How about Dawson Mercer. Decent size, decent hands. Plays PP, PK...and....he is a Newfie. Bring on Dawson Mercer!!!!!!

....I like Holloway too, another big body...but he is not a Newfie. So, first choice Mercer...then Holloway.
- hawk35

I like both. I just don't feel either will be there after 15. Would take either one. Really like Holloway a lot. Mercer has some nifty hand in close. Panarin-like.

Mavrik Bourque is another name in that range.

How about Dawson Mercer. Decent size, decent hands. Plays PP, PK...and....he is a Newfie. Bring on Dawson Mercer!!!!!!

....I like Holloway too, another big body...but he is not a Newfie. So, first choice Mercer...then Holloway.
- hawk35

Better than decent; the guy outright dangles guys outta their jocks. At least in my viewings. He sometimes looks like he's briefly outta control but always seems to keep it at the end.

Of course I like selecting at slot nine because there really starts to be a drop off after that first dozen.

At 19 you are banking on potential and usually the guys there
are defenseman with less dynamic offensive sides, but still hav great toolboxes and skills and even size, and
you simply can't predict where Hendrix Lapierre gets taken as he was thought of as a top ten guy and then everybody thought he had one concussion then last season was bothered by a reoccurring one but it turns out this year what was thought to be confusion was in fact a vertebrae out of alignment that was really the culprit and now under control. I know he is a centre but this guy was in my first round top 8 before Halloween. You take him and figure out that Toews is your long term third line guy and he is the next gen, despite not being a winger...the wingers you select at #19 are the Russian, Rodion Amirov, and maybe you select John-Jason Peterka, because little
Seth Jarvis can be rw, and Ridley Greig can be wing, but he is good in the dot and on the opposing players as a centre. It just seems like 19 slot is where defenders start going off the boards.

Back to the question, there are lots of wingers but especially good scoring/generating wingers in that 9 slot area and that's why I wish they were still locked in there...
- wiz1901

Thanks Wiz.

I love when guys like Wheeler make quotes like this "Probably more of a tweener than a surefire NHLer. Not one of the top FAs out of Europe to my knowledge.” before they egetv to play surrounded by NHL caliber players..
I dont remember what was said pre-Kubalik, but I always love where analysts are hell-bent on seting the bar on guys they recall they saw in 2017...
- wiz1901

When did you see Chalupa play? He is few years younger than Kubalik and actually won the scoring race in Czech junior league once, but there is A LOT between these two players. Kubalik was a proven scorer in top Czech and Swiss leagues AND at international level before coming over, while Chalupa has two seasons of being nothing more than a role player in Czech league (for Hradec Králové – good and ambitious, but this season very disappointing team, albeit they went on a great run in Champions League). He is a major project.

I am happy to see another Czech player signing with the Hawks and wish him all the best, but he looks like a serious long shot. With that said, I admit I felt the same about Kämpf and he found a spot, so I suppose you might be right and Chalupa will use his speed and skating to quickly become successful when surrounded with talent. He should get a chance and that is all anybody needs really, but he arrives with much, much lesser expectations than Kubalik, at least looking from this side of the pond.

PS: Chalupa means “Cottage” and it is pronounced like the Russian “KH” in Prokhorkin or Khabibulin, not “CH” as in Ovechkin or Kucherov

Why don't the Hawks sign there own players first.Wouldn't that make sense.

Why don't the Hawks sign there own players first.Wouldn't that make sense.
- Tatoo

Because Stan is inept.

Saw that!

He would be a huge boost to the Hawks backend.
- Tyler Cameron

Have to watch out for the Chalupa, too many can be a huge boost to your backend

I'm fully expecting he'll be Wedin 2.0.
- DarthKane

He's a lot younger than Wedin.

Someone has to break the Russian drafting curse for the Hawks. They're due. It's been 30 years since they drafted on worth a damn.
- Elbows15

You can kind of count Panarin. Now Simple Jack will go nuts.

