Blackhawks wrap up NHL Draft with three final picks

The Chicago Blackhawks sat out the first round of the NHL Entry Draft on Friday, but made five picks on Saturday. After starting the day by drafting defenseman Villeneuve and forward Ryan Roobroeck with back-to-back picks early in the second round. They made three more picks, one in the third round and two in the seventh. Their fourth-round pick was traded to the New Jersey Devils to move up to No. 35 to select Roobroeck.

More Defense in the Third Round

Kyle Davidson went back to the blue line with his third-round pick, selecting Finnish defender Samu Alalauri with the 66th overall pick. He will take some time to develop, but scouts say his ceiling is a top-four NHL defenseman. He’s got a good frame at 6’3 and 215 pounds. He was the best defenseman in Finland’s U20 level and would have played in Liiga had he not already committed to UMass, where he’ll be a teammate of 2025 first-round pick Vaclav Nestrasil.

Scouts raved over Alalauri’s improvement over his season. He started his year trying to push the pace more, but it led to creating more turnovers. He dialed it back a bit in the second half of his season, and his overall game improved. He is viewed as more of a defensive blueliner, but his offensive game is there. He played on the power play quite a bit and will likely see some time there at UMass next season. He’ll have plenty of time to develop by going the college route.

“We really liked this guy at the Ivan Hlinka tournament,” Blackhawks scouting director Mike Doneghey said. “He just kept getting better and better, and he meets our traits. He’s 6-3, he’s a right shot, so there’s value there. He can skate all day, he can handle a puck.”

Double Dip in the Final Round

Thanks to various trades, the Blackhawks had to wait 128 picks before they were on the clock again. They used their first of two seventh-round picks (194th overall) to draft left-handed blueliner Alexander Ivanov. He’s a big 6’3 blueliner who skates well and is under contract in the KHL for two more seasons.

“We had him actually really high. But you never know with the Russians, just because everything’s on video, Doneghey said. “The luxury of those guys that we saw with Roman Kantserov, you can leave them over there and hope they develop and they get in the right situations. He’ll start with exhibition games in the KHL, and then it’s on him whether he’s in the KHL or VHL, but we have time with him.”

Davidson’s last selection was the 200th overall pick, used on 6’4 Swedish forward William Sörbrand. He’s is known for using his big frame to lay out some heavy hits. Doneghy said head European scout Mats Hallin was “passionate” about Sörbrand.

“He can skate, he plays heavy,” he added. “Secondary skill. Like, he’ll chip pucks in from the net front, but he’s strong along the boards and can really skate. And he has a physical element to him.”

It is pretty clear that this year’s draft plan was to bring in guys who all need more time to develop. Trading away the fourth overall pick for Bowen Bryam shows that Davidson is placing more focus on the present than the future, a shift in philosophy. The Blackhawks have a ton of young players in the NHL and another crop of first-year professionals heading to the AHL. This year’s draft class has all the time in the world to properly develop while the youngsters in the pro ranks sort themselves out.

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