The second and final day of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft has concluded and the Chicago Blackhawks [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks] wrapped up their selections with eight new players. Three of those players - Anton Frondell, Vaclav Nestrasil, and Mason West, were drafted on Friday in the first round, but five more, including three forwards, one defenseman, and one goalie, were chosen on Saturday. Following the first round, the Blackhawks didn't draft until the third round where they selected Nathan Behm, a winger, at 66th overall. He scored 31 goals and 66 points in 59 games for the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL this season and made a significant jump from 2023-24. The Blackhawks drafted twice in the fourth round this year, taking Julius Sumpf, a center, with the 98th overall pick, and Parker Holmes, a winger, with the 107th overall pick. Sumpf is a German-born player who played on the Moncton Wildcats in the QMJHL for the past two seasons. He scored 26 goals and 65 points in 58 games this season, but it wasn't a huge improvement from his prior season. This was likely a reason why he went in the fourth round. He did put up 10 goals and 16 points in 19 playoff games this season too. Holmes scored one goal and recorded no assists in 21 games for the Brampton Bulldogs of the OHL this season. He was a teammate of Nick Lardis and Marek Vanacker, so that is how Holmes got exposure to the Blackhawks. With no offense, it is still a very interesting pick. The Blackhawks skipped to the sixth round to select defenseman Ashton Cumby at pick 162. He had two goals and 13 points in 68 games for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL and goes to the penalty box a lot. Chicago's final pick of the 2025 draft was a goalie, Ilya Kanarsky at 194. He split time between the VHL and MHL in Russia this season in the Tula Mikhailov Academy. The goaltender went 0-3-0 in the VHL with a 1.36 GAA and .942 SV%, allowing just four goals, but went 22-8-1 in the MHL with a 2.24 GAA, .938 SV%, and four shutouts. Russians are always a wildcard, but he seems like a solid netminder to take a chance on late. There isn't much of a risk. Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/] team site to stay updated on the latest news, game day coverage, player features, and more.
