Ten thoughts on Blackhawks’ 2026 NHL draft possibilities heading into Olympic break

Posted February 06, 2026 11:10 am

By Scott Powers

One of the questions for the Chicago Blackhawks coming out of the break will be just how young their lineup will get by the end of the season.

A season ago, Ryan Greene, Oliver Moore and Sam Rinzel made their season debuts down the stretch after finishing their college seasons. This season, Anton Frondell, the No. 3 pick in 2025, could join the team from Sweden. There’s a chance Sacha Boisvert could turn pro after his college season. Roman Kantserov is more likely to be a 2026-27 season debut. Plus, the Blackhawks could welcome back Rinzel, Kevin Korchinski or Nick Lardis from AHL Rockford. Artyom Levshunov is likely to return to the lineup after the break, too.

But looking even further ahead, the Blackhawks will be drafting even more early-round prospects in 2026 to add to their cupboard. Here are some thoughts on that and more as the NHL’s Olympic break begins:

1. The Blackhawks have the league’s sixth-worst points percentage heading into the break, meaning they have the sixth-best odds in the lottery. If the standings stayed as they are, the Blackhawks would have a 7.5% chance at the No. 1 pick.

2. The Blackhawks are eligible to “win” the lottery and move up into a top-two spot again, regardless of where they finish in the standings. A franchise is only allowed to move up twice in five years. The Blackhawks have moved up once. They officially won it in 2023 when they moved up from No. 3 to No. 1 and drafted Connor Bedard. Because they had the league’s second-worst record in 2024 and 2025, they would have only been deemed to win another lottery if they had landed the top pick. They drafted second in 2024 and third in 2025, which weren’t considered as lottery wins.

3. The Vancouver Canucks firmly possess the league’s worst points percentage at .368. The Blackhawks are in a group with five other teams in the next tier. The St. Louis Blues are second with a .430 points percentage, followed by the New York Rangers (.439), Winnipeg Jets (.464), Calgary Flames (.464) and Blackhawks (.465). Odds are the Blackhawks will fall somewhere among those teams in the lottery.

4. While the Blackhawks struggled over the last month, other teams in the Western Conference raised the playoff bar. The Anaheim Ducks are now the second wild-card team with a .563 points percentage. The Blackhawks would likely have to go on a tear over the final 25 games to have any shot at entering that picture. How the Blackhawks perform against Central Division opponents will likely determine their fate after the break. Eleven of their next 13 games are against division opponents. They play Utah three times, Colorado, Nashville and Minnesota twice, and Winnipeg and Dallas once.

5. Aside from the Blackhawks’ own lottery pick odds, you’ll want to keep a close eye on the Florida Panthers after the break. The Panthers haven’t had the season they hoped for and have the 10th-worst points percentage at .535. They’d have a 3.5% chance at the No. 1 pick as of today.

6. The thing is, the Blackhawks probably don’t want the Panthers to land a top-10 draft pick. The Blackhawks acquired the Panthers’ 2026 first-round pick in last year’s Seth Jones trade, but the teams agreed that the pick would be top-10 protected. If the Panthers were to land in the top 10 in the lottery this year, they’d keep the pick, and the Blackhawks would take their 2027 first-round pick. The 2027 pick would not be top-10 protected, a league source confirmed Friday.

7. The Blackhawks would probably prefer to draft another high-end forward, but I don’t think a defenseman is completely out of the picture. Keaton Verhoeff and Chase Reid, both right-handed shots, would be possibilities on the blue line. Whether it’s early or later, the Blackhawks will likely want to add a few defensemen to their pipeline.

8. Among the forwards, Ivar Stenberg, Tynan Lawrence and Caleb Malhotra could be three names to keep an eye on in the 2026 draft. Later in the first round, forwards Oscar Hemming and Elton Hermansson could be among the possibilities.

9. The Blackhawks weren’t likely to draft Gavin McKenna before he was charged with felony assault. It’s even less likely now.

10. The Blackhawks also have three second-round draft picks in 2026. Could they add more at the trade deadline? Time will tell.