Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson isn’t going to sign everyone.
No team signs all of its prospects, but that’s especially true when it selects as many players as Davidson has through his first three drafts — with even more coming in a fourth draft in June. He made 11 picks in 2022, 11 more in 2023 and eight in 2024. He has nine more selections this year. There were also several prospects whose draft rights the Blackhawks still owned when Davidson took over.
Eventually, with all those prospects, Davidson will have to make some tough decisions about future roster space. So far, Davidson hasn’t had too many of those decisions. They are coming, though.
Here’s a look at the Blackhawks’ last five drafts: whom they’ve signed, whom they haven’t and whose rights they still own.
2024 draft
Artyom Levshunov, No. 2 draft pick, defenseman: Signed, played in 18 NHL games in his first pro season
Sacha Boisvert, No. 18, forward: Unsigned, could be a candidate to sign after next season
Marek Vanacker, No. 27, forward: Signed, will likely turn pro after his next season
John Mustard, No. 67, forward: Unsigned, will likely spend two more seasons in college before signing
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A.J. Spellacy, No. 72, forward: Signed, will likely turn pro after his next season
Jack Pridham, No. 92, forward: Unsigned, will likely spend a few years in college before signing
Joel Svensson, No. 138 forward, forward: Unsigned, Blackhawks own rights until June 2028
Ty Henry, No. 163, defenseman: Unsigned, Blackhawks own his rights until June 1, 2026
Of Davidson’s eight draft picks last year, it’s shaping up as if the Blackhawks will sign at least six of them. Spellacy, a third-round pick, did enough at training camp last year to earn a contract. Could he be the surprise of next training camp to make the team? Probably not, as he’d have to stay in the NHL until at least February, but he also wasn’t expected to look like he did last camp. Mustard and Pridham also appear on track as fellow third-rounders to sign in time. Pridham especially impressed the Blackhawks with what he did after moving to the OHL this season. He’s expected to play at Boston University next season. You would think he would stay a few years there, but he’s closer to turning pro than originally expected. Mustard finished his Providence College season strong and will be a player to keep an eye on next season.
As for the late-round picks, time will tell with Svensson and Henry. The Blackhawks will have to decide on Henry after next season because he was drafted out of the OHL.
2023 draft
Connor Beard, No. 1, forward: Signed, has produced 128 points in first 150 NHL games
Oliver Moore, No. 19, forward: Signed, appeared in nine NHL games after signing out of college
Adam Gajan, No. 35, goalie: Unsigned, will likely spend at least a few more years in college
Roman Kantserov, No. 44, forward: Unsigned, expected to sign after next season
Martin Misiak, No. 55, forward: Signed, expected to start next season in Rockford
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Nick Lardis, No. 67, forward: Signed, late-season injury shouldn’t impact training camp arrival
Jiri Felcman, No. 93, forward: Unsigned, rights expire in June 2027
Alex Pharand, No. 99, forward: Unsigned, rights expire in June
Marcel Marcel, No. 131, forward: Unsigned, rights expire in June
Milton Oscarson, No. 167, forward: Unsigned, rights expire in June
Janne Peltonen, No. 195, defenseman: Unsigned, rights expire in June 2027
Davidson has signed four of his 11 draft picks from 2023. Kantserov seems like a safe bet to be the fifth. All indications are he’ll sign after his KHL contract expires after the 2025-26 season. Unless Gajan really struggles over the next few years at Minnesota Duluth, he will probably eventually sign with the Blackhawks, too. The Blackhawks knew he might need time when drafting him. They own his rights until August 2028.
After those six selections, the Blackhawks may not sign anyone else. Felcman has a few more years to prove himself, but his production in Switzerland has been underwhelming so far. The Blackhawks are not expected to offer Pharand a contract before his rights expire next month. He had 17 goals and 42 assists in 65 games in the OHL this past season. Marcel has been under an AHL contract with the Rockford IceHogs for the past two years. The Blackhawks aren’t expected to convert him to an NHL deal right now. Oscarson is also not expected to be offered a contract before his rights expire in June. He had five goals and six goals in 52 games in the SHL this past season. Peltonen has a few more years before the Blackhawks have to decide on him.
