Family affair: Blackhawks draft Kirby Dach's brother in 2nd round
The Blackhawks kicked off Day 2 of the NHL draft by selecting forward Colton Dach, the younger brother of Kirby Dach, with the 62nd overall pick Saturday.
Colton, who is listed at 6-foot-4, 196 pounds, scored 11 goals in 20 games for the WHL's Saskatoon Blades last season. Once considered a late-round selection, Colton managed to make a name for himself during the shortened WHL campaign after scoring just 11 times in 62 games in 2019-20.
A minute into the conference call with reporters, Kirby jumped on Colton's back, exclaiming, "Wooo! Hawks baby!"
"I'm kind of at a loss for words right now," Colton said from his parents' home. "When I heard my name and I looked for my mom and she almost had tears in her eyes. It means a lot to them, everything that they've done for Kirby and I.
"Now we're in Chicago together, so they can sleep a little easier knowing they only have one flight to go watch one team. They don't have to cheer against each other."
Kirby got a heads-up that Colton was going to be selected by the Hawks, but he kept quiet while sitting just a few feet away.
"He texted my buddy, who was also here and they were looking at each other and smirking," Colton said.
While Kirby is expected to be a top-six center in the league for years to come, Colton projects to be more of a power forward.
"He's always been a shooter," Blades GM Colin Priestner told the Saskatoon StarPhoenix. "He's got an outstanding shot. ... Colton definitely can play center but he has the ability for an NHL team to play him at either wing or center. He's not scared to mix it up or get in the dirty areas, use his shot and his hands and his hockey sense.
"They're different player types, for sure."
Other picks:
The Hawks added three defensemen and three centers with their final six picks Saturday. The 6-foot-7, 235-pound Taige Harding was selected 91st overall. He played in the Alberta Junior Hockey League last season, appearing in 10 games of 24 games. The Hawks selected another big D-man in the 6-4, 210-pound Ethan Del Mastro with the ninth pick of the fourth round. They then added 6-4, 205-pound Russian center Ilya Safonov three picks later.