Blackhawks draft nine more players, most of them forwards
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Blackhawks drafted nine players in the second day of the NHL Draft Thursday.
First up was goaltender Adam Gajan, the 35th pick in the second round. The Slovakian native is a Minnesota-Duluth commit.
Just nine picks later at No. 44, the 'Hawks took Russian Forward Roman Kantserov. He put up 54 poinds in 45 games in Russia's second-division pro league last season.
The Blackhawks also picked forward Martin Misiak, another Slovakian native, at No. 55 in Round 2.
In Round 3, the Blackhawks picked forward Nick Lardis of Oakville, Ontario, Canada, and forward Jiri Felcman of Czechia. The Blackhawks picked forward Alex Pharand of Sudbury, Ontario, Canada in Round 4, forward Marcel Marcel of Czechia in Round 6, forward Milton Oscarson of Sweden in Round 6, and defenseman Janne Peltonen of Finland in Round 7.
General Manager Kyle Davisson is stacking young talent as part of the team's rebuild.
"I think the draft is always, depending on the player, it's always short, medium, and long. But it's probably all longer-term in terms of what we're building here," Davidson said. "Just excited about some of the upside players that we were able to acquire in the draft the last two days here, and hopefully, more of them pan out than not."
The Blackhawks also made a couple of trades Thursday – acquiring the negotiating rights to free agent Corey Perry from the Tampa Bay Lightning for a seventh-round pick. Davidson hopes to re-sign the 38-year-old winger, who won the Hart Trophy back in 2011.
The Blackhawks also got Josh Bailey and a second-rounder for future considerations. Davidson plans to waive Bailey.
On Wednesday night, the Blackhawks selected Connor Bedard as the No. 1 overall pick. They also selected Oliver Moore with the No. 19 first-round pick.