It’s time for another edition of NHL rumours. We’re nearing the Four Nations tournament break and the March 7 trade deadline. This means teams could be in the market to be dealing some of their players.

Welcome to Scott Wheeler’s 2025 rankings of every NHL organization’s prospects. You can find the complete ranking and more information on the project and its criteria here, as we count down daily from No. 32 to No. 1. The series, which includes in-depth evaluations and insight from sources on nearly 500 prospects, runs from Jan. 8 to Feb. 7.

The Chicago Blackhawks have seen some turnover over the last few weeks after Taylor Hall was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes for a 2025 third round draft pick.

Chicago Blackhawks star forward Connor Bedard addressed recent criticism from Mark Messier and Paul Bissonnette, making it clear that outside opinions don’t concern him.

But when a team isn’t playing so great, those additional eyeballs and the big-picture focus that comes with national games and commentators can have a more negative effect. This year’s Winter Classic was a great example.

The Blackhawks are at the bottom of the Central Division at 16-31-5, the second-worst mark in the Western Conference. Edmonton is in a much better spot as it holds the lead in the Pacific Division and is looking to complete a sweep on a back-to-back that started with a 3-2 overtime win over the Blues in St. Louis to get to 33-16-4.

The Chicago Blackhawks and Edmonton Oilers put on a late-night show at United Center. It had quite the finish.