Saskatoon’s Korchinski goes 7th overall to Blackhawks in 2022 NHL Draft

The Chicago Blackhawks made a blockbuster trade with the Ottawa Senators just hours before the start of the 2022 NHL Draft.

The Blackhawks acquired a package of picks including the 7th overall draft pick, in exchange for forward Alex DeBrincat.

Fast forward to the Blackhawks selection, Chicago went with Saskatoon’s Kevin Korchinski.

Korchinski had a stellar season with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the NHL, notching 65 points (four goals, 61 assists) in just 67 games.

The 6-foot-2, left-handed shot defencemen stayed awfully consistent with those numbers in the postseason, going for six goals and 13 assists in 19 total games.

The last time a Saskatchewan-born player went in the top ten dates back to 2014, when Carlyle’s Haydn Fleury was selected by the Carolina Hurricanes with the 7th overall pick.

Before that, Regina’s Ryan Murray went 2nd overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2012.

Meanwhile, several players on Saskatchewan-based WHL teams heard their names called at the Bell Centre.

Moose Jaw’s Denton Mateychuk went 12th overall in the first round to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Mateychuk led the Warriors defencemen in scoring this past season, notching 13 goals, 51 assists for a total of 64 points in 65 total games.

The second Warrior came off the board early in the second round when Jagger Firkus was selected by the Seattle Kraken with the 35th overall pick.

Firkus led Moose Jaw in scoring this season with 36 goals, 44 assists for a total of 80 points. The Irma, Alberta native produced over a point-per-game, playing in 66 contests.

Meanwhile, the Swift Current Broncos made a ton of noise in the draft. A total of five Broncos were selected, with three of the five picks going in the sixth round.

Owen Pickering was the lone first-rounder from Swift Current. The Broncos defencemen went 21st overall to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Connor Hvidston went in the 5th round (139th overall) to the Anaheim Ducks. Hvidston hails from Tisdale and notched 32 points in 58 games in a Broncos uniform this season.

Fast forward to the sixth round, Josh Filmon would go to the New Jersey Devils (166th overall), Reid Dyck went to the Boston Bruins (183rd overall), and Josh Davies was selected by the Florida Panthers (186th overall) to round out the swarm of Broncos picks.

Brandon Lisowsky was the lone Saskatoon Blade to hear his name called in the draft. 

Late in the 7th round, the Toronto Maple Leafs selected Lisowsky (218th overall).

Lisowsky scored 33 goals this year with Saskatoon while finishing third in team scoring.