(Editor’s note: Instead of breaking this into a series of posts, it’s all right here on one big list with comments from the SCH staff as well as the SCH community of voters who joined in on this year’s rankings. The complete ballots are also at the end of this post. Thanks to everyone who participated!
No. 1 — Connor Bedard (C)
Birth date: July 17, 2005 (20)
Acquired via: First-round pick (1st overall) in 2023 NHL Draft
2025-26 team : Chicago Blackhawks ...
about 9 hours ago
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This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Blackhawks noticing Gavin McKenna’s rapid growth as 2026 NHL Draft creeps closer ( Sun-Times )
What I’ll be watching for the remainder of this Blackhawks season: 10 storylines ( Athletic )
Colton Dach hoping to earn more ice time after rejuvenating break ( Sun-Times )
Blackhawks trade deadline preview: Murphy, Dickinson, other veterans might be moved out ( Sun-Times )
Ryan Greene is eager t...
about 12 hours ago
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This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Colton Dach hoping to earn more ice time after rejuvenating break ( Sun-Times )
Blackhawks trade deadline preview: Murphy, Dickinson, other veterans might be moved out ( Sun-Times )
Ryan Greene is eager to get back on the ice after a surprise scratch ( Tribune )
Blackhawks, European prospect update, 2/20: Kantserov, Frondell still shining ( SCH )
Blackhawks NCAA/USHL prospect update, 2/19: ...
1 day ago
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Two of the Blackhawks most interesting prospects continued their strong play.
4 days ago
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As of this writing, the US women are thumping Sweden in Monday morning’s semifinal and appear destined for Thursday’s gold medal game, where they’ll face the winner of Canada and Switzerland later on Monday. Local product Abbey Murphy (pictured above) remains one of Team USA’s most productive players.
On the men’s half of the Olympic schedule, the robin rounds are complete and we’re on to the knockout stages which start on Wednesday and concludes with Sunday morning’s gold medal game.
...
4 days ago
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Don’t forget to join in the community vote for the midseason Top 25 Under 25 rankings!
This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Blackhawks NCAA/USHL prospect update, 2/19: Mustard and Sumpf taking steps forward ( SCH )
Why Spencer Knight believes an illness gave him valuable experience ( Sun-Times )
Foligno committed to Blackhawks but unsure how personal future will unfold ( Athletic )
Blackhawks CHL prospect update, 2/18: Pridham...
5 days ago
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To the college (and USHL) ranks we go!
5 days ago
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As first reported by Second City Hockey, the Olympics continue across the pond this week, which means we’re still without any Blackhawks hockey to discuss. Astute observers of this website will notice that we’ve already had some prospect updates run this week and we’ll finish our tour of the hockey world by the end of it. Next week, we’re going to do a midseason check in on our Top 25 Under 25 rankings.
But why should we have all the fun? Instead of us hogging up all the ballot boxes, we’...
5 days ago
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This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Blackhawks AHL prospect update, 2/17: Rinzel gets his groove back ( SCH )
Five storylines to follow during the final third of the Blackhawks season ( Sun-Times )
Examining the Blackhawks’ recent power-play struggles ( SCH )
Mailbag: What does Blackhawks’ cap space look like in 5 years? ( Athletic )
Mailbag: Comparing the Blackhawks and Sharks’ rebuilds ( Athletic )
Musings on Madison, ...
6 days ago
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The Chicago Blackhawks called up defensemen Sam Rinzel and Kevin Korchinski on Wednesday morning. The move corresponds with the placement of defenseman Wyatt Kaiser on injured reserve.
Blackhawks have called up Sam Rinzel and Kevin Korchinski and placed Wyatt Kaiser on IR. — Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) February 18, 2026
Wyatt Kaiser was injured in the Blackhawks’ 4-0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Feb. 4, their final game before the Olympic break. With Kaiser on injured reserv...
6 days ago
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Several Hawks prospects are flourishing on various junior teams this winter.
6 days ago
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This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Blackhawks AHL prospect update, 2/17: Rinzel gets his groove back ( SCH )
Five storylines to follow during the final third of the Blackhawks season ( Sun-Times )
Examining the Blackhawks’ recent power-play struggles ( SCH )
Mailbag: What does Blackhawks’ cap space look like in 5 years? ( Athletic )
Mailbag: Comparing the Blackhawks and Sharks’ rebuilds ( Athletic )
Musings on Madison, ...
7 days ago
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Since our last AHL update, the IceHogs’ season has slid firmly in the wrong direction. A 3-7-0-0 record over their last 10 games has pushed Rockford down to sixth in the Central Division with a .408 points percentage (18-27-2-2), and there’s now a noticeable gap between them and the next rung up the ladder: the […]
7 days ago
| 0 reads
This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Examining the Blackhawks’ recent power-play struggles ( SCH )
Mailbag: What does Blackhawks’ cap space look like in 5 years? ( Athletic )
Mailbag: Comparing the Blackhawks and Sharks’ rebuilds ( Athletic )
Musings on Madison, Episode 203 — What’s left for the Blackhawks to do this season? ( SCH )
Mailbag: What’s the next phase of Blackhawks’ rebuild? ( Athletic )
What do the numbers sa...
