4 players who stood out in preseason road games

The Chicago Blackhawks finished their pre-season road trip in 2025, going to the Red Wings of Detroit, St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild. The Hawks will welcome these three teams to the United Center before the start of the regular season in Florida on October 7.

While the list of Hawks solidifies, skaters seek to prove that they are ready for the NHL. Here are four players who made noise on the road.

1. Oliver Moore

The rapid striker showed his prolific skating while he was playing in all pre-season matches on the road. He was a Frank Nazar winger with Aidan Thompson in Detroit and led a few gunshots a night when the Hawks had trouble scoring in a 3-2 defeat.

It was another story against blues. The Hawks entered a burst in the third period against Saint-Louis, scoring four unanswered goals to win 4-2. The goal of Go-Ahead was one of the most bizarre games. On a breakaway in the Blues area, Colton Dach has given huge success in the central ice. A melee ensued which included each player on both sides.

Each player with the exception of Moore, who exceeded a defender in a solo breakaway for a goal outside camera. He turned to celebrate with his team, only to see them in their fight.

“I didn’t even know what was going on behind me,” said Moore after the Blues match. “I fired on the washer, I marked (and) I looked back while waiting for my teammates to celebrate with me and they were all in a fight.”

Moore seems to be a perfect fit for the faster vision of coach Jeff Blashill. He can lead any escape and just need to settle her finish to be a coherent threat.

He is a big skater to compare other Hawks at speed. There were times in the camp where Connor Bedard – who worked on his skating this summer – equaled Moore in exercises.

Appearing in each pre-season match seems good for the main hopes of Moore’s list. His speed should take the teams off guard in the regular season.

2. Dominic Toninato

The scoring against the blues started with a minute of attacker. The line with Toninato, Martin Misiak and Gavin Hayes produced the best offense for Hawks on Saturday.

At the start of the third period, defender Connor Murphy found Toninato in the right ice, and he entered the washer for the first goal of the Hawks of the night. A few seconds later, the striker found Hayes sitting in front of the net to equalize the match 2-2.

Hayes and Misiak were assigned to Icehogs on Saturday, while Toninato was placed on derogations on Sunday, opening his way to sign with Rockford. The attacker will be an excellent veteran piece that will bring experience in a pinch to the Hawks as well as to Icehogs teammates and prospects.

3. Sam Rinzel

It is early, but fans are enthusiastic about what they saw with the defender of the University of Minnesota. He impressed again during his two pre-season appearances in Detroit and Minnesota.

Rinzel obtained the first assist of the pre-season for the Hawks against the Red Wings. A second -time power game saw Rinzel exchange the washer with Bedard. The defender sent him to the left once again and Bedard launched a snipe for his first goal of 2025-26. Blashill made his team work on special teams in training leading to pre-season matches and that has shown.

Rinzel and Wyatt Kaiser showed their defensive balance against nature. For a goal that should have passed Drew Commesso, Rinzel saved him with the top of his skate to prevent the Wild from scoring his second goal of the night during the 4-1 victory of the Hawks.

The Hawks performed well in the power game and the killing of a penalty last season, so the team hopes that the presence of Rinzel will raise the team in the upper ranks of the NHL. The great vision of the defender’s ice and the ability to create in power play and, even in force, make him a threat every second of ice time.

He patinated with Alex Vlasic in the days preceding Detroit, pointing that they trust the young woman of 21 years with first pair tasks. Rinzel and Bedard on the ice together could lead to many goals.

4. Frank Nazar

The Hawks have signed Nazar to his seven -year contract of $ 46 million in the hope that he will pass the next stage of his play. If his performance on Sunday says something, it is because he is more than ready.

His game at Wild started with a first -time goal. Tyler Bertuzzi kept the washer in play, then shot that rebounded on the goalkeeper towards Teräväinen. Nazar collected a Teräväinen pass in front of the net to give the Hawks an advance of 1-0.

In the second, the attacker flashed his skills in skating by zooming near the wild defense on a breakaway. Bertuzzi obtained his second assist passing to the Flying Nazar, who entered the washer for goal n ° 2. Nazar launched one of the logo in an empty net for an tour of the pre-season hat at the end of the third.

He will be a skater that opposing teams will have to monitor each time he is out of the bench. Whether it is to center the second line or to join the power game with Bedard, Nazar has a chance to mark each time the washer flies on its way.

Notes

The following players were assigned to Rockford Icehogs:

• F Brett Seney
• F Paul Ludwinski
• F Jackson Cates
• F Gavin Hayes
• F Martin Misiak
• D Andrew Perrott
• D Cavan Fitzgerald
• D Taige Harding
• DMitry Kuzmin
• D Ryan Mast
• G Stanislav Berezhnoy
• Strong Dominic Toninato was placed on derogations by the Hawks, opening his way to sign with the Icehogs.

There are 38 players left on the list of training camps.