4 Blackhawks thoughts before the 2026 Prospect Showcase

The Chicago Blackhawks are kicking things off with the 2026 Prospect Showcase, which will include practices starting on Sept. 11, as well as two games against the St. Louis Blues prospects.

Some notable Blackhawks prospects will miss the showcase due to their college commitments, including Mason West (Michigan State), Xavier Villeneuve (Boston University), and Václav Nestrašil (University of Massachusetts).

But the showcase is always a great opportunity for the 22 prospects to show off their skills ahead of training camp.

Here are four thoughts ahead of the first prospect practice.

Look for the NHL hopefuls

At last year's prospect showcase, it included Nick Lardis, Sam Rinzel, Oliver Moore, Ryan Greene and Artyom Levshunov- all players who went on to have a notable role on the Blackhawks.

In 2026, some NHL hopefuls who are vying for a spot out of training camp include A.J. Spellacy, Sacha Boisvert, and Marek Vanacker.

It's assumed all three will start with the Rockford IceHogs, but you never know. They can build solid cases early. Vanacker is coming off an OHL goal-leading season (47). Spellacy is coming off a productive 32 points in 52 games in his fourth OHL season. And Sacha Boisvert had seven games of NHL experience with the Blackhawks last season, and his progress will be one to watch.

Now and in the future, all three players will be competing for bottom-six roles on the Blackhawks, as they all bring a tenacious style of play. It will be something to watch at training camp, too. But it certainly will be on display when they face off against the Blues prospects.

Under the radar prospects at the showcase

The Rockford IceHogs will have new talent on their roster this season, including the three potentials in Boisvert, Vanacker, and Spellacy, defenseman Ashton Cumby, and goaltender Adam Gajan. Jiri Felcman is significant, too, as he joined Rockford towards the end of their season.

But one player to watch is defenseman Taige Harding. This will be his third season with the IceHogs, and IceHogs' head coach Jared Nightingale raved about his progress at the Blackhawks development camp in June: "Taige took huge steps. He was our most improved player. I think him and Martin Misiak took the biggest steps. You know, that big body, and he wants to play with jam and some toughness. I think once he started to, you know, he got into a few scraps. I think he started to play with much more confidence. But he's a guy, I mean, he probably puts the most time (in). He's always on the ice early, working with Kevin Delaney, our skating coach. He took great steps, and there's no D-prospects coming out this year to play for us, with the exception of Cumby. So, Tage is going to be a big priority. Look for him to take a step."

Harding is 6'6", 235 pounds, and he is certainly an intriguing defense prospect to keep an eye on. Misiak is another for the forwards, as Nightingale mentioned. This will be Misiak's fourth prospect showcase and his second season in Rockford, so his development will be noteworthy.

A heavy showcase

This looks to be a heavy showcase. With names like Spellacy, Boisvert, Cumby, Vanacker, Harding, Parker Holmes, and Paul Ludwinski, those two games will not be easy for the Blues, as all of those players are known for their hard-nosed, physical play.

But the Blackhawks have been wanting to become harder to play against. So, it's exactly what they want to see from their pipeline, too.

A glimpse into the 2026 draft class

Ryan Roobroeck will be in attendance, and it will be fun to see a bit of what he can do. He is the only prospect from the 2026 draft class that will be in attendance. The Blackhawks are really high on his potential and goal-scoring ability. He scored 30 goals last season with the Niagara IceDogs; even in what was described as more of a down year, 30 goals is still impressive.

He'll be a scorer to watch in the two games.