8 days ago
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The Chicago Blackhawks have one power play goal in their last 12 games. They had 33 opportunities on the man advantage during that time and were only been able to capitalize one time. Their power play currently ranks 20th overall with a 19.1 percent conversion rate. Before Connor Bedard was injured on Dec. 12, 31 games into the season, it was ranked 10th in the league at 22.2 percent.
So, what happened?
Power Play Numbers
Well, reality for one. According to Natural Stat Trick, t...
8 days ago
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This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Mailbag: Comparing the Blackhawks and Sharks’ rebuilds ( Athletic )
Musings on Madison, Episode 203 — What’s left for the Blackhawks to do this season? ( SCH )
Mailbag: What’s the next phase of Blackhawks’ rebuild? ( Athletic )
What do the numbers say about the Hawks’ “shutdown” D pairing of Vlasic and Crevier? ( SCH )
Intoductions from the Mojave to the Madhouse ( SCH )
Olympic break ...
9 days ago
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Plenty of Olympics hockey action for you this week from Italy. The only Hawks player expected to be on the ice is Teuvo Teravainen for Finland, with Hawks prospect Adam Gajan appearing to be the No. 3 goalie for Slovakia.
The men’s half of the tournament gets started on Wednesday while the women’s half of the tournament has one preliminary round game to go before the knockout stage begins on Friday — with Team USA demolishing approximately everything in its path.
(All times CT)
...
11 days ago
| 1 read
This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Musings on Madison, Episode 203 — What’s left for the Blackhawks to do this season? ( SCH )
Mailbag: What’s the next phase of Blackhawks’ rebuild? ( Athletic )
What do the numbers say about the Hawks’ “shutdown” D pairing of Vlasic and Crevier? ( SCH )
Intoductions from the Mojave to the Madhouse ( SCH )
Olympic break mic check 1-2 ( Fels )
Ain’t you hungry for success, success, succes...
12 days ago
| 0 reads
This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Musings on Madison, Episode 203 — What’s left for the Blackhawks to do this season? ( SCH )
Mailbag: What’s the next phase of Blackhawks’ rebuild? ( Athletic )
What do the numbers say about the Hawks’ “shutdown” D pairing of Vlasic and Crevier? ( SCH )
Intoductions from the Mojave to the Madhouse ( SCH )
Olympic break mic check 1-2 ( Fels )
Ain’t you hungry for success, success, succes...
13 days ago
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With 57 games down, what is there to be done in the 25 after the Olympic break?
13 days ago
| 1 read
This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
What do the numbers say about the Hawks’ “shutdown” D pairing of Vlasic and Crevier? ( SCH )
Intoductions from the Mojave to the Madhouse ( SCH )
Olympic break mic check 1-2 ( Fels )
Ain’t you hungry for success, success, success, success? ( SCH )
Breaking down most encouraging, discouraging trends of the Blackhawks’ season ( Sun-Times )
Blackhawks might not receive Panthers’ first-rou...
14 days ago
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There’s been plenty of talk this Blackhawks season — especially on some of the home broadcasts — regarding the shutdown defensive pairing of Alex Vlasic and Louis Crevier, who’ve been tasked with some of the most difficult assignments among Chicago blue-liners this season.
The “shutdown” label describes their task, but are they truly shutting down their opponents? Let’s see what the numbers can tell us, using Natural Stat Trick’s always excellent data.
Vlasic, who’s 24 and was a 2019...
14 days ago
| 2 reads
This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Intoductions from the Mojave to the Madhouse ( SCH )
Olympic break mic check 1-2 ( Fels )
Ain’t you hungry for success, success, success, success? ( SCH )
Breaking down most encouraging, discouraging trends of the Blackhawks’ season ( Sun-Times )
Blackhawks might not receive Panthers’ first-round pick because of previously unknown condition ( Sun-Times )
They haven’t earned the right t...
15 days ago
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(Editor’s note: We here at SCH are thrilled to introduce the newest addition to the staff: Steve Kwiatkowski, aka DirtyThird from the SCH comments! We’ll let him take over from here.)
Greetings from sunny and warm California. I know, it’s probably not the best way to start an introduction. I get it. Having grown up in Chicagoland, February was my most hated month of the year. Cold, freezing, and that disgusting black slush. Well, now that you know where I live (in the desert if we want to...
15 days ago
| 2 reads
This is your daily thread to talk about the latest hockey news.
BLACKHAWKS
Ain’t you hungry for success, success, success, success? ( SCH )
Breaking down most encouraging, discouraging trends of the Blackhawks’ season ( Sun-Times )
Blackhawks might not receive Panthers’ first-round pick because of previously unknown condition ( Sun-Times )
They haven’t earned the right to not care ( Fels )
Ten thoughts on Blackhawks’ 2026 NHL Draft possibilities heading into Olymp...
16 days ago
| 1 read