Montreal Canadiens star Nick Suzuki had a fantastic year for the Original Six club in 2024-25. In 82 games during the campaign, the 2017 first-round pick scored 30 goals and set new career highs with 59 assists, 89 points, and a plus-19 rating. With numbers like these, he was certainly a big reason why the Canadiens snapped their playoff drought. 

Now, Suzuki has been rewarded for his strong 2024-25 campaign, as he has made Sportsnet's top 50 players list for the 2025-26 season. 

Suzuki secured the No. 29 spot on Sportsnet's list. With this, he was ranked ahead of other notable NHL stars like Brandon Hagel (Tampa Bay Lightning), Andrei Vasilevskiy (Lightning), Sebastian Aho (Carolina Hurricanes), and Josh Morrisey (Winnipeg Jets).

Given the year Suzuki just had, it is entirely understandable that he has been ranked among the NHL's best players by Sportsnet. He only seems to be getting better with each season that passes by, and it will be fascinating to see what kind of year he has in 2025-26 from here. 

One of the bright spots in the Chicago Blackhawks’ exhibition loss to the Detroit Red Wings was the play of forward Colton Dach. He scored a goal and continued to bring a physical presence to the team, something he’s been doing all preseason. 

Dach scored a goal by driving hard to the net and depositing it. The Blackhawks don’t have many power forwards who can come up with this kind of tally, so they are likely to keep a player who has that in his arsenal. 

There is nothing pretty about the way Dach plays, which makes him perfect for the overall makeup of the lineup. At this point, it is fair to assume that he is going to make the team because he keeps impacting games in different ways.  

“The last two games, I thought I did pretty good showcasing my physical side," Dach said after the loss. "I wanted to come over here tonight and showcase some other aspects of my game.”

Dach set out to be a difference maker in other ways beyond his physicality, and he did. Not only did he score the nice goal, but he also generated a handful of chances for himself and his teammates. A lot of these chances came late when the Blackhawks were trying to get back in it, which shows his ability to stay engaged until the very end. 

Currently, it appears safe to say that Dach is likely to make the team. There are a handful of forwards fighting for the final few spots, but few have made the impact during games that Dach has, including some of the veteran roster locks. With that in mind, he knows he must keep working and proving himself to make sure he's with the NHL team on opening night. 

"I think every day it's the same, just come in, work hard, try and make it - try and prove to them that I belong."

Dach, despite knowing his current status in the organization, has confidence in himself. He credits being around everyone more over the last year as a reason that he feels good. Whether it was in the NHL or AHL, he developed well during 2024-25, which has set him up for success this year. 

"I think playing last year, kind of getting familiar with the guys, getting to know the staff, the trainers, everything. You just feel more comfortable in the locker room."

Coming out of major junior hockey and turning pro is difficult for a lot of young players who have NHL potential.

Dach was no different, but there were things that he did to improve his game and his mentality, which allowed him to get to this point. He talked about working on his consistency over the last two years, which is something that needs to exist if you are going to live in the NHL. 

"I think the consistency factor," Dach said postgame when asked about what he's worked on to reach this level. "I think that was my biggest thing going into the AHL two years ago, and then last year, the same thing, just trying to play consistent, trying to show them that I can be an NHLer every day."

Dach is going to be relied on to play a certain role for the Chicago Blackhawks in 2025-26. A lot is made about the skilled guys at the top of the lineup, like Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar, and Teuvo Teravainen. There isn't much "nasty" or "mean" in any of their games, though.

Tyler Bertuzzi can bring some of that, but Dach's future with the team has a lot more runway. Dach can be a successful player of this type for the Blackhawks over the course of many years.

If he keeps working on his offensive productivity, his physical game, and being a leader in the locker room, he will hold tremendous value for a long time.

When the lineup card comes out next week, expect Dach to be on it with the intentions of being an impact player. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

The winless streak of the Detroit Red Wings in pre-season play came to a halt on Tuesday night in the Windy City, and once again, an intriguing young prospect played a key role in the victory.

Michael Brandsegg-Nygård, who already scored in last week's victory over the Buffalo Sabres at Little Caesars Arena, fired home his second tally of the pre-season on a one-timed shot from the slot that some fans could have some fans reminiscing of the days of Brendan Shanahan and Brett Hull. 

Larks to MBN. 🤌 pic.twitter.com/3BYuGUMvBl

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) October 1, 2025

The goal eventually stood up as the game-winner as part of the 3-1 Red Wings win, moving them back to the .500 mark in pre-season play. 

Preseason win in Chicago ✔️

🚨: Compher, MBN, Raymond pic.twitter.com/SQitQzPG1q

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) October 1, 2025

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Last week, Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan touted Brandsegg-Nygård's release, calling him "a hell of a shooter". 

"The information I've received is that he's a hell of a shooter, and I watched the one playoff game in Grand Rapids last year and I thought he set himself up to shoot all the time," McLellan said last week of Brandsegg-Nygård'. "If someone gets him the puck, he's ready to shoot. I think it's a big part of his game, he has that heaviness and all those other things but for me, the shot isn't a surprise. I've been told it and I've witnessed it." 

The Red Wings found the back of the net first thanks to Elmer Soderblom stealing the puck from Chicago's Connor Bedard and eventually setting up J.T. Compher, who tallied his first pre-season goal.

Jonatan Berggren, who was inked to a one-year extension during the offseason, helped set up Lucas Raymond's second period goal that extended Detroit's lead to 3-0 by outmuscling Sam Rinzel for a loose puck and feeding a pass to Raymond at the goal mouth. 

Ok Bergy! Ok Razor! pic.twitter.com/w6OVzidKax

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) October 1, 2025

Goaltender Cam Talbot, who is entering his second season with the Red Wings and will be paired with newcomer John Gibson as a tandem, stopped all but one of the 28 shots that the Blackhawks fired his way.

The Red Wings' win over the Blackhawks was their second win over former head coach Jeff Blashill, who was lured away from his job as an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning to take over the head coaching responsibilities in Chicago this offseason. The Red Wings also beat the Blackhawks by a 3-2 final score on Sept. 23 in Detroit. 

The pre-season is winding down for the Red Wings, who have only a pair of games remaining - both of them against the Toronto Maple Leafs, before they begin the regular season by hosting the Montreal Canadiens at Little Caesars Arena on Oct. 9. 

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