Chicago Hockey Insider has no direct affiliation to the Chicago Blackhawks, NHL or NHLPA
Report: Chicago Blackhawks young star will indeed be skipping NHL training camp
Photo credit: Daily Faceoff
A young star in the Chicago Blackhawks organization will apparently skip the next NHL training camp to compete elsewhere.
According to The Athletic's Scott Powers, one of the prospects fans are most eager to see in action, Anton Frondell, could end up not even taking part in the training camp next Fall.
Indeed, his again, J.P. Barry, confirmed in a recent interview that as of now, the player is fully committed to Djurgården in the Swedish Hockey League, where he played a key role in the team's promotion from the second-tier Allsvenskan last season, but things could still change before the start of the season:
"It's up to (Frondell), but he's leaning towards simply establishing himself in Djurgården for one big development season and leaving to come over to camp can interrupt a strong start over there also."
This development shouldn't come as a complete surprise to the Blackhawks. Back at the Hawks' development camp, Frondell was clear about his intentions:
"My dream is to play in the NHL. I want to do it as soon as possible. So if I get a chance to be at the camp, fighting for a spot on the team, that's my dream, that's what I want to do. If I don't make it, I'm going back to play with Djurgarden."
The timeline for both clubs is already in conflict. Djurgården begins training camp on July 28, with their first game slated for September 13-just when the Blackhawks' camp is set to begin.
General manager Kyle Davidson still held out hope earlier this summer, but acknowledged that it could go either way:
"I believe he'll be able to come to training camp, yeah. There's probably contract situations and all that has to be figured out before that, but we'll see."
"The plan as we stand here today is that he's playing in Djurgården in the SHL next year, but we've got a lot of time to figure out if that's the best path."
"The plan as we stand here today is that he's playing in Djurgården in the SHL next year, but we've got a lot of time to figure out if that's the best path."
Frondell, who signed a three-year entry-level deal worth $2.925 million this week, was the third overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. Chicago remains high on his potential, but for now, the SHL appears to be the immediate destination.
Previously on Chicago Hockey Insider
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 19 | 752 ANSWERS Report: Chicago Blackhawks young star will indeed be skipping NHL training camp Do you think Anton Frondell will come to the NHL after the next season? | ||
| Yes | 573 | 76.2 % |
| No | 179 | 23.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
TRENDING NOW
