dream has the Blackhawks able to go three quality centers deep.

“I think ultimately the best teams in the league have kind of three really hard matchup lines,” Blashill said before Tuesday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets. “By that, I mean lines that are hard to match. You go into a game, the really good teams all have three, the good teams have two. … Ultimately, we’re going to need three really good lines here if we want to become a really good team, have a fourth line that has good roles, whether it be penalty killers, physicality, toughness, whatever that might be.”

The way Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson has gone about building the team helps with what Blashill would like to do. Davidson drafted Nazar at No. 13 in 2022 and Bedard first in 2023 with the hopes they’d be two of the team’s top centers and would arrive in the NHL quickly. In Year 3, Bedard has emerged as a star No. 1 center. In Year 2, Nazar is still finding consistency, but his highs have been really high: Over the last 15 games, he leads the Blackhawks in points.

When the Blackhawks took Frondell with the third pick in 2025, they knew they’d like his two-way game and size, but they weren’t sure where in the lineup he’d fall. He played mostly wing this season in the Swedish Hockey League. But as Blashill watched a ton of Frondell this season, he wondered if Frondell could be the type of center the Blackhawks don’t necessarily have. He has more size than Bedard and Nazar. He plays a more responsible defensive game but still has offensive abilities.

With Jonathan Toews in town with the Jets, it was easy for Blashill to find an example of the type of center he’d love to have in his lineup.

“I just think long term when you have that ability to kind of defend the ice 200 feet and produce offense,” Blashill said, “Winnipeg’s got one of the best ever to play in Chicago do that. I just think those guys are so, so valuable. He (Frondell) played all wing all year. For him to go into center, that’s a hard thing, but I just thought I want to do it now instead until wait to next year.”

Frondell looked much more comfortable at center in his second game. He, Ilya Mikheyev and Tyler Bertuzzi were by far the Blackhawks’ best line of the night. They created all three of the Blackhawks’ goals, which included Frondell’s first in the NHL when Mikheyev swept him the puck in the slot for one-timer. It was Frondell’s fifth point in his fifth NHL game.

Frondell wasn’t perfect. He abandoned his coverage of Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey as Morrissey drove to the net in the second period, thinking he’d have assistance at the net, and Morrissey scored all alone. Frondell was also on the ice when the Jets scored 33 seconds into overtime. Overall, though, he held more than his own while largely going  up against Jets center Mark Scheifele. In the 11:27 he was on the ice against Scheifele, the Blackhawks had a 76.58 expected goals percentage, according to Natural Stat Trick, and outscored the Jets 3-1.

“He’s done an excellent job to be out against what I think is one of the best lines in the League with Scheifele, (Kyle) Connor,” Blashill said. “There were some mistakes, but, overall, I thought he did an excellent job. The line did an excellent job, so don’t take away from Mickey and Bert. It’s kind of a line that gets it in terms of the way they want to play together. It’s certainly throwing him to the wolves, and I’ll tell you he did a real good job.”

Frondell’s self-assessment at center was simpler. He was asked whether he felt more comfortable there in a second game.

“I guess so, a little bit,” he said. “I enjoy playing in the middle of the ice. It’s fun.”

Moving Frondell to center alters what many assumed the Blackhawks’ lineup will look like in the future. The thought was Frondell would become Bedard’s running mate on a wing and Nazar would center the second line. With Frondell at center, there’s less certainty of who Bedard’s future wings will be, while Nazar likely will become a third-line center.

Blashill promoted Nick Lardis to Bedard’s wing the last two games after Lardis had success on the second line with Nazar. Ryan Greene, who has spent a majority of the season with Bedard, was the other wing. Lardis and Greene had quality looks Tuesday, but neither could capitalize.

Nazar has played the last two games with Ryan Donato and André Burakovsky. He scored twice in Sunday’s loss and had his share of chances again Tuesday, finishing the game with nine shot attempts, including four on net. In the last 15 games, Nazar has had seven goals and seven assists. Blashill didn’t think it mattered exactly where Nazar was playing in the lineup.

“I don’t think that changes Frank’s role at all,” Blashill said. “I think it just adds another potential good center. I’d love to have a chance to have three really good centers. That makes you a really good hockey team in a hurry.”

Except for Mikheyev, all those players mentioned are expected back next season, and there is still the possibility he is re-signed. Oliver Moore, who was trending up before his recent injury, could also be slotted at wing or become the fourth-line center. But mostly, Blashill could be getting a look at some of next season’s potential lines. There’s also a high likelihood the Blackhawks add at least one top-six winger this offseason, with Roman Kantserov most likely to be added to the mix. He led the Kontinental Hockey League in goals as a 21-year-old and would be expected to jump into a top-six role.

The Blackhawks could also take a winger with their first pick in the 2026 draft. With their recent losses, the Blackhawks have gotten closer to having the second-best odds at the No. 1 pick. They’re in 31st place with a .453 points percentage, and would draft fourth overall at worst should they remain there. A top-two pick would guarantee Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg, but it’s possible one of the wingers could still be on the board if the Blackhawks were at No. 3, though less likely at No. 4. Either McKenna or Stenberg would upgrade the Blackhawks’ winger possibilities.

The other possibility is Davidson trading for a wing in the offseason. He mentioned at the trade deadline he’d explore using his draft capital to bring in a player next season. It’ll all come down to the price and not leveraging what the Blackhawks have already built, but it is in the cards.

Blashill and Davidson discuss big-picture decisions such as moving Frondell to center and what that could mean for Bedard, the wingers and the lineup. Overall, they decided it’s worth giving Frondell a look there because it has the greatest potential for the Blackhawks as a team.

“I mean, we certainly think about what the lineup looks like with other guys in different spots,” Blashill said. “Certainly, getting Connor guys who play off him well is important, and I think both Greene and Lardis have the capability to do that. I just think for us, long term, I think having the center ice position solidified is a huge, huge thing. If you have Connor and Anton and Frankie, I think you’ve got a really good 1-2-3 punch right there, and you build it from there. So, we’re looking at what’s best for our team long term.

“I’ve said this lots: We’re not going to take a shortcut to win a game on a Tuesday night that’s going to hurt us long term. Certainly part of that long term is getting the best out of each of our players, so to put them in positions to be as successful as possible is important.”