If you’re a Chicago Blackhawks fan, chances are you were incredibly frustrated with Stan Bowman’s insistency on trading away talent. Many deals have been made over the years that have resulted in outrage. For whatever reason, the Hawks have become notoriously great at drafting fantastic talent and then trading it away for much less, and generally, at least one returning player is involved. This mentality is no more evident than with their first-round picks.
The Blackhawks have no active players that they drafted in the first-round between the draft years of Patrick Kane and Kirby Dach, and only one player drafted in that time remains in the system (Nicolas Beaudin). To make matters worse, many of the first-round picks Chicago traded away turned into essential pieces of many NHL squads. Where did all of these players go? Strap yourselves in, Blackhawks fans, and prepare for a wild, and most likely excruciating, ride.