NINE PICKED BY BLACKHAWKS IN 2014 DRAFT

Philadelphia, Penn,- The Chicago Blackhawks drafted center Nick Schmaltz (20th overall), forward Matheson Iacopelli (83rd overall), forward Beau Starrett (88th overall), forward Frederik Olofsson (98th overall), defenseman Luc Snuggerud (141st overall), defenseman Andreas Soderberg (148th overall), center Dylan Sikura (178th overall), goaltender Ivan Nalimov (179th overall) and forward Jack Ramsey (208th overall) at the 2014 National Hockey League Draft at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on Friday, June 27, and Saturday, June 28.

Schmaltz, 18, paced the United States Hockey League’s Green Bay Gamblers with 63 points and 45 assists in 55 regular-season games this past year. The Verona, Wis., native shared third on the club with 18 goals, including 11 power-play goals. He also led the team with 63 penalty minutes and 140 shots on goal. Schmaltz added three points (1G, 2A) in four postseason games. He has 119 points (37G, 82A) in 130 career USHL games across three seasons, in addition to five points (2G, 3A) in eight playoff contests. Schmaltz won a silver medal with the United States at the 2013 Under-18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament, pacing the team with eight points (5G, 3A) in five games. He also led the U.S. to a gold medal at the 2013 World Junior A Challenge with a tournament-high 12 points (4G, 8A) in four games; he was named the World Junior A Challenge MVP. Schmaltz collected 117 points (46G, 71A) in 62 games with the Chicago Mission U16 team from 2009-2012.

Iacopelli, 20, shared seventh in the USHL (T-Nick Schmaltz) and led the Muskegon Lumberjacks with 63 points in 58 regular-season games this past year; he paced the league with 41 goals and ranked fourth on the team with 22 assists. The Woodhaven, Mich., native also led the league with 283 shots on goal and registered a team-high +12 plus/minus rating. He shared second in the USHL with 12 power-play goals and six game-winners. Iacopelli recorded a season-high three goals on Dec. 29 vs. Youngstown and a season-long eight-game point streak from Oct. 11-Nov. 1 (9G, 2A), which included a league-best eight-game goal streak (9G). He was named to the 2013-14 All-USHL First Team.

Starrett, 18, recorded 47 points (11G, 36A) in 48 regular-season games with the U.S. Premier Hockey League’s South Shore Kings. The Bellingham, Mass., native registered 18 power-play points (4G, 14A) and 94 penalty minutes. He also added one goal in five postseason contests. Starrett tallied three helpers in as many games during the USPHL Winter Showcase.

Olofsson, 18, tallied 21 points (6G, 15A) in 52 regular-season games split between the USHL’s Chicago Steel and Green Bay Gamblers. The Helsingborg, Sweden, native posted two goals and four assists in 28 games to open the season with the Gamblers and added 15 points (4G, 11A) in 24 games with the Steel. He recorded a season-long four-game point streak (3G, 3A) from Feb. 15-22 with Chicago, including a season-best three points (2G, 1A) and +4 rating on Feb. 22 vs. Muskegon. Olofsson recorded one assist in four games at the 2013 Under-18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament.

Snuggerud, 18, ranked second on Eden Prairie High School’s team with 38 points (8G, 30A) in 25 regular-season games and 10 points (1G, 9A) in six postseason contests. The Eden Prairie, Minn., native served as the team’s captain and helped lead the club to the semifinal game at the 2013-14 Minnesota State Class AA boys' hockey tournament. Snuggerud posted 21 points (5G, 16A) in 19 regular-season games with Team Southeast of the Upper Midwest High School Elite Hockey League. He was named the winner of the 2014 Reed Larson Award, which is presented to Minnesota’s top senior boys’ high school hockey defenseman; he was also a finalist for the 2014 Mr. Hockey Award. Snuggerud finished his high school career with 108 points (19G, 89A) in 81 career games. He posted five points (1G, 4A) in seven regular-season USHL games split between Muskegon and the Omaha Lancers and added one assist in four postseason contests with Omaha this year.

Soderberg, 18, split the season between Sweden’s Skelleftea Jr. and Skelleftea U18 clubs. He tallied six points (1G, 5A) and 14 penalty minutes in 36 contests with Skelleftea Jr. and added three points (1G, 2A) in 12 contests with Skelleftea U18. The Sweden native has recorded 30 points (8G, 22A) in 61 contests with the Skelleftea U18 team across three seasons.

Sikura, 18, ranked second on the Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Aurora Tigers with a career-high 64 points and shared fourth in the league with a team-high 47 assists in 41 regular-season contests. The Aurora, Ontario, native ranked third in the OJHL with a club-high 24 power-play assists and added two power-play goals; he also posted three game-winning goals. Sikura paced the Tigers with 21 points (10G, 11A) in 21 OJHL playoff contests. He was named to Team East of the Canadian Junior Hockey League’s Prospect Game for the second consecutive season. Sikura has 111 points (31G, 80A) in 132 career OJHL regular-season games across three seasons and 24 points (12G, 12A) in 36 playoff games.

Nalimov, 19, notched a 5-7 record, 2.84 goals-against average and .894 save percentage in 12 games with Russia’s SKA St. Petersburg 2 and appeared in one postseason contest. The Novokuznetsk, Russia, native won a bronze medal with Team Russia at the 2014 World Junior Championship, tallying one loss during the tournament. Nalimov posted a career-high 23-11 mark with four shutouts, a .931 SV% and 2.12 GAA in 47 regular-season games with SKA St. Petersburg 2 during the 2012-13 season; he registered a 3-4 record in seven 2012-13 postseason contests. He has collected a 35-24 mark with five shutouts, a .924 SV% and 2.25 GAA in 79 regular-season games with SKA St. Petersburg 2 across three seasons and a 3-4 postseason record in eight contests.

Ramsey, 18, recorded 25 points (9G, 16A) in 57 regular-season games with the British Columbia Hockey League’s Penticton Vees. The Chanhassen, Minn., native added three power-play goals and 27 penalty minutes. He shared fourth on the team with eight points (1G, 7A) in 11 postseason contests. Ramsey previously played for Minnesota’s Minnetonka High School team, tallying 48 points (16G, 32A) in 47 contests from 2011-13. He also posted 18 points (12G, 6A) in 19 regular-season games with Team Northwest of the Upper Midwest High School Elite Hockey League during the 2012-13 season.

Chicago Blackhawks 2014 NHL Draft Recap

^ Acquired from CGY with 83rd-overall pick on June 28, 2014, in exchange for forward Brandon Bollig.
^^ Acquired from TOR with 2013 51st- and 117th-overall picks on June 30, 2013, in exchange for forward Dave Bolland.
^^^ Acquired from SJS with 2013 111th-overall pick on June 30, 2013, in exchange for 2013 117th- and 151st-overall picks.
^^^^ Acquired from SJS with 2014 20th-overall pick on June 27, 2014, in exchange for 2014 27th- and 62nd-overall picks.