NHL Prospect Watch – Chicago Blackhawks
In the lead-up to the 2023-24 NHL season, we’re taking a look at the current and former WHL talent in each NHL Club’s prospect pool. In this 32-part series, we’ll highlight the WHL players signed to an NHL contract or recently drafted, 25 years of age or younger with 50 or fewer NHL games played. Join us for a brand-new season of NHL Prospect Watch!
We continue with the prospect pool of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Nolan Allan
2022-23 proved to be a memorable year for Davidson, Sask.’s Nolan Allan. It began in Prince Albert, where Allan was anointed with the Club’s captaincy before being dealt to the Seattle Thunderbirds after 16 games. In Seattle, Allan joined fellow Blackhawks prospects Kevin Korchinski and Colton Dach, collecting 16 points in 41 regular season appearances before adding 10 more during the 2023 WHL Playoffs as the Thunderbirds captured the WHL Championship. Internationally, Allan helped Canada win its second consecutive gold medal at the IIHF World Junior Championship in January. Selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft, Allan signed his entry-level contract two Septembers ago. He made a total of 203 regular season appearances in the WHL with Prince Albert and Seattle, totalling 79 points (21G-58A).
Nolan Allan with an insurance goal for Seattle! #MemorialCup pic.twitter.com/t1nYuuv8QN
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) May 28, 2023
Connor Bedard
The Chicago Blackhawks won the NHL Draft Lottery this past May, and with the first overall selection in the 2023 NHL Draft, they picked Regina Pats captain Connor Bedard. The product of North Vancouver, B.C. was the leading light among WHL and Canadian Hockey League stars in 2022-23, scoring a League-best 71 goals, 143 points while earning WHL and CHL Player of the Year honours in the process. In seven post-season games with the Pats, Bedard added 10 goals and 10 assists. In addition to his prowess at the WHL level, Bedard shone internationally, leading the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship with an eye-popping 23 points in seven games while helping Canada to the gold medal and winning tournament MVP honours. In 134 regular season WHL games with Regina, Bedard scored 134 goals, totalling 271 points over his three seasons in the League. The Connor Bedard era is set to begin in Chicago October 10, when his Blackhawks visit the Pittsburgh Penguins.
CONNOR BEDARD IS A CHICAGO BLACKHAWK pic.twitter.com/7mZD3btVSM
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) June 28, 2023
Colton Dach
Like Nolan Allan, Colton Dach’s season involved a mid-season move to the eventual WHL Champion Seattle Thunderbirds. Dach began the 2022-23 campaign as captain of the Kelowna Rockets, totalling 17 points in 14 games in a Kelowna uniform before being traded south in December. Dach’s Seattle debut was delayed, however, when he suffered an injury while competing for Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship. Still, the product of Fort Saskatchewan, Alta. proceeded to score 10 regular season points in his nine regular season outings with the Thunderbirds, adding three goals and 11 assists during Seattle’s run to the WHL Championship. Dach added a pair of goals back in British Columbia in late May and early June, helping the Thunderbirds reach the final of the 2023 Memorial Cup in Kamloops. Selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round of the 2021 NHL Draft, Dach has earned 155 total points (63G-92A) in 166 WHL games with the Saskatoon Blades, Rockets and Thunderbirds.
Colton Dach extends the Thunderbirds' lead! pic.twitter.com/IWVcvSSrGn
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) June 3, 2023
Kevin Korchinski
The seventh-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, defenceman Kevin Korchinski was part of the Chicago Blackhawks trio to win the WHL Championship with the Seattle Thunderbirds this past spring. Korchinski, who calls Saskatoon, Sask. home, finished sixth among WHL defencemen in scoring during the 2022-23 regular season, compiling 11 goals and 73 points. His 54 games played were the fewest of any WHL blueliner in the top 40 among League defensive scoring leaders. During the 2023 WHL Playoffs, Korchinski suited up in all 19 games for Seattle, scoring three times and totalling 14 points, adding three helpers in five Memorial Cup outings. Internationally, Korchinski helped Canada capture gold at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, scoring once and adding three assists during the tournament. Korchinski has been a consistent source of offence for the Thunderbirds since being selected 10th-overall in the 2019 WHL Draft, totalling 148 points (15G-133A) in 145 career regular season appearances.
With a career-best 73 points (11G-62A), Kevin Korchinski (skor-chinski) is the U.S. Division Defenseman of the Year!
Atta boy Korch 💙💚#BestintheWest | @NHLBlackhawks pic.twitter.com/1tZElsiTm6
— Seattle Thunderbirds (@SeattleTbirds) April 11, 2023
Jalen Luypen
A WHL Champion with the Edmonton Oil Kings in 2022, forward Jalen Luypen played out his final WHL season in the U.S. Division with the Tri-City Americans. After missing the first half of the 2022-23 campaign, Luypen proved a consistent two-way threat for the Americans during the second half of the regular season, counting 18 goals and 39 points in 38 games, a figure that included a six-point effort (3G-3A) in Tri-City’s regular season finale versus arch-rival Spokane. Luypen added six points in the Americans’ six-game playoff series versus Prince George, then rounded out his 2022-23 campaign by making his first three professional apperances with Rockford of the AHL during the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs. Selected by the Blackhawks in the seventh round of the 2021 NHL Draft, Luypen totalled 163 points (79G-84A) in 238 career regular season WHL games with Edmonton and Tri-City.
Texas leads Rockford 1-0 after 1 period.
At the intermission @KatieFlorio spoke with Jalen Luypen, who made his pro debut on Friday! pic.twitter.com/XR4v2itxa5
— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) April 30, 2023
Michal Teply
A fourth-round pick by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2019 NHL Draft, Michal Teply enters his third full professional campaign in the Chicago system this fall. Last season, the Czech forward scored nine times, totalling 25 points in 56 games at AHL Rockford, helping the IceHogs with two goals and an assist in his five post-season outings. Teply, 22, has played in over 130 AHL games with Rockford ahead of the 2023-24 campaign. The winger spent only one season in the WHL, but his year with the Winnipeg ICE was a memorable one. Teply led all WHL rookies in goals (29), assists (34) and points (63) during the 2019-20 campaign, while also representing Czechia at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship.
Michal Teply is the OT hero for the @goicehogs as he clinches a win with 11.4 seconds left. pic.twitter.com/N3mX3trEoR
— American Hockey League (@TheAHL) November 20, 2022
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