The 2018 draft produced some very skilled defensemen at the top of the draft, but the Chicago Blackhawks fumbled the bag and didn't scout very well. The Blackhawks held the eighth overall pick and drafted Adam Boqvist, who looked promising in his early years, but has trailed off significantly.
The Buffalo Sabres drafted Rasmus Dahlin first overall and the Vancouver Canucks selected Quinn Hughes seventh overall. Chicago didn't have a chance at either. But following the Blackhawks' pick at number eight, the Edmonton Oilers drafted Evan Bouchard at 10 and the New York Islanders drafted Noah Dobson at 12.
Boqvist only played two seasons with the Blackhawks, and they were both half seasons. The d-man with more offensive tools than defensive ones put up six goals and 29 points in 76 games. He only averaged 16:35 though, even though he had 215 minutes on the power play in those two seasons. But this was when he was only 19 and 20 years old.
Boqvist was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the Seth Jones trade, but following that, played on both the Florida Panthers and New York Islanders this season. He has 27 goals and 99 points in 244 games, and on an 82-game average, is projected to put up nine goals and 33 points. But, he has never played over 52 games in a season and is going to turn 25 years old before the start of next season.
While Boqvist struggles to find a place in the NHL if he even intends on staying for much longer, Dahlin, Hughes, Bouchard, and Dobson are thriving.
Dobson was just traded to the Montreal Canadiens and signed for eight years at $9.5 million AAV, while Bouchard is projected to get around $10 million AAV and both Dahlin and Hughes are already signed.
Dahlin has been in the Norris Trophy conversation for three seasons in a row and has 83 goals to go along with 360 points in 509 games. Hughes is a Norris Trophy winner, finished third this season, and has received votes in five of his six seasons in the NHL. He has 59 goals and 409 points in 433 games. But the defensemen the Blackhawks chose Boqvist over are even more important in this discussion.
Bouchard received Norris Trophy votes the last two seasons and has 55 goals and 238 points in 347 games. But while that isn't as impressive as the first two, he is the second-most productive defenseman offensively in playoff history in terms of points-per-game. He has 20 goals and 81 points in 75 playoff games. Dobson has a 70-point season under his belt and received Norris Trophy votes in a season. He has 50 goals and 230 points in 388 games in his career.
The Blackhawks definitely haven't missed on their defensive picks over the last number of years, but this could have changed the direction of Chicago a number of years ago...or their pick would've been traded either way.
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