It’s the third combine for both Doneghey and General Manager Kyle Davidson in their respective roles leading the draft process — and every year to date has been a different experience. Early returns on the first two draft classes appear positive, though, with names like Kevin Korchinski, Frank Nazar and Connor Bedard leading the group overall in a busy two summers for Chicago.
In 2022, the Blackhawks, until draft day, didn’t own a first-round pick (though would end the draft with three). At that year’s combine, the duo was still figuring out how they wanted to run things compared to the years, and players expected to go in the first round were somewhat questioning why the Blackhawks were interested in them.
A year ago, while the entire hockey world knew that Connor Bedard’s name would be the first one called in Nashville, the team still had to enter the combine with an open mind, doing their complete due diligence on all the players in the top echelon of the first round, while also putting a lot of focus on their remaining picks across the opening rounds. In the end, they chose Bedard first overall and eight other players before the weekend was done.
This year, sitting at No. 2 overall, the hockey world is expecting the draft to really kick off when Chicago is on the clock, with San Jose anticipated to select consensus top prospect Macklin Celebrini at the top of the order. From there, the Blackhawks have full control of where they want to go, and Donegehy says his group feels the most confident yet in their roles and internal process as they evaluate their future picks for one final time.
