We’re now five (5) days away from the Chicago Blackhawks making the first overall selection in the 2023 NHL Draft. We’re now six (6) days away from the completion of the 2023 NHL Draft. And we’re now one week away from the Blackhawks’ collection of prospects — including this year’s picks and last year’s as available — arriving in Chicago for development camp. What a time to be alive!
While we’re counting down days, it’s worth noting that we’re also just eight (8) days away from free agency opening in the NHL. So… yeah. Here we go, folks!
On Friday morning I dropped my latest — and FINAL — mock draft in advance of next week. Two full rounds — six (6) Blackhawks selections!
On Thursday, USA Hockey announced the 44 players invited to take part in their World Junior Summer Showcase. Three current Blackhawks prospects — Frank Nazar, Gavin Hayes and Sam Rinzel — are on the list. But there are a number of players on this list who are eligible for next week’s draft who also might be Blackhawks prospects by the time this camp opens in late-July.
The news that disappointed many fans on Thursday came from the Board of Governors meeting. The league has decided there will be no special warm-up jerseys anywhere in the league this coming season. This comes in the wake of a season with a lot of turmoil as teams and players backed away from wearing PRIDE jerseys during their warm-ups. The Blackhawks celebrate a number of causes and events with special pre-game jerseys that are usually auctioned off for charity.
With the above NHL news out there and the NBA draft last night, this news was surprisingly somewhat buried yesterday but is still an interesting piece to follow. Given the scrutiny on the PGA with its merger announcement with the LIV Tour (Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund), not many people kept in mind that other leagues allowed for foreign investment in franchises to become a reality. And now it’s happened.
Ted Leonsis has done a remarkable job of creating an operation in Washington that manages media companies and his two professional sports teams. This transaction may lead to some questions about the viability investments of these kinds… though, as we’re all painfully aware, at the end of the day it’s all about the Benjamins, baby.
Scott Powers dropped a load of info on us yesterday and there’s a lot to unpack. A few notes that got my attention from his piece:
If the Blackhawks opt to not re-sign Ian Mitchell, there will be zero (0) players left in the organization from the drafts between 2006-17. And Philipp Kurashev is the only player remaining from the 2018 draft. If you’re wondering why they needed a rebuild, that’s your painful answer. Thanks, Stan!
Powers mentions Adam Gajan as a possible draft target for the Blackhawks if/when they look to add another goaltender to the pipeline. He’s had a meteoric rise on draft boards this year and might be gone before the Hawks’ second pick in the second round next week. It’s an interesting name to consider.
Samuel Savoie is the lone remaining CHL prospect from Chicago’s 2022 draft class that hasn’t signed — yet. “I don’t believe the Blackhawks foresee an issue signing Savoie.”
Finally, I really hope you’re following our exceptional coverage of the Chicago Bulls as well. The NBA Draft was last night and free agency begins next week. The Bulls are… well, honestly, to me they’re like the 2019-20 Blackhawks. Lots of stars and just a hot mess of a product. So what they do and where they go from here is TBD. If you want to know what’s up, follow along!
