The Chicago Blackhawks are well represented at the World Juniors

The Chicago Blackhawks are building their future through prospects and the draft. That is why the day after Christmas will be an exciting time for the next few years as they figure to always be well-represented at the World Junior Championships.

Of course, Chicago is in the United States of America so cheering on Team USA will undoubtedly be a priority because seeing hockey grow in this country is very important. There are studs on that team led by their captain Luke Hughes (New Jersey Devils).

Unfortunately, the Blackhawks don’t have any prospects on Team USA but they are still sending a lot of good prospects to the tournament as a whole as five of their players are there. It is a great time to catch a glimpse of these guys as they try to capture World Junior Gold.

Team Canada has four of the five Blackhawks prospects playing in this thing. Three of them are defensemen and one of them is a forward.

The Chicago Blackhawks are well represented at the 2022-23 World Juniors.

Let’s start with the back end. Half of Canada’s top-six defense is made up of Blackhawks. Ethan Del Mastro, Kevin Korchinski, and Nolan Allan will be manning the blue line for Canada.

The Hawks need to keep developing these guys in hopes that a few of them can be ready for NHL play one day. If you don’t build a good defense, you won’t win anything. The forwards are fun and flashy but it would all be for not if the team can’t defend.

Speaking of forwards, Colton Dach is on Team Canada representing the Blackhawks as well. He is the younger brother of Kirby Dach who was once a Blackhawks draft pick that now plays for the Montreal Canadiens.

The other non-Canadian Blackhawks prospect playing here is Victor Stjernborg who will represent the Blackhawks playing for Team Sweden. He was a fourth-round pick (forward) for the Hawks in 2021 that has hopes of being an NHL player one day.

Both of these hockey countries have had tremendous success in international play over the years including at the World Junior Championships. It should be very exciting to see both of them compete in this tournament.

The current Blackhawks aren’t the only ones to be excited about either. As of right now, the Blackhawks are projected to have the best odds at the 2023 NHL Draft Lottery which could mean a very special player would be coming to town.

Connor Bedard will suit up for Team Canada in this tournament and many are expecting him to light it up. He is going to be in the NHL next season and he will probably be an impact player right away. Keep an eye on him with Canada as he should end up stealing the show.

Adam Fantilli is projected to go second overall behind Bedard and he is playing with him on Team Canada. If the Hawks end up with the second pick, they would be getting a good one with him as well. Both of these guys are worth tuning in for this year.

This tournament is special every year as we all get to see some of the best hockey prospects in the world do their thing. Hopefully, the Blackhawks come out of this tournament feeling very good about the future.