“Sitting where we are right now with the prospects we’ve just put together, I’m very happy,” he said after the first round. Whether it was worth the cost remains to be seen. “It was a pretty monumental day and a huge shift in ground for the Blackhawks organization,” Davidson said, “but it’s almost the unofficial beginning of where we’re headed and our ascent there.” Yes, the Blackhawks upped their prospects by selecting defenseman Kevin Korchinski at No. 7, center Frank Nazar at No. 13 and defenseman Sam Rinzel at No. 25. But to get the top two, they had to give up young forwards Alex DeBrincat and Kirby Dach. DeBrincat is 24, Dach 21. They have combined for 104 points this season. Not long ago, they were considered key pieces in a Blackhawks rebuild. Not anymore. “It’s hard to trade any young player, especially young players like we did today,” Davidson said. “It’s certainly not easy and it’s certainly not fun. Doing the things you have to do to get where you want to go is not fun. It’s going to be tough days like this where you’re going to see familiar faces that we in management and the fans know and love but it is necessary to get where we want to be. “It’s all about process. It’s our job to make sure the advantages we bring to our decision making are the right ones and the right ones. It’s up to us to turn these players into players for the long term, and that process started today.” [RELATED: Trade Tracker | Complete Draft coverage | 2022 NHL Draft first-round results, analysis] The Blackhawks traded DeBrincat to the Ottawa Senators about three hours before the start of the draft for three picks: Ottawa’s first- and second-round picks (Nos. 7 and 39) in the 2022 draft and a third-round pick in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft Draft. DeBrincat had 78 points in 82 games this season, leading Chicago with 41 goals to tie his NHL career high set in 2018-19. Dach, selected by Chicago with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, was traded to the Montreal Canadiens for first- and third-round picks (Nos. 13 and 66) in the 2022 draft. He had 26 points (nine goals, 17 assist) in 70 games this season. Chicago then capped a busy night by acquiring goaltender Petr Mrazek and the No. 25 pick in the 2022 draft in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs for a second-round pick (No. 38) in the same draft. Davidson said the deal was made primarily to acquire Rinzel. “I think we have some very high-quality prospects in our system,” Davidson said. “Coming into today, if I thought we were going to add Kevin Korchinski, Sam Rinzel and Frank Nazar, I wouldn’t have believed you.” Davidson said the common thread of all three is elite skating skills. Korchinski (6-foot-2, 185 pounds) had 65 points (four goals, 61 assists) in 67 regular-season games for Seattle of the Western Hockey League this season. The then 18-year-old had 19 points (six goals, 13 assists) in 25 playoff games. Nazar (5-10, 180) had 70 points (28 goals, 42 assists) in 56 games with the USA Hockey Under-18 Development Program this season. He will attend the University of Michigan in the fall. Rinzel (6-4, 180) split this season between Chaska High School in Minnesota and Waterloo of the United Hockey League and collected 48 points (11 goals, 37 assists) in 48 games. He has committed to the University of Minnesota for next season. Davidson said Blackhawks fans will have to be patient to see this young core develop, especially with what Chicago left. “I think it’s hard whenever familiar faces walk out the door, and I understand that, but you know what?” he said. “We’re still going to have a team that loves to play for the city of Chicago and loves to wear that Blackhawks sweater and will bring it every night.”
