Major development taking place with Chicago's 2nd overall pick
Photo credit: The Athletic
The Chicago Blackhawks' first pick during the 2024 NHL Draft will be 2nd overall and still have a great choice of players to pick from.
There's a chance that the Blackhawks could continue to add to the forward or defensive core, with Ivan Demidov or Artyom Levshunov.
«Maybe people think I'm lying, but No. 2 is a win; we're really excited about that. To not fall and just kinda hold serve and hold place, it's a win. I'll go to dinner tonight and it'll be a celebratory dinner because we're really excited about it.»
Demidov is Matvei Michkov's teammate with the KHL's SKA St. Petersburg and could come over after next season, as he remains on contract with SKA and the KHL.
Demidov is a 5'11" 181lb winger, who has played mostly in the MHL, just one step below the KHL. He has 60 points( 23 G, 37 A) in 30 games in the MHL.
They could also take Artyom Levshunov, a Michigan State defenseman, a big 6'2" 210lb defenseman, who played one year in the USHL with the Green Bay Gramblers and was ranked as the fifth-best prospect in this draft class by The Athletic's Cory Pronman.
Levshunov is a hard-nosed defenseman who puts everything into his play, who hits hard, passes, and shoots hard, and is projected to be a number 1 defenseman.
He is also a great skater on ice.
He's built to play on all sides of the puck and could be a great answer on the blue line, which the Blackhawks could use later in the rebuild.
«I think you look at the history of college defenseman, and the high-end, guys, the common theme, they all played two years,» Nightingale said. «You look at Cale Makar, two years, Zach Werenski, two years, Noah Hanifin, two years, Charlie McAvoy, two years, Quinn Hughes, two years, Luke Hughes, two years, Owen Power, two years. Those are all guys who played two years at his position. He's got the physical attributes, and I'm not saying he couldn't play, it's just you're hopping into the best league in the world. And in that position, you really got to be as close to polished as you can.»
No matter, what the Blackhawks will have a great player available at #2 whether they fill offensive or defensive needs.
Source: The Athletic
A Blackhawks reporter's scouting report on Michigan State's Artyom Levshunov
A Blackhawks reporter's scouting report on Michigan State's Artyom Levshunov
| POLL | ||
MAI 8 | 97 ANSWERS Major development taking place with Chicago's 2nd overall pick Who should the Blackhawks take? | ||
| Demidov | 57 | 58.8 % |
| Levshunov | 40 | 41.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
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