2024-25 Midseason grades for Blackhawks prospects: Part II, The AHL mainstays

1 week ago  /  Second City Hockey

Moving on to our next round of prospects grades, we turn our attention to players who’ve spent the majority of the season — if not all of it — skating for the IceHogs in the AHL. There are a couple of top-10 picks in here and some encouragement may come from those portions of this piece. But there are some other draft picks lurking on this list who’ll help explain some of the building pessimism regarding this prospect pool that was detailed in the final paragraphs of Part I from Monday.







Drew Commesso



Goaltender, drafted in the second round (46th overall) in 2020 NHL Draft



2024-25 season with IceHogs: 8-12-2 record, .896 save percentage, 2.95 goals-against average, 2 shutouts in 23 games



2024-25 season with Blackhawks: 0-1-0 record, .846 save percentage, 3.36 goals-against average in 2 games



Grade: D+



It’s been an up-and-down season for Commesso, who slid down 10 spots in our Top 25 Under 25 rankings. His numbers are underwhelming on paper and take a step back from last season’s marks (18-16-4, .906, 2.65), but the flashes are arguably higher than they were in prior seasons. Goalies have a long developmental curve, so we’re not entirely out on Commesso yet by any means, but there are concerns with his lack of ability to show substantial growth throughout his career.



This season, there’s been noticeable improvement with Commesso’s footwork. What was choppier beforehand has now become more consistent and agile, allowing him to more swiftly adapt to shooters and slide around the blue paint. His rebound control is still reckless, but he’s steadfast in his positioning toward initial shots, and there’s the blueprint of competence in his profile. His upper-body and glove hand remain the weakest parts of his game as Commesso still does not consistently track the puck into his body and he can often lose the read when the puck moves — especially when it’s in close. He’s also struggled with handling player traffic in front of the net, often opting to move back to increase his field of vision instead of aggressively challenging shooters. While his lateral movement has improved due to his footwork, he still occasionally overcommits, leaving himself vulnerable to second-chance opportunities, or finding himself outside of the blue paint entirely. His confidence seems to waver at times, as he can look dialed in for one game and then completely out of sync in the next. Consistency remains the biggest hurdle in his development, as he has yet to string together a stretch of dominant — or even competent — performances. If he can refine his puck tracking, aggression, and rebound control, there’s still a chance he could develop into a reliable NHL goalie, but the road ahead is far from certain.



🔒Commesso’s locked in🔒 pic.twitter.com/OPPqCtY8bv— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) May 1, 2024



Ethan Del Mastro



Defenseman, drafted in fourth round (105th overall) in 2021 NHL Draft



2024-25 season with IceHogs: 8 A, 31 SOG, 39 PIM in 39 games



2024-25 season with Blackhawks: 1 A, 2 SOG, 2 PIM, 16:06 ATOI in 6 games



Grade: B



It’s tough to evaluate Del Mastro outright this year as his responsibilities on the ice have changed. While his raw numbers are down in terms of production by a substantial amount, Del Mastro is no longer getting top-pair and power-play minutes while being asked to drive offensive results. In fact, he’s being asked to play shutdown defense by the organization, who have instead opted to deploy both Levshunov and Korchinski in more offense-oriented roles. Those two have underperformed compared to what Del Mastro did last season, but there’s always going to be a little more opportunity given to players who were picked in the top 10.



But there’s still plenty to be encouraged about regarding Del Mastro’s play this season. He isn’t perfect, and he’ll be the first to acknowledge it. He’s still learning to play more of a defense-first game, but there has been improvement as the season has moved on. He’s learned to not force activations and instead act as a fallback player who operates all over the ice in order to cover for his more free-wheeling D partners. There’s quick decision making happening, along with smart uses of his body positioning and skating in order to take away lanes from attackers. Del Mastro’s vision also appears to be better this season, resulting in a drastic improvement of his ability to see plays on the ice compared to last season. He’s taken a much more steady approach of keeping pucks in at the blue line, and often acts as a facilitator and manager of the neutral zone through defensive transition, a skill that he sorely lacked last year. The most encouraging part of this season is simply that he’s being asked to play outside of where he’s comfortable and is handling that change rather well. While more production than simply eight assists without a goal in 39 games would’ve been nice — especially in the AHL — there’s still a clear path to the NHL for Del Mastro. As he’s allowed to activate more and take advantage of his creativity again, it wouldn’t be unexpected for Del Mastro to carve out a full-time role on the Blackhawks as soon as next season.