He's a lot younger than Wedin.
- rpeters01

Younger, but both are AHLers.

A name to check out if the Hawks somehow manage to win the play-in round and end up in the 15-20 spot at the draft.

Marat Khusnutdinov

Some highlights. Yes, he violates my Russian bias but in that spot he may be a bit of a reach but he has a ton of upside. IMO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aq5NeoeQK9U
- Elbows15

Yeah, most of my extensive views that placed him in my first round as from him starting on a strong club as the 3rd line energy centre and his continued surge and did see more than a few few games as a second line centre.
When I watch the Five Nations Tourney, he was the BEST player on the ice in all games. all shifts full throttle.
But...he is badly 5' 9" and does look a little like Lou Angottis did when he was shot off the bench on those occasional shifts where he seemed fresh and everywhere out there.
I dunno if I wrote it in the profile I linked below, but there was Pavel Datsyuk-like qualities and a separation gear that you notice quickly when you watch, but not that almost six foot. 200 pounds he was to get his abilities to dominate.

My daily exercise of actually trying to guess when the Russians go(the ones that are already here for a while playing for North American and guys like (Vasily Ponomaryov, Yan Kuznetsov, Evgeni Oxentyuk, Daniil Gushchin) and the high skilled ones that deserve fairly early selections like Rodion Amirov, Yaroslav Askarov, and possibly Shakir Mukhamadullin ,later on Alexander Pashin,Maxim Groshev,giiant Bogdan Trineev. I actually have a dozen Russianprofiles that sit in the database with the rest of 500 2020 you dont see in my 2020, because I see them as less than 50/50 and NHL teams deciding they are calling there names only after the names on their original list are gone, b/c of the continued lack of NHL Russia agreement and the entire getting them here and adjusted scenario and the waste of a pick if they stay there.

So I always defer the Russian players to teams that have some, have had success in taking them because it seems an easier path swing a kid like this to transition in Washington than Columbus after Panarin...

I had St. Louis Tarasenko as a top three guy but NEVER put him there because of the biased/situations way back them...
it doesn't help or make NHL feel more secure what teams DO take Russians from Russia in the first and then have little success as rostered players.

Read more on this kid here:

https://www.draftsite.com...marat-khusnutdinov/34241/

I like both. I just don't feel either will be there after 15. Would take either one. Really like Holloway a lot. Mercer has some nifty hand in close. Panarin-like.

I think Holloway is long gone, and Mercer should be gone too.
https://www.draftsite.com...ayer/dawson-mercer/34349/


Mavrik Bourque is another name in that range.
- Elbows15

Yeah he is small centre so it might be a position change, but he is farther waway then must with good potential, but I think unless a centre is so standout they go wing or guy they are convinced can battle as an eventual NHL wing are the target.

https://www.draftsite.com...yer/mavrik-bourque/33930/

Yeah, most of my extensive views that placed him in my first round as from him starting on a strong club as the 3rd line energy centre and his continued surge and did see more than a few few games as a second line centre.
When I watch the Five Nations Tourney, he was the BEST player on the ice in all games. all shifts full throttle.
But...he is badly 5' 9" and does look a little like Lou Angottis did when he was shot off the bench on those occasional shifts where he seemed fresh and everywhere out there.
I dunno if I wrote it in the profile I linked below, but there was Pavel Datsyuk-like qualities and a separation gear that you notice quickly when you watch, but not that almost six foot. 200 pounds he was to get his abilities to dominate.

My daily exercise of actually trying to guess when the Russians go(the ones that are already here for a while playing for North American and guys like (Vasily Ponomaryov, Yan Kuznetsov, Evgeni Oxentyuk, Daniil Gushchin) and the high skilled ones that deserve fairly early selections like Rodion Amirov, Yaroslav Askarov, and possibly Shakir Mukhamadullin ,later on Alexander Pashin,Maxim Groshev,giiant Bogdan Trineev. I actually have a dozen Russianprofiles that sit in the database with the rest of 500 2020 you dont see in my 2020, because I see them as less than 50/50 and NHL teams deciding they are calling there names only after the names on their original list are gone, b/c of the continued lack of NHL Russia agreement and the entire getting them here and adjusted scenario and the waste of a pick if they stay there.

