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Check out the most recent comment in the Blackhawks Prospects thread for a review of Nestrasil’s, Frondell’s and Spellacy’s play at the WJC.
Steven Ellis of the Hockey News summarizes the play of about 90 WJC players that have been drafted by NHL teams.
http://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/2026-world-juniors-scouting-reports-on-every-nhl-drafted-prospect
His excerpts on Nestrasil, Frondell and Spellacy –
Vaclav Nestrasil, F (Chicago Blackhawks): I really, really Nestrašil. The 6-foot-6 forward is truly a menacing figure. He hits hard, plays hard and shoots even harder. He dominated Canada and Denmark physically and appeared quicker than the last time I saw him in person. Even away from the puck, I thought he did an outstanding job of breaking up plays and winning individual battles. I wrote earlier in the tournament that Blackhawks fans should absolutely believe the hype around Nestrašil – he’s a monster.
Anton Frondell, F (Chicago Blackhawks): Frondell getting moved to the wing at the start of training camp really paid off here. Frondell is better when he’s focusing on generating offense, especially with his patented one-timer from the right dot. Sweden looked significantly worse when Frondell wasn’t able to get any pucks on net against Switzerland, but he made up for it with some huge showings the rest of the way. Frondell did most of his shot generation on the man advantage, but if it wasn’t for Frondell, the Swedes could have easily found themselves with a disappointing record in the round-robin. That’s how important he was.
A.J. Spellacy, F (Chicago Blackhawks): Spellacy was one of USA’s top players. Not only was he their best penalty killer, but he was also instrumental in the Americans’ comeback against Slovakia. Spellacy was given more opportunities in the latter stages of the tournament, where he turned out to be one of the top shot generators. His mix of speed and toughness made him an absolute force, and I really like his odds of becoming a solid fourth-liner in the NHL.
Definitely Foligno, Dickinson or Lafferty won’t be here next year.
I can see Kantserov and Frondell on the team next year replacing 2 of Foligno, Angie and Lafferty. IMO that 3rd spot will be given to an overpaid veteran forward, maybe on a 2 year deal, to eat up some cap space. Can’t ice a team with 8 to 10 guys on ELC’s for both cap floor requirements and the need for some veterans.
Vanacker, Spellacy, maybe Boisvert at the Rock next year. Behm committed to Arizona State next season. Nestrasil likely still in college next season. Also next year, West plays at Michigan State, probably for 2 years.
Happy new year
Happy New Year to you Dots, Coach Frenchy, and all the many participants here on this forum.
For 2026, best wishes for everyone’s good health and welfare. And for the Hawks, a quick and lasting recovery to Bedard and Nazar, and success for our young players as they gain NHL experience.
I wonder which team we’ll see tonight. The one that upset Dallas, or the one that got thrashed by the Pens. I’d like to see some scoring from the rookies – Greene, Moore, Lardis.
Based on points percentage, Hawks with the worst record and in the #1 draft choice slot. Just a week or so ago, the Hawks were in a playoff position. The standings are currently tightly bunched and a winning streak would surely move them out of the basement. With Bedard and now Nazar injured that streak is easier said than done.
With all that said, the WJC torunament begins Friday. Good time to watch some of the potential top draft picks – McKenna, Verhoeff, and Stenberg to name a a few.
Good call, Frenchy, on the Kraken trading Marchment. He was traded to the Blue Jackets last night for a 2nd and 4th round picks.
Danault also traded from the Kings to the Canadiens. LA gets a 2nd back. Good article here about the Habs taking the next step in their rebuild by trading away assets to get a player that help them now and next year.
Thanks for keeping the conversation going Frenchy. Let’s hope that 2nd line of Lardis, Greene and Moore meshes together well and gives us a good glimpse of what the future holds. Also, in Bedard’s absence, it’s time for Nazar to step it up along with the veteran cadre of Bertuzzi, Burakovsky, TT, Dickinson, Mikheyev and Donato providing some goal scoring.
Finally, a good opportunity for DelMastro as Lev serves his penance. I hope he has a good game. Maybe if he cements a position, Grzylec or Murphy will become eventual trade bait.
Thanks Frenchy. As I commented in your latest Hawks 10 game recap (https://hockeyhotstove.com/blackhawks-10-game-report-card-games-21-30/) this will be a good time for the youths like Nazar, Moore, Greene Levshunov et al to to step up their game in Bedard’s likely absence, show they belong, and learn how not to depend on one player leading the team.
Dad Gummit. That Bedard injury is not good news. If he is gong to be out for an extended period, say good bye to the season and his possible Olympic participation.
The offense is really going to suffer since he’s been involved in 44 of the team’s 91 goals – just about half. Time for Nazar to put on his big boy pants and start contributing.
What happened to West playing for Michigan State?
He is still a senior in high school and will enroll at MSU next year.
