The Chicago Blackhawks are opening their 2026 prospect schedule with a familiar setup: practices beginning Sept. 11, followed by two games against St. Louis Blues prospects. It’s a clean early test for a group of 22 prospects, even if a few of the bigger names won’t be there because of college commitments.
Mason West, Xavier Villeneuve and Václav Nestrašil are all unavailable because they’re tied up at Michigan State, Boston University and the University of Massachusetts, respectively. That leaves the Blackhawks with plenty of young talent on the ice anyway, and this event has become one of the first real chances to see who might be pushing for more as training camp approaches.
There’s obvious intrigue around the players who could force the issue. A.J.
Spellacy, Sacha Boisvert and Marek Vanacker are the three NHL hopefuls worth tracking closely. The expectation is that all three begin the year with the Rockford IceHogs, but the showcase gives them a stage to make that decision a little less simple.
Vanacker arrives after leading the OHL in goals with 47. Spellacy is coming off a 32-point season in 52 games during his fourth OHL year.
Boisvert already has seven games of NHL experience with Chicago from last season, and his development remains one of the more interesting storylines in the system. All three bring a similar edge, the kind of tenacity that could eventually fit in bottom-six roles for the Blackhawks, and that style should show up right away against the Blues prospects.
Rockford’s incoming group adds even more layers to the weekend. Along with Boisvert, Vanacker and Spellacy, the IceHogs will also have defenseman Ashton Cumby, goaltender Adam Gajan and Jiri Felcman, who joined Rockford late last season. But the name that stands out a little more quietly is Taige Harding.
Harding is entering his third season with the IceHogs, and head coach Jared Nightingale had plenty to say about him at 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."
At 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds, Harding already has the kind of frame that gets your attention. Misiak is another player to watch on the forward side, especially with this being his fourth prospect showcase and second season in Rockford.
The overall tone of the showcase should be pretty clear from the roster alone: this is a physical group. Spellacy, Boisvert, Cumby, Vanacker, Harding, Parker Holmes and Paul Ludwinski all bring the sort of hard-nosed style that can make these games feel a lot less like exhibition work and a lot more like a battle.
That lines up with what the Blackhawks have been trying to build. They want a team that’s harder to play against, and this weekend gives them a look at whether that trait is showing up throughout the pipeline.
There’s also a small preview of the 2026 draft class on hand. Ryan Roobroeck is the only prospect from that group attending, and the Blackhawks are high on his scoring touch. He put up 30 goals last season with the Niagara IceDogs, and even in what was described as a down year for him, that number still jumps off the page.
He should be one of the more interesting scorers to follow over the two games.
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