Host Jack Bushman breaks down the Chicago Blackhawks’ three first-round selections in the 2024 NHL Draft, with Artyom Levshunov going 2nd overall, Sacha Boisvert 18th overall, and Marek Vanacker 27th overall. Bushman shares his thoughts on the biggest winners, losers, and what grade Blackhawks’ GM Kyle Davidson deserves for his 1st round of the Draft. The episode concludes with one final free agency preview ahead of the market opening on Monday. All that and more on Locked On Blackhawks. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your Team. Every Day.
1st Round Recap (3:15)
Blackhawks Picks (18:10)
Free Agency Preview (34:45)
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37 Comments
QUESTION OF THE DAY — What Grade Do YOU Give GMKD For His 1st Round In The 2024 NHL Draft? Also, Which Free Agent Do YOU Want To See Signed On Monday??? HAVE A GOOD WEEKEND!
D missed out on Demidov Eiserman Greentree Hage left me scratching my head wow! Hope the picks pan out but what a huge disappointment
Heard that KD offered Columbus next years unprotected 1st and some for 4th overall. Very interesting !!!!
Hey Jack appreciate all the great work throughout the last few weeks been busy as hell the next time you’re down here in St Louis drinks are on me! Maybe the rookie tournament in September
I give the first round a B-
Edit: C+ sounds about right
You cant really rate a draft immediately, lets get real.
Davidson has a staff of hockey lifers who have scouted all of these kids extensively, and they are pretty sure what they're getting.
The fact that Demidov went at five should tell you something.
I'll bet that most of those bitching about Boisvert and Vanacker have never heard of either of them.
I think these are the right picks, not the wanted picks.
Fun fact, Levshunov was tied for ninth place in scoring in the NCAA, not the Big Ten, THE NCAA!
Im ready for the additions for this season being Mikheyev, and having Hall, AA, and Nazar full time.
See what happens, and hopefully get a great forward in the 2025 draft.
It would have been great to get that 4th pick this year, BUT 2025 could also be top 5
I would be alot happier, if the Hawks would have get Cayden Lindstrom, but F Blue Jackets know! lol
Atrocious. Pass on Eiserman or Hage is unexcusable.
I understand the levshunov pick even though demidov is better. And love Vanacker. Hes really fucking good. I think passing on eiserman was a mistake even though boisvert is a ryan Kesler comp.
Im quite pleased, glad no one was under 6 ft
I would piss my pants if demidov signs a 4 year extension with ska
"Kyle from Chicago" might not be "from Chicago" much longer with drafts like this. Hopefully he's the smartest guy in the room, but most scouts had much lower ratings on all these guys AND he traded up to get 2 of them. We started the offseason with 3 2nd rounders, and now we have zero… yikes.
We won't know how good these kids are for 2-3 years at least but right now I'm giving him a D-
B+. Plenty of teams passed on eiserman so he was obviously not a fit for some teams and that must’ve included Blackhawks. Dont have any issues with how they drafted. Got the 16 and 17th ranked Central scouting NA skaters and got the 17th ranked guy after many ranked below him were taken. NHL first rounds are notoriously hit or miss similar to the MLB draft and I like the players we got.
why trade up for Vanacker? gave up 2 2nd's What the hell.
Bruh, Boisvert is going to North Dakota, not Norte Dame. 😄
Levshunov-B+, Boisvert- F, Vanacker-F
KD is either the smartest guy in The Sphere, or last night was a complete mess.
As long as Davidson is in charge,the hawk's are going nowhere,POS,that he is !!!!
Boisvert when Eiserman and Hage still available? Vanacker??? Would have been a fine pick at 50. Just think what we could have gotten at 34, Stiga, Badinka, Basha, Chernishov, etc…. Reminds me of taking Nolan Allan in the first round. At least the Rockford Icehogs will have some pretty good players for the next decade or so
My thoughts were already covered very nicely by @justinrenaud4818 down below. I will add however I saw Sacha's combine interview and was impressed with the business-like nature of his comments. This guy seems like a leader. Reminded me of the character of Seabrook.
Hahahahahahaha all the Chicago fans who were mad at me when I told them they wouldnt get Demidov 😂😂😂 who was right?!
You can't grade the draft for at least 4 years.
They could have had Demidov AND Eiserman. F you Kyle!
I knew Sacha he went to my school, he’s a real nice dude, crazy that he made it to the league.
Did Montreal have a better draft than us?? 🧐🧐🧐
3 of the top 17 NHL rated prospects. Despite this some clowns in the comments think they know better than the NHL rating system!
Kyle Davidson gets an F for his decision making
Lev is not Makar or Bobby Orr. I don't believe he'll be able to live up to being picked that high. He may wind up being a good d-man but I think Demidov can be a 100+ point a year player. I don't think any Hawk fan was jumping up and down like last year. By the way, if/when Bedard is out with injuries in the future, who's the guy who can fill that level of skill? Answer: he was drafted 5th by Montreal.
What an absolute abysmal draft this year for us… 50 point season for absolutely nothing. Kyle is getting a C- with this draft. Looks like another 5 years of lottery picks if this is what we can expect every draft. 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
Going into this draft, I was filled with excitement. Now, I'm simply waiting for KD to be replaced. The longer KD is here the more of Bedard's prime years will be wasted. KD is shooting for mediocrity whether he realizes it or not.
When Levshunov is just another defensive franchise piece, along the lines of 5 to 6 other young defensemen already in the organization, while Demidov turns into an offensive force similar to Bedard, I will take out my frustrations on KD.
Trade up to 18 and selected a bottom 6 center who they easily could have over-drafted at 20 tells me KD is in over his head.
Entering into a draft with the second worst record in hockey is no time to draft with filling in roster needs in mind. A middling ceiling RHD and large framed bottom 6 center while passing on the waaaay higher end talents of Demidov and Eiserman is a gut punch. Draft Demidov AND Eiserman and you are coming at teams in waves! They already had some nice young D organizational talent. Fill in the need for RHD and size up front with trades, FA, and lower/future draft picks. Now was the time to add those franchise pieces only a rebuild can produce. Therefore, a draft grade of F.
Great pick