What Should The Blackhawks Do Now That They Slipped One Spot In The Draft To #3 Overall
It's never ideal when the lottery makes you drop a spot in the draft. It's certainly not ideal when by most accounts there is a clear top 2 in the draft and you're team is now slotted to pick 3rd. I think everyone can look at this class and recognize that the Blackhawks best fit was going to be Michael Misa. A center with good size and speed who scores at a ridiculous clip in the OHL and is capable of playing a 2-way game. Couldn't have designed a better fit for what the Blackhawks lack.
Unfortunately, by all accounts, the top two of the draft seemed pretty nailed on at this point. Schaefer and Misa. Then there's a small gap to the next tier of prospects where Martone, Frondell, Desnoyers, and Hagens will be debated endlessly. That's a BIG question for the Blackhawks. Do they go with a need at center and pick either Frondell or Desnoyers? Do they go with their size need and pick Martone to be a top 6 wing? Or do they get enamored with the skills package or Hagens and figure out where/how he fits later?
Dream scenario is Misa somehow falls to the Blackhawks at #3. I don't think that is impossible. The two teams sitting ahead of the Blackhawks could in theory go in a different direction.
The Islanders have the first pick. The #1 rated prospect heading into last season was James Hagens. James Hagens happens to be from Long Island. Maybe they decide to take the hometown kid and pair up a first line of the future with him and their 1st round pick from last year, Cole Eiserman. If they do that, I would assume that San Jose would sprint to the podium to take Schaefer and that would leave Misa there at #3 for the Blackhawks. I don't think that is likely. My gut says that the Islanders take the best player available...Schafer.
The Sharks are likely to pick Misa. However, maybe they decide that to go with the skill of Celebrini and Smith in their top 6 they need a big power forward type to bang bodies and compliment their stars for the playoff wars to come. If they do then Martone makes sense for them. They drafted Will Smith as a center in 2023. They played him a lot on wing in his rookie year, but if they project him as their 2C going forward behind Celebrini then getting another wing does make sense. Martone is currently playing on Celebrini's line at the World Championships and I have hoping they have undeniable chemistry and Mike Grier absolutely falls in love with the idea of pairing them together for the long term.
I am VERY curious about what the Islanders are going to do because, well, they seem like they're at the end of the road with their group that had a pretty mediocre run for the better part of a decade. They also don't have a GM. I think the new candidate could come in, see an aging roster and a prospect pool universally ranked in the bottom 3rd of the league and decide to really blow it up.
If they do want to blow it up you'd think the Blackhawks would be an ideal trade partner. The Blackhawks have two 1st round picks and two 2nd round picks this year. They have two 1st rounders next year and three 2nd round picks next year. The Blackhawks also have a prospect pool universally ranked in the top 5.
Allow me to throw a WILD blockbuster out there for fun.
Islanders receive:
Kevin Korchinski
3rd Overall
Toronto's 2025 1st
FLA 1st round pick in 2026
Blackhawks Receive:
1st overall (Michael Misa)
Mat Barzal
This is effectively four #1 picks for Mat Barzal and Misa. Is that too much? Is it not enough? I don't know. I still think Korchinski has a bright future in the NHL, but the drafting of Levshunov and the emergence of Rinzel make Korchinski's best attributes a surplus of goods. I have a hard time imagining Korchinkski leapfrogging Levshunov and Rinzel for power play minutes and top 4 minutes. I also really like Kaiser and Del Mastro for the Blackhawks. So the Blackhawks defense would be Vlasic, Rinzel, Levshunov, Kaiser, Del Mastro and...someone else. I would hope they'd be able to find another competent defenseman to round out that group either internally or via free agency. I don't see Korchinski's value going up if his opportunities are limited by the log jam on defense.
Barzal is 27 years old and is signed through 2031 at $9.1M AAV. With the cap going up for the next three years that feels like it's going to be a good contract. He was hurt last year. His production was down. I don't think the Islanders would get a better offer than the one I outlined.
The Blackhawks would then have a pool of potential centers for the future in the fold:
Barzal, Bedard, Misa, Green, Nazar, and Boisvert.
I don't think Bedard will stick at center, but with that group he wouldn't have to. Barzal plays at the style and the pace that Davidson seems to covet. He also hasn't been a full-time center in recent years, but that is where he has played for the majority of his career. He's not great at face-offs but is a reliable player without the puck defensively. Adding Misa and Barzal in the same summer would certainly push this team closer to where we all want them to be by 2027.
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If no big moves or luck goes the Blackhawks way in the draft the Blackhawks will still get a very good player at #3. I do think the time to be bold is now. Get a real coach. Get an established top 6 guy. Press go. Hopefully Nazar, Bedard, and the young D become stars and with the right moves we see a Montreal type leap up the standings.