SKA Hockey Club player, Ivan Demidov (11) seen in action… / SOPA Images/GettyImages
Although this season has been fun and memorable with Connor Bedard installing hope within Blackhawks fans, the Chicago Blackhawks sit dead last in the NHL with a measly 21 wins and 47 points.
On the bright side, this means Chicago will most likely have a top 4 pick for the second year in a row. Like last year, this upcoming draft is stacked with generational talents like Boston University forward Macklin Celebrini who many analysts have going first overall.
Landing back-to-back first-overall picks would be the greatest thing for the Blackhawks since drafting Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane back-to-back years. Celebrini will be the most obvious choice for the Blackhawks if they were to land the first-overall pick, but who should they take if they were to land in the 2-5 overall spot?
SKA Hockey Club player, Ivan Demidov (11) seen in action… / SOPA Images/GettyImages
At 5’11” and 168 lbs, 18-year-old left winger Ivan Demidov is an offensively talented forward who’s tearing up the MHL in Russia. In 30 games for SKA 1946 St. Petersburg, Demidov has tallied 23 goals and 37 assists for 60 points.
Without sounding completely biased, Ivan Demidov’s offensive play can be compared to Hawks legend, Patrick Kane. Demidov’s vision in the offensive zone, his quick hands and creativity, his ability to turn and pivot on a dime, his quick release, and his ability to quarterback St. Petersburg’s powerplay are very reminiscent of Patrick Kane.
Giving Connor Bedard a powerplay specialist, as well as someone who shares a creative and unique way to make plays like himself, is exactly what Bedard needs in a linemate.
Michigan State v Notre Dame / Michael Miller/ISI Photos/GettyImages
Artyom Levshunov is rated by multiple hockey analysts to be the first defenseman taken in the 2024 draft and for good reason too.
Levshunov, 18, is 6’2″, 209 lbs, and is Michigan State’s top defenseman this year. In 36 games, the freshman has 9 goals and 25 assists for 34 points while also registering a plus/minus of +26.
The Belarus native played in the USHL before heading to MSU where he thrived for the Green Bay Gamblers in 2022-2023. With 13 goals and 29 assists for 42 points, he ranked 5th among all USHL defensemen in the 2022-2023 season.
Even with his large frame, he skates extraordinarily well for a defenseman. His ability to jump into the offense, plus his superb stay-at-home defensive skills, is very similar to New York Islanders top defenseman, Noah Dobson.
Berkly Catton had a tremendous improvement from last year as he went from finishing the 2022-2023 WHL season with 55 points to 116 points in the 2023-2024 season.
Catton, 18, is 5’11”, 163lbs, and mans the center position for the Spokane Chiefs of the WHL. With 54 goals and 62 assists, Catton ranked 5th in the WHL with 116 points.
As offensively gifted as he is, he is also tremendous at the dot winning 724 faceoffs this year which ranked 7th in the WHL. Chicago has struggled dearly in the face-off circle this year as they rank 4th in the NHL with a 46.5% face-off win percentage.
There are other options the Blackhawks could go to before Catton like 6’7″ defenseman Anton Silayev of the KHL and top WHL defenseman Carter Yakemchuk, but with Chicago’s defensive prospect pool as good as it is with Kevin Korchinski, Sam Rinzel, Ethan Del Mastro, Alex Vlasic, and Wyatt Kaiser, it seems more reasonable for the Hawks to take another forward prospect in the first round of this year’s draft.
The 2024 NHL draft will occur in Las Vegas from June 28th-29th and it will be held at The Sphere.
