ended<\/a> in a disappointing playoff loss, after which he almost immediately received a call from the Hawks: \u201cYou\u2019re coming.\u201d<\/p>\nThe 18-year-old forward made it to Long Island on Monday in time for a dinner with his new teammates, starting the process of getting to know them. His parents and sister are also traveling with him for now.<\/p>\n
He will make his much-anticipated NHL debut Tuesday against the Islanders and rookie phenom Matthew Schaefer, who was drafted two picks ahead of Frondell in the top three last summer. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt felt hard to breathe out there [this morning], but now I\u2019m ready for the game, hopefully,\u201d Frondell said.<\/p>\n
Hawks coach Jeff Blashill immediately slotted Frondell on the first line next to Connor Bedard and Ryan Greene, demoting Andre Burakovsky down to the third line in an unexpected move that delighted fans.<\/p>\n
Frondell also slotted in on the top power-play unit, occupying the right flank \u2014 the spot where he unleashed some highlight-reel one-timers in a dominant showing for Sweden in the world junior championships in December.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I didn\u2019t think he could handle the spots I\u2019m putting him in, I wouldn\u2019t do it right away, because you don\u2019t want to set somebody up for struggles,\u201d Blashill said. \u201cI\u2019ve watched him a lot. I know his game pretty well \u2014 with the exception of being with him day-to-day \u2014 and I think he can handle it. I think he\u2019s prepared at this moment to walk in and have success in those spots. <\/p>\n
\u201cNow, does that mean it\u2019s going to be easy sailing? No, this league is a hard league. There\u2019s going to be ups and downs throughout the course of his career, much less these next few weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n
Blashill\u2019s message directly to Frondell was a bit simpler than that, though.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re going to make mistakes, and I don\u2019t care about mistakes,\u201d Blashill told him. \u201cWe care about learning from him, which we will do. But don\u2019t be afraid to make mistakes. Go out and play.\u201d<\/p>\n
Visa at last<\/b><\/h3>\n\n
It\u2019s almost comical that Frondell will end up making his NHL debut before Sacha Boisvert, considering the latter finished his college season and joined the Hawks over a week ago now.<\/p>\n
Boisvert\u2019s wait for a U.S. work visa proved excruciatingly long, but he finally received it Tuesday morning and was able to take part in morning skate. <\/p>\n
Blashill said Boisvert will debut later on this four-game road trip. Thursday against the Flyers seems likely to be the day.<\/p>\n
Demoted at last<\/b><\/h3>\n
After 26 games with just two points to his name, Burakovsky has finally been taken out of the top six, at least for now.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s done a ton of good stuff,\u201d Blashill said. \u201cHe\u2019s tracked extremely hard. He\u2019s stopped in the \u2018D’-zone. He\u2019s done all the things I\u2019ve asked of him. His production hasn\u2019t been to the level that he expects or we want, [even though] the chances have been there. It\u2019s a chance for him to give us some depth scoring down the lineup a little bit, which we need.\u201d<\/p>\n