Blackhawks prospect Gavin Hayes has taken a significant step forward this season, his second in the team’s pipeline since being drafted in the third round in 2022.
Hayes always has been a ‘‘great thinker’’ with an equally great shot, assistant general manager Mark Eaton said, but his playmaking and physicality now are catching up to those other traits. Gaining weight has been a major focus for him.
‘‘He looks stronger out there,’’ Eaton said. ‘‘He has initiated contact and won a lot of physical battles. Guys are bouncing off him a lot more than they did last year.
‘‘And when you’re stronger, it gives you more confidence to maybe hold on to a puck an extra split-second, even if you know you’re going to take a hit, because you’re more physically able to take those hits.’’
Hayes is one of six Hawks prospects who will compete in the world junior championships, which start Tuesday in Sweden.
He joins forwards Frank Nazar and Oliver Moore and defenseman Sam Rinzel — the Hawks’ last three first-round picks not named Connor Bedard or Kevin Korchinski — on the U.S. team.
Meanwhile, forward Martin Misiak and goalie Adam Gajan will compete for Slovakia. Bedard and Korchinski would have starred for Canada, but they’re preoccupied in the NHL.
Eaton, GM Kyle Davidson and the rest of the Hawks’ front office will be glued to the U.S. games in particular, considering how many potentially big pieces of their future will be on display.
Nazar missed the tournament last year while recovering from hip surgery, but he’s fully healthy now and has settled into a long-awaited rhythm during his sophomore season at Michigan, building momentum to carry into this showcase.
He has 18 points — five off the Wolverines’ team lead — in 18 games after notching seven points in 13 games during the tail end of last season.
‘‘Over the last month and a half, he has shown the flashes that we’ve seen [before] with the speed and the offensive ability,’’ Eaton said.
‘‘One of the things we love about him is he expects a lot from himself, so that has been part of it, too — not [exactly] managing expectations, still expecting elite play from himself every night, but recalibrating what that might look like. [He’s] finding ways to make an impact even when he’s not showing up on the scoresheet. He has really started to embrace that.’’
Rinzel and Moore, freshman teammates (and roommates) at Minnesota, have transitioned pretty well to the college level, too.
The Hawks picked Rinzel 25th overall in 2022 knowing his development timeline would be longer than that of the average first-rounder, but they’re satisfied with his rate of growth so far. His skating and puck-moving skills have translated smoothly — he’s the Gophers’ top-scoring defenseman with 11 points in 18 games — and he’s improving in the defensive zone while gradually gaining strength.
Moore started this season on the wing but has moved to center during the last month and has 12 points in 18 games. The Hawks haven’t decided yet whether he’ll be a center in the NHL one day, but they want him playing center in college.
‘‘He certainly has a lot of what you’d look for in a center: the 200-foot game up and down, the compete level, [the] defensive responsibility,’’ Eaton said. ‘‘If he can play center throughout college, that’ll serve him well once he does become a pro. It’s always an easier transition to wing than vice versa.’’
And then there’s Hayes, who was on the U.S. roster bubble but ultimately made the cut. With 36 points in 27 games for Flint of the Ontario Hockey League, he is on a similar scoring pace to last season, but his growth in other areas — and on his 6-2 frame — has the Hawks excited.
More prospect updates
Among the Hawks’ 2023 picks, third-rounder Nick Lardis has been arguably the most impressive so far this season.
The 18-year-old forward ranks second in the entire OHL in terms of both goals (25) and shots on goal (141) in 30 games for the Brantford Bulldogs. His shooting ability is special.
“[Lardis is a] really good skater, has a good set of hands and can get that shot off,” Eaton said. “With him, as it is with all of the youngest [class] of your prospect pool, it’s even more exciting when you see how much more he can grow physically. As he fills out and gets stronger and adds some power, all of those other elements are only going to be magnified.”
Last spring, Russian forward Ilya Safonov — who had previously flown under the radar as a 2021 sixth-round pick — was one of the fastest-rising prospects in the Hawks’ system. He enjoyed a major breakout season in the KHL, racking up 37 points in 64 games for Kazan Ak-Bars.
This season has proven tougher for Safonov, however. The 22-year-old has tallied only 14 points in 42 games. His 6-4, 205-pound body and history of success in pro hockey will keep the Hawks interested, though, and his KHL contract doesn’t expire until 2025 regardless.
“He sees the drop-off in production, he feels it [and he] puts pressure on himself, so he’s battling that,” Eaton said. “But he’s still an intriguing player. That’s the positive of the Russian players: you don’t have to put a timeline on them. You can let them marinate. When their game tells you — and they tell you — they’re ready, then you can potentially have them make the jump.”
Ryan Greene, a 2022 second-round pick, has been operating as Boston University’s second-line center as a sophomore this season. Right above him on the Terriers’ depth chart is Macklin Celebrini, the unanimous No. 1 pick in the 2024 NHL draft.
Greene has been a point-per-game producer through 16 appearances, increasing his offense after recording 31 points in 38 games last season.
“He probably wasn’t as happy with his game the first few weeks, but [through] most of November and into December, he has played the best hockey of his life,” Eaton said. “[He’s] finding ways [to use] and becoming more comfortable with using his best asset — which is his skating — all over in the ice, in all situations. We’re happy with his progression.”