Sam Rinzel was one of the latest Blackhawks draft picks to sign. (Talia Sprague / USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
2022 draft
Kevin Korchinski, No. 7, defenseman: Signed, his 92 NHL games so far are the fifth-most of any 2022 draft pick
Frank Nazar, No. 13, forward: Signed, will be entering the final year of his entry-level contract
Sam Rinzel, No. 25, defenseman: Signed, played in nine games down the stretch after signing out of college
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Paul Ludwinski, No. 39, forward: Signed, played this season with the Rockford IceHogs
Ryan Greene, No. 57, forward: Signed, played in two NHL games after his college season ended
Gavin Hayes, No. 66, forward: Signed, played this season in Rockford
Samuel Savoie, No. 81, forward: Signed, could be an NHL candidate next season after playing in Rockford this season
Aidan Thompson, No. 90, forward: Signed, his entry-level contract begins next season
Dominic James, No. 173, forward: Unsigned, rights expire on Aug. 15
Nils Juntorp, No. 188, forward: Unsigned, rights traded to Carolina Hurricanes
Riku Tohila, No. 199, forward: Unsigned, rights expire in June of 2026
Of the 11 players Davidson drafted in 2022, he’s already signed eight of them. Those eight players also happen to be his first eight selections. Davidson was hoping to sign his ninth selection, too, but James has turned down the Blackhawks’ contract and is expected to become an unrestricted free agent on Aug. 15.
Juntrop, another sixth-round pick, was Davidson’s 10th selection in 2022, and his rights were traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in the Taylor Hall deal. The Blackhawks’ final 2022 selection was Tohila, a seventh-round pick. He’s unlikely to sign at this point, but the Blackhawks do own his rights until June 2026.
2021
Nolan Allan, No. 32, defenseman: Signed, has played two pro seasons
Colton Dach, No. 62, forward: Signed, made his NHL debut this season
Taige Harding, No. 91, defenseman: Signed, his entry-level contract begins next season
Ethan Del Mastro, No. 105, defenseman: Signed, he’s one of four players drafted after the second round in 2021 to play in 25 NHL games
Victor Stjernborg, No. 108, forward: Unsigned, rights expire in June
Ilya Safonov, No. 172, forward: Unsigned, indefinite rights
Connor Kelley, No. 204, defenseman: Unsigned, rights expired
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Jalen Luypen, No. 216, forward: Signed, will be a restricted free agent after this season
Davidson wasn’t the general manager during the 2021 draft, but he has been the one deciding whether to sign players from that draft class. He has signed the first four players taken that year. Stjernborg, a fourth-round pick, is not expected to be offered a contract before his rights expire next month. He had three goals and six assists in 37 games in the SHL this season.
Safonov, a sixth-round selection, has gained some attention over the last few years as he’s developed into a solid center in the KHL. He broke out for 19 goals and 18 assists in 64 games in the 2022-23 season and played a key role in a deep KHL playoff run for Ak Bars. His production wasn’t nearly as grand the last two seasons. He had seven goals and 15 assists in 51 games this past season. Safonov, who turns 24 on May 30, is not a clear-cut NHL player, but he might have a chance in a bottom-six role. He previously expressed interest in signing with the Blackhawks. But with his KHL contract expiring at the end of the month, it doesn’t sound as if the Blackhawks are going to offer him an NHL deal. His age, what the Blackhawks have in the pipeline and his projection all come into play with such a decision. They own his rights indefinitely, having been drafted out of Russia, so something could always change.
Wyatt Kaiser is one of three players drafted after the second round in 2020 to play in 95-plus career NHL games so far. (Bob Kupbens / USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
2020
Lukas Reichel, No. 17, forward: Signed, has played in 169 career NHL games
Drew Commesso, No. 46, goalie: Signed, playing in Rockford for a second season
Landon Slaggert, No. 79, forward: Signed, played a majority of this past season in the NHL
Wyatt Kaiser, No. 81, defenseman: Signed, seemed to turn a corner in the NHL this season
Michael Krutil, No. 110, defenseman: Unsigned, rights expired
Isaak Phillips, No. 141, defenseman: Signed, traded to Winnipeg Jets
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Chad Yetman, No. 172, forward: Unsigned, rights expired
Louis Crevier, No. 188, defenseman: Signed, has played the most NHL games of any seventh-round pick in the last five years
Davidson also wasn’t the general manager for the 2020 draft, but he’s made a lot of the signing decisions in that class as well. Reichel and Phillips signed their entry-level contracts before Davidson took over. Krutil and Yetman, who both played this season in Czechia, were the only two players not signed from the eight players the Blackhawks drafted in 2020.
(Top photo of Ilya Safonov: Maksim Konstantinov / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images)
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