So I always defer the Russian players to teams that have some, have had success in taking them because it seems an easier path swing a kid like this to transition in Washington than Columbus after Panarin...

I had St. Louis Tarasenko as a top three guy but NEVER put him there because of the biased/situations way back them...
it doesn't help or make NHL feel more secure what teams DO take Russians from Russia in the first and then have little success as rostered players.

Read more on this kid here:

https://www.draftsite.com...marat-khusnutdinov/34241/
- wiz1901

We all know Russians are a complete shot in the dark, especially in the top-10, but I just cannot take my eyes off this kid.

Seriously, who was the last goalie we have been excited about? We're fortunate to have developed one of the better goalies in the league in Crawford (one of the FEW elite ones that step up their play in the postseason).

But Craw aside, we've failed to develop goalies as an organization. I guess Carter Hutton is the only one I could think of that made it to the league outside of Crawford in recent years. The constant re-tooling with veteran re-treads (Khabibulin, Turco, Ward, Huet, Emery, etc.) only works when you're a team that is ready to immediately contend and can just plug that position in for a year or two. When the organization is rebuilding, you need to take a guy you can be patient with for 2+ years until he takes the reigns for the next 10+. Look at what the top teams in the league - St. Louis, Boston, Tampa Bay, Washington, Philly, and Pitt - all have a #1 that came from within.

I get taking a goalie that early is a huge risk, especially if it's a Russian one, but the last time a goalie was taken in the top-10 (top-5 actually), he went on to have a pretty successful career in Montreal.

I just think the team - as they have been doing - needs to continue to take BPA, and unless one of the top-5 "realistic" forward options (Stützle, Holtz, Raymond, Rossi, or Perfetti) fall to 9, the team needs to just take Askarov and not think twice.

We all know Russians are a complete shot in the dark, especially in the top-10, but I just cannot take my eyes off this kid.

Seriously, who was the last goalie we have been excited about? We're fortunate to have developed one of the better goalies in the league in Crawford (one of the FEW elite ones that step up their play in the postseason).

But Craw aside, we've failed to develop goalies as an organization. I guess Carter Hutton is the only one I could think of that made it to the league outside of Crawford in recent years. The constant re-tooling with veteran re-treads (Khabibulin, Turco, Ward, Huet, Emery, etc.) only works when you're a team that is ready to immediately contend and can just plug that position in for a year or two. When the organization is rebuilding, you need to take a guy you can be patient with for 2+ years until he takes the reigns for the next 10+. Look at what the top teams in the league - St. Louis, Boston, Tampa Bay, Washington, Philly, and Pitt - all have a #1 that came from within.

I get taking a goalie that early is a huge risk, especially if it's a Russian one, but the last time a goalie was taken in the top-10 (top-5 actually), he went on to have a pretty successful career in Montreal.

I just think the team - as they have been doing - needs to continue to take BPA, and unless one of the top-5 "realistic" forward options (Stützle, Holtz, Raymond, Rossi, or Perfetti) fall to 9, the team needs to just take Askarov and not think twice.
- TommyHawk

Could not agree more .If as you say one of the top 5 drop that's a game changer .If one happens to drop that would probably mean Askarov or Sanderson or both have been taken . At 9th Askarov looks like the steal of the draft . I also have to agree with some that a goalie early is not Stan's MO . With his lack of success at drafting goalie late maybe Stan will have change of hart and select a elite prospect with the 9th pick .

