When, Where To Watch Blackhawks Top Prospects In NCAA Tournament

March Madness applies not just to hoops, but hockey too. And the Chicago Blackhawks top prospects will be strutting their stuff in the 2024 on-ice version of the NCAA's "Big Dance."

Speedy forwards Oliver Moore and Frank Nazar III, along with rangy defenseman Sam Rinzel, will skate in the regional semifinals of the NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament starting Thursday, March 28.

Moore and Rinzel, both freshmen at Minnesota, will be in the lineup for the Golden Gophers (22-10-5) as they face Nebraska-Omaha (23-12-4) at the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on March 28 at 8:30 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPNU and follows a 5 p.m. match between Boston University (26-9-2) and RIT (27-10-2). 

Macklin Celebrini, the No. 1 rated prospect heading into the 2024 NHL Draft, leads BU with 31 goals and 59 points in 35 games. The Blackhawks, currently in 31st place in the NHL, will be in the mix in the NHL Draft Lottery to win the top draft pick for a second straight year.

Nazar will be on the ice for Michigan when the Wolverines (21-14-3) square off against North Dakota (26-11-2) on Friday, March 29 at the Centene Community Ice Center in Maryland Heights, Missouri. The game from the facility in suburban St. Louis starts at 8:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ESPNU.

Moore was rated the No. 1 prospect in 2024 THN Future Watch. Nazar was second and Rinzel was fourth.The No. 3 prospect, defenseman Wyatt Kaiser, was recalled by the Blackhawks two weeks ago from AHL Rockford.

Moore, Rinzel and Nazar all came on strong in the second half of the 2023-24 collegiate season after returning from gold medal-winning Team USA at the 2024 World Junior Championships in Sweden.

Moore and Rinzel, both freshmen at Minnesota and Twin Cities area natives, will return to the Gophers next season to continued their development. Moore has nine goals and 24 assists in 33 games entering the NCAA tourney. Rinzel, who has become a blueline quarterback, has two goals and team-leading 25 assists.

After selecting Connor Bedard with the first overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, the Blackhawks and general manager Kyle Davidson were pumped to take Moore in the 19th slot. Chicago drafted the 19-year-old Rinzel in the first round, 25th overall in 2022.

Nazar is finishing up his sophomore year at Michigan after he was limited to 13 games as a freshman following hip surgery. The suburban Detroit native has 16 goals and 23 assists in 38 games so far in 2023-24.

The Blackhawks haven't disclosed whether they might want to sign Nazar after his season ends or recommend he return to the Wolverines in 2024-25. He was drafted 13th overall in 2022, Chicago's second first-found pick after defenseman Kevin Korchinski.

THN Future Watch includes features and an overview of prospects from all 32 NHL teams. It's available on newsstands across Canada, as well as from the https://thehockeynews.store/ and for free with a The Hockey News subscription via thn.com/free