On this episode of the Blackhawks Breakaway Podcast, Pat Boyle and Charlie Roumeliotis are joined by The Athletic’s NHL Draft expert Corey Pronman to preview the 2026 NHL Draft and break down the Blackhawks’ options with the No. 4 overall pick.
Pronman explains why several players occupied his No. 1 spot throughout the season and why he ultimately ranked defenseman Chase Reid barely ahead of consensus top prospect Gavin McKenna in his final rankings. He also discusses the five players he has in his Tier 1 rankings.
If the top three forwards are off the board, should the Blackhawks feel comfortable selecting Reid despite already having two high-end right-shot defense prospects in Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel? Could Reid ultimately be the best of the trio? And is McKenna truly a lock to go No. 1 overall or could there be a surprise at the top of the draft?
The conversation also turns to Ivar Stenberg, who has been mocked to the Blackhawks by many analysts. How realistic is that scenario, and how does Pronman expect the top of the draft to unfold? He also shares his NHL comparable for Stenberg.
Plus, if San Jose selects a defenseman at No. 2 and Vancouver is deciding between Stenberg and Caleb Malhotra at No. 3, would the Canucks really choose Malhotra, as some reports suggest? Pronman explains what fueled Malhotra’s rise into the top-five conversation.
Finally, Pronman weighs in on the dramatic transformation of the Blackhawks’ prospect pipeline, from one of the NHL’s weakest just four years ago to arguably its deepest since GM Kyle Davidson launched the rebuild in 2022.
Pat and Charlie close out the episode by reacting to Pronman’s insights before discussing the fallout from NHL insider Frank Seravalli’s report on Connor Bedard’s contract negotiations from last week’s episode and explaining why Blackhawks fans shouldn’t be concerned.
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Pronman is usually spot on..so i tend to rely on what he says…having said that… i still think the draft will be McKenna, Stenberg, Malhotra, and Reid…and i'm fine with that ! I dont think we need to trade up and waste next yrs #1 draft pick because next yrs draft is going to be better than this yrs draft !
dont know why everyone is so in love with Stenberg .. he only scored 11 goals in the SHL this yr….ok. good league…no big deal.. Kantserov LED….YES led the KHL in goals..we should keep that in mind..lol. Our d men dont seem to be rising, so getting Reid or one of the other d men will be our best on the team !!………just saying
lol. Chase Reid is a great player and will be a #1 D man in the nhl for many years, BUT he is NO Gavin McKenna. This just shows how out of touch Mr. Pronman is with the new Development system in the age group.
Hey, the way I see it, the Hawks will either get Stenberg (longshot), the number one D, or the number one center. Cool with me.
I deemed this draft class as "no Celebrini's , but a ton of Boldy's " lol ! And there is nothing wrong with that at all !
I wouldnโt trade up! Blackhawks, and the Organization have to many holes to fill . If they want to be like Carolina , they just have to look at the โWolves โ who have 4 players that can move up to the Hurricanes ! Blackhawks still need players to devolp .
Bedard hasn't shown elite numbers just good so I'd say Bedard isn't a generational player plus he's small and has been injury prone just like Nazar ,KD just loves the small players !!
I agree the same tier in any of the top 5 guys .Why give Sharks picks ?
How many Mitch marners are there?โฆonly one as far as I knowโฆ why do you say multiple marners?.. (for example or Patrick kanes)