THE MAESTRO DEL MASTRO pic.twitter.com/sM3bqtJIzK— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) February 10, 2024



Gavin Hayes



Forward, drafted in third round (66th overall) in 2022 NHL Draft



2024-25 season with Icehogs: 29 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 5 P, 4 PIM, 52 SOG



Grade: D-



Hayes was never expected to be an elite top-six talent or a premiere two-way forward, billed as more of a possible complimentary piece who looked best suited for a bottom-six role that focused on his engagement off the puck and ability to distribute. Unfortunately, Hayes hasn’t lived up to any of those expectations this season.



The speed of the AHL seems too fast for him: he constantly seems overwhelmed on the ice, unable to process where to move the puck or how to escape pressure when he’s got the puck on his stick. His offensive contributions have been minimal as he struggles to avoid pressure or attack in open space as he panics with the puck in most opportunities. He continues to second-guess his decisions, hesitate when a more immediate passing opportunity presents itself, looks off clear lanes for a shot at the net and turns the puck over as his accuracy has been middling. His skating is also really inhibiting his ability to progress. Hayes was always an average-at-best skater, often looking weaker as a whole against higher-level competition, but those skating issues have left him unable to separate from opposing checks on the offensive side of the ice. On defense, he’s often scrambling to catch up to plays that have gone past him. While he’s been more effective defensively when on the boards or laying hits in his own end, Hayes doesn’t have the strongest motor and he’s unable to constantly bring the fire and energy that makes him the most successful. Without establishing a clear pro identity this season in Rockford, Hayes has yet to carve out a meaningful role on either end of the ice, making his long-term outlook look rocky at best. If he’s unable to drastically improve his physicality, skating, and raw hockey IQ within the coming few years, Hayes risks losing his chance of becoming a NHL player altogether.



Kevin Korchinski (#14) finds Gavin Hayes (#92) all alone. Thomas Milic makes an even better save. #Blackhawks #IceHogs #HawksProspects pic.twitter.com/MKh2tZpAfa— Chicago Prospects (@Chi_Prospects) November 16, 2024



Kevin Korchinski



Defenseman, drafted in first round (7th overall) in 2022 NHL Draft



2024-25 season with IceHogs: 40 GP, 2 G, 18 A, 20 P, 28 PIM, 64 SOG



2024-25 season with Blackhawks: 9 GP, 0 P, 0 PIM, 7 SOG, 16:46 ATOI



Grade: B



Last season was a wash for Korchinski. He was brought to the NHL far before he was ready, and likely should have remained in the WHL for an additional year to work on his raw defense, which was abysmal. This season, Korchinski was old enough to play in the AHL, which has offered him the perfect opportunity to break the bad habits he formed in the NHL and form traits that will translate to the professional levels.



This AHL season has been a mix of high-end flashes of elite talent that remind fans why he was drafted in the top-10, along with continued growing pains where he still remains a complete defensive liability. He’s a solid skater, and this allows him to capitalize on what he does best: generating offense by breaking the puck out. Transition is where he finds success. He’s smart with reading breakouts, controlling the puck into the offensive zone, and effectively drawing space and passing through the middle of the ice. He continues to show strong playmaking instincts and has been Rockford’s most effective offensive defenseman by a substantial margin. He’s a play driver, not just a distributor, and his confidence on the puck and in transition is evident. He’s creating chances across the board, learning to leverage his physicality better, and improving his ability to create off the cycle in a pro environment. He’s slowed down his offensive game, developed confidence on the breakout reminiscent of his time in juniors, and making more natural passes — be it up the middle or to a flanking teammate. That can’t be ignored. Being said – his skating hasn’t been fully effective at the professional level yet. Whether it be an issue of confidence, hesitancy, or inability, Korchinski hasn’t been nearly as explosive in his ability to quickly accelerate with the puck, and seems to defer to a breakout that’s slower in being established instead of being the go-to player driver he was during earlier portions of his career. While his offense is progressing nicely, he’ll need to learn to be substantially more physical and decisive to become a true top-four defenseman in the NHL.



As positive as his transitional game has been though, his defensive game is still what’s holding him back, and his raw offense isn’t as good as we’d hoped. Korchinski still feels like a liability quite often in Rockford. He’s often not appropriately reading man coverage, preferring to stay conservative in-zone and letting players walk around him on the boards or through the middle of the ice when he isn’t decisive enough with his stick. Flashes are there when Korchinski makes smart reads, catches up with breakaways, or uses his stick to disrupt the play — it just needs to be seen at a much higher rate than it is right now. He’s got an active stick, but he often finds himself so out of position, or so eager to accelerate off the rush that he’s misreading defensive plays, or simply unable to adjust fast enough to an in zone turnover. Offensively, Korchinski just isn’t quite as dynamic as expected. He forces a lot of plays, and because he is hesitant both on and off the puck, there isn’t a ton of impact. He’s been making some questionable reads on the cycle, and still hasn’t found his game nearly as strongly as he looked in the WHL. The NHL instilled a lot of bad habits, and Korchinski still needs time to break out and rediscover his offensive game, no matter what area of the ice.



