The 21-year-old Boston-area product will play his first full pro season in 2023-24. He's knocking at the door and fully focused on goaltending as his "job" after three stellar NCAA campaigns.

It’s no stretch: Scouts rank Drew Commesso as the best goaltender prospect in the Chicago’s Blackhawks system right now.

And the 21-year-old Commesso keeps stretching to improve as he heads into his first pro season.

Drafted in the second round, 46^th overall in 2020, Commesso finished a third season with Boston University last spring and helped lead the Terriers to the NCAA’s Frozen Four. After signing a three-year entry-level contact with the Blackhawks in April, the 6-foot-2 goalie checked in briefly with Rockford of the AHL before joining Team USA at the World Men’s Championships in Finland and Latvia.

Commesso will be in the mix with Petr Mrazek, Arvid Söderblom and Jaxson Stauber at Blackhawks training camp in September. Expect to see him in nets in exhibition games.

The Norwell, Massachusetts native probably will land at Rockford in October. Naturally, he’s aiming higher and has been studying one of the NHL’s top goalies, Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy, to elevate his game.

“I took a lot of time researching, actually found Andrei Vasilevskiy when he was coming over to North America, his training regimen,” Commesso said. “I said if I could follow that and do more, I should put myself in a good position to start the season.”

Commesso learned Vasilevskiy, who’s led the Lightning to two Stanley Cups, spends much of his day taking care of his 6-foot-2, 220-pound body. The 28-year-old Russian netminder stretches in the morning, trains early and stretches again.That’s followed by meditation, yoga and more stretching.

Commesso especially took note of Vasilevsky’s fluid motion in the crease and that his “hip mobility is off the charts.”

“So, I try to stretch as much as I can now, right when I wake up… around 5:40,” Commesso said. “Stretch, go to work out and then I’ve just started this new power yoga class for an hour and a half. It’s honestly way harder than skating and working out.

“It’s really helped me a lot and then I have a pretty strict routine at night now,” he added. “I want to be the best. I feel I’m so driven right now and I’m just going to continue to have a great summer."

Commesso got hooked on hockey and goaltending watching former Bruins netminder Tim Thomas, but his style is a polar opposite of the frenetic, flopping old-school Boston backstop. Commesso prefers to use his frame and angles to be in position, stay square to the puck and let it hit him. The prospect from Boston’s South Shore has NHL-level reactions and quickness, however, and can make snazzy, athletic saves when needed.

So could Commesso become Chicago’s next Corey Crawford?

The new training approach should help. He also continues to work on skating.

“That’s definitely going to be something I’m focusing on all offseason, skating and getting so much faster,” Commesso said. “Playing at the world championships, getting to skate with two NHL goalies every day, really taught me how much faster I can get, how fast those guys are.

“Also going to Rockford at the end of last season taught me a lot of how much room I can grow. For me, it just really exciting because I know I can get there and I love to put the work in in order to do so.”

Commesso came on strong down the stretch last season at BU after a bout of mononucleosis hit him right before Christmas. Being sick and worn down forced him to focus on nutrition, sleep and taking better care of himself away from the rink.

As part of that, Commesso worked with mental performance consultant, Bret Gilmour, on breathing and relaxation.

“That’s something I’ve been doing in the off-ice training as well, focusing on breathing, whether it’s working out or on the ice,” Commesso said. “It helps me stay relaxed, stay calm. When I’m at my best I’m playing calm and relaxed.”