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3w ago

Blackhawks Strengthen Pipeline With First-Round Picks Frondell, Nestrasil

By using the league’s third, followed by the twenty-fifth pick, Chicago deepens its rebuild with a power forward set for another SHL season, a winger slated to develop at UMass Amherst

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Anton Frondell poses with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, right, and Jeremy Roenick, left, after being drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks with the third overall pick during the first round of the NHL Draft at the Peacock Theater on Friday, June 27, 2025, in Los Angeles. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images/TNS)
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Overview

  • Chicago chose Swedish forward Anton Frondell with the third overall pick after he tallied 25 points in 29 HockeyAllsvenskan games and earned rookie of the year honors
  • The Blackhawks secured Czech winger Vaclav Nestrasil at No. 25 using a conditional first-round selection acquired from Toronto in February 2023 following his 42-point season with the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks
  • Neither prospect will join the NHL roster in 2025-26 as Frondell returns to Djurgårdens IF in Sweden’s SHL and Nestrasil advances to NCAA play at UMass Amherst
  • GM Kyle Davidson’s strategy of accumulating high-ceiling prospects supports star Connor Bedard as the team looks to recover from two straight seasons near the bottom of the standings
  • Frondell’s point-per-game pace outperformed past top draft picks in their draft years and Nestrasil’s combination of size and scoring upside enhances Chicago’s long-term forward core