There’s still a lot to like about Korchinski, but he’s still working through breaking a lot of the abysmal habits formed in the NHL. It seems like more time in the AHL will be needed for him to establish more confidence, form better defensive habits and continue to grow his offensive prowess before he can be considered for a full-time position in the NHL.



Really nice work defensively by Kevin Korchinski defending Artemi Panarin on a fast break pic.twitter.com/ThtD1wMo5q— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) December 10, 2024



Artyom Levshunov



Defenseman, drafted in first round (2nd overall) in 2024 NHL Draft



2024-25 season with IceHogs: 44 GP, 4 G, 15 A, 42 PIM, 123 SOG



Grade: B-



Figuring out what grade to issue Levshunov was a struggle, although we ended up on the more optimistic side of things due to his recent surge in points. He still could be better in most games, and he currently doesn’t look close to ready for the NHL, but this needs to be contextualized with the reality that Levshunov was a bit of a project pick and defenseman always have slower development curves.



Let’s start with the good: Levshunov has started being more aggressive on the puck and on the offense than he was at the start of the year. His ability to command the blue line and deliver hits when appropriate to negate zone entries or disrupt zone exits has drastically improved from where it was at MSU. His gap control and willingness to step up to opponents, be it with skating, size, or his stick, are all dramatically improved. He steps up offensively and will constantly play like a forward, ringing the puck around the net, looking for rebounds, and using his body to create shooting lanes. He’s started to find further confidence in his offensive game, will constantly put shots on net, use his size to deliver needed hits in the offensive zone, helps recover the puck on the forecheck, and is slowing down the game not only for himself but his teammates. His propensity to fire shots on net has allowed for a lot of scoring opportunities, as well as improved possession stats offensively, not only for him but his teammates. There have been flashes of excellent offense as well – he’ll step up as usual, but call out coverage to his teammates and direct their positioning. While doing this, he’ll rush at the net, crash bodies, and focus on high end shooting or quick passes at top level speed. This is something he NEVER did at MSU, and we love these moments. They’re not frequent enough to love, but these high end blips raise our evaluation of Levshunov slightly.



On the negative side, Levshunov’s offensive production is largely still not projectable to the NHL; he continues to producr by firing at the net and relying on his teammates to clean up. He’s often far away from the play when he is credited with a point, or doing nothing but making a simple five-foot pass on his first read. He still uses shooting as a crutch, rather than a tool, and it is a little concerning how much he passes up far better offensive looks to shoot the puck, even after a scan of the ice. Levshunov’s offensive questions will be answered in a follow-up article, in due time, but the top level IQ is still a question that we have. There’s inconsistent creativity, lack of effectivity in the cycle, and an overreliance on rush entries or shooting to generate points. It works, to a degree, in the AHL where he plays with net crashers, and other aggressive players who will recover the puck, but due to questionable shot placement, and Levshunov chasing his shots, these often just become giveaways where he’s out of position and gets burned defensively.



Levshunov, can activate and be very involved on the offense, but you’ll often find the opposite on defense. Levshunov will far too often let attackers walk straight by him, and not engage enough to stop a rush or breakout. He’s one of the worst players in terms of 5-on-5 defensive impact on the ice currently, based on his relative goals against stats. Some of these poor results can be attributed to laziness with his defensive engagement, but are also related to the way he attempts to generate offense. Levshunov likes to plays as a forward, but doesn’t play within an established structure. Other players aren’t expected to rotate, and so this means that Levshunov is often playing “on the fly.” When Levshunov goes to attack and no one comes back up, Levshunov is missing assignments, and getting burned because of it. While he seems to want to deliver hits, he often can be susceptible to over-committing or forcing a hit that isn’t there, resulting in extra space on the ice for his opponents to take advantage.



Still, it’s worth remembering that Levshunov is playing in the AHL while still just 19 years old. Even though he may not be having a particularly good season, there are still signs of growth towards a path that ends with him being a top-four defenseman in the NHL — if not top-two. He still seems destined for another season in the AHL after this one. Let’s also point out that, were Levshunov not picked