When did you see Chalupa play? He is few years younger than Kubalik and actually won the scoring race in Czech junior league once, but there is A LOT between these two players. Kubalik was a proven scorer in top Czech and Swiss leagues AND at international level before coming over, while Chalupa has two seasons of being nothing more than a role player in Czech league (for Hradec Králové – good and ambitious, but this season very disappointing team, albeit they went on a great run in Champions League). He is a major project.

I am happy to see another Czech player signing with the Hawks and wish him all the best, but he looks like a serious long shot. With that said, I admit I felt the same about Kämpf and he found a spot, so I suppose you might be right and Chalupa will use his speed and skating to quickly become successful when surrounded with talent. He should get a chance and that is all anybody needs really, but he arrives with much, much lesser expectations than Kubalik, at least looking from this side of the pond.

PS: Chalupa means “Cottage” and it is pronounced like the Russian “KH” in Prokhorkin or Khabibulin, not “CH” as in Ovechkin or Kucherov
- stonefire

Thank you for sharing this intel on Chalupa. Your perspectives on European players are very much welcome and appreciated.

We all know Russians are a complete shot in the dark, especially in the top-10, but I just cannot take my eyes off this kid.

Seriously, who was the last goalie we have been excited about? We're fortunate to have developed one of the better goalies in the league in Crawford (one of the FEW elite ones that step up their play in the postseason).

But Craw aside, we've failed to develop goalies as an organization. I guess Carter Hutton is the only one I could think of that made it to the league outside of Crawford in recent years. The constant re-tooling with veteran re-treads (Khabibulin, Turco, Ward, Huet, Emery, etc.) only works when you're a team that is ready to immediately contend and can just plug that position in for a year or two. When the organization is rebuilding, you need to take a guy you can be patient with for 2+ years until he takes the reigns for the next 10+. Look at what the top teams in the league - St. Louis, Boston, Tampa Bay, Washington, Philly, and Pitt - all have a #1 that came from within.

I get taking a goalie that early is a huge risk, especially if it's a Russian one, but the last time a goalie was taken in the top-10 (top-5 actually), he went on to have a pretty successful career in Montreal.

I just think the team - as they have been doing - needs to continue to take BPA, and unless one of the top-5 "realistic" forward options (Stützle, Holtz, Raymond, Rossi, or Perfetti) fall to 9, the team needs to just take Askarov and not think twice.
- TommyHawk

Well, the question is do teams back away from Askarov so he is there at slot#18? MAYBE

Jan Bednar is next best in the class that after Askarov seems best to call purely long term developmental in nature. I have him going early 3rd.
https://www.draftsite.com.../player/jan-bednar/34360/

I have the hawks taken a goalie in the 4th...you will have to go to Draftsite to look yourself, for that - if you click on Blackhawks you will see who right now is sitting in each draft pick.

Most of all after the Blackhawks first round choice, I would love to see them work the board, trade up in the second if a guy is there they like or down if he isn't.

Why don't the Hawks sign there own players first.Wouldn't that make sense.
- Tatoo

From the various reports I have read on Chalupa, he seems to have a ceiling of an industrious bottom 6 winger with size and some offensive touch. He may need some seasoning in Rockford first, too.

Nothing wrong with that but the Hawks have plenty of those type in the system so I agree with you to some degree.

It's not a horrible signing but maybe not the shrewdest as far as getting bang for your buck (in terms of asset type, not salary).

Like the draft you want the best player available to fill each spot on the NHL roster. If Chalupa impresses, then that would be wonderful. I'll root for him either way.

However, I'd much rather invest more in the prospects in the system already and see them succeed, i.e. Hagel, Kurashev, Entwistle, Soderlund, Barratt, Altybarmakyan, etc.

He's a lot younger than Wedin.
- rpeters01

Wedin also didn't have an impressive resume upon coming over from Sweden. His scouting reports were underwhelming essentially describing him as a player who really doesn't do any one particular thing well but will put in effort.

He is a swiss army knife that can do basic things. His time in Rockford showed just that as a reliable jack of all trades but master of none. And his cup of coffee in Chicago was not memorable.

Can Chalupa develop to be greater than Wedin, Nilsson, or even Kampf?

I just wonder are the Hawk overseas players back in the states?

Is Nylander here for instance?

I just reads this article at the Atheltic, entitled, Many NHL players not planning on returning to team facility for Phase 2 which is not necessarily gloom and doom, but work visas being up for players since they were set to end the before July 1st, and Canadians waiting until the last possible before "deciding" if the want to "Satnley Cup."

You can kind of count Panarin. Now Simple Jack will go nuts.
- rpeters01

Panarin wasn't drafted. I am talking about drafted Russians by the Hawks.

When did you see Chalupa play? He is few years younger than Kubalik and actually won the scoring race in Czech junior league once, but there is A LOT between these two players. Kubalik was a proven scorer in top Czech and Swiss leagues AND at international level before coming over, while Chalupa has two seasons of being nothing more than a role player in Czech league,for Hradec Králové. Many NHL players not planning on returning to team facility for Phase 2
- stonefire

I glanced at very little of his games after this trade because my emphasis is to praised as the greatest coverage of free NHL draft prospects.

Maybe I do some stuff later but you know when the playoffs start what I am doing then, to and then I need mt eyes to adjust to the outside and sunlight...

I said it already, it seems as though some players just play well iwhen emerced in different levels of quality support around them.
Let's start with Dominik Kubalik. I don't think he is the best handler of pu ks in motion, b ut he clearly loves being the recipient of the guys around him. Can her be stand alone scorer? Sure, but his bread and butter is the release and being able to stay upright in traffic and the wall and anywhere for that matter, so he CAN get loose.
(Note to Jim blkhwk59, that is where loose fits!)


Khabii-lupa oh I mean Chalupa, seems to be very balanced for collisions and in traffic and good at contact and not getting stuck in the trash, and is very composed in the offensive zone, more than willing handle contact. AS I said before, it is easy to say fail but things can click when you are with the big boys and he had scored in Czech junior to two points a game, so who knows if he has NHL hands of stone or can progress to a decent scoring player. But if the team does sign him, they must see something right?

I haven’t seen him play much to be honest, or at least he wasn’t memorable. The word around here is that he has the tools and no toolbox and that he is a fantastic skater. So exactly the opposite to Wedin who as mentioned was more balanced and not great at anything. At this point, it seems like Chalupa has whole 6 months to get ready for his first NA game, so we shall see how that turns out in the end, after some time developing. I wish him only the best.

Thank you for sharing this intel on Chalupa. Your perspectives on European players are very much welcome and appreciated.
- AEL_Fox

Thanks! Although I have to admit I know little about him in particular, his team wasn’t very attractive besides Champions League this last season

Rangers put Sean Day on waivers. One of 7 players ever to receive an "exceptional status" designation 6'2 228lb dman. Definitely a reclamation project, but worth a shot?

I just wonder are the Hawk overseas players back in the states?

Is Nylander here for instance?

I just reads this article at the Atheltic, entitled, Many NHL players not planning on returning to team facility for Phase 2 which is not necessarily gloom and doom, but work visas being up for players since they were set to end the before July 1st, and Canadians waiting until the last possible before "deciding" if the want to "Satnley Cup."
- wiz1901

If they left Chicago at all, I don’t think they are back already. AFAIK David Kämpf is in Chomutov, CZE right now, Michal Kempný (Washington) is back in Czech Republic, Filip Hronek (Detroit) is back here too. Dominik Kubalík and Tomáš Hertl (San José) were in Plzeň and Prague few weeks ago and I think they are still here, at home. But for example David Pastrňák, David Krejčí, Jan Rutta (Tampa) and Dominik Simon (Pittsburgh) all stayed in US for various reasons. I am not aware if it is even possible to get on a plane and land in Chicago at this moment yet?