Chicago Blackhawks 2022 first round pick is finishing the season strong

The Chicago Blackhawks finished their home schedule this season on a sour note with a loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday. The Jets clinched the top spot in the league standings on Sunday, bringing home the Presidents’ Trophy. With that being said, the Blackhawks playing them as well as they did on Saturday shows immense growth and how far they have come as a group since the season began back in October.

The organization has a guaranteed top-four pick in the draft this summer, which will only add to their loaded prospect pool that has seen many members make their NHL debuts this season. The main three to note are defensemen Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel along with forward Oliver Moore. Former second round pick Ryan Greene will be the latest to join the fray in making his debut in a Blackhawks sweater on Monday night at the Bell Centre against the Canadians.

Chicago’s crop of young forwards have elevated the team’s pace of play to close out the season. Another former first round draft choice that made his debut around this time last year has performed well to end the campaign and will look to take this momentum into the summer.

Frank Nazar is finishing the season strong for the Chicago Blackhawks

Frank Nazar has six points over his last six games and recorded his fifth multi-point game of the season on Saturday. The former Michigan Wolverine has three goals and three helpers in those last six games, which includes a two-point effort against the Jets in Chicago’s final home game of the year.

Nazar has two of his five multi-point games this year in April, with the other coming in the 5-3 loss on the road against the Capitals on April 3. The 21-year-old has 10 goals and 13 assists for 23 total points in 51 games this year. While this may seem rather disappointing for Nazar, his season numbers don’t tell the entire story.

He has picked up steam down the stretch, with six of his 23 points on the campaign coming in April. A major point of emphasis for Nazar in his training this offseason will be shooting as many pucks as possible. The top-six forward on Chicago’s current roster has received plenty of golden scoring chances over the past month and certainly wishes he’d have converted on more than he did. Nonetheless, there are plenty of positives to take away from his improvements this season as the youth movement enters another offseason.

The Chicago Blackhawks have other exciting young forwards

The speed that Moore has displayed in his brief time in the NHL has been extremely exciting. The 2023 first round draft choice is still searching for his first career goal, but he has definitely held his own in every other aspect of the game since making the transition from the NCAA.

Greene’s debut will be something for fans to keep a close eye on along with Tuesday night’s game in Ottawa. While this won’t be enough to judge how his style of play will translate to the NHL, people will get an idea of how he operates when being thrusted into a bottom-six forward spot on the roster.

Along with the potential draft picks from this summer, Sacha Boisvert and Marek Vanacker should hopefully join the organization at this time next year. Each forward thrived at their respective amateur stops this year and should be in a position to sign their entry-level deals following next season if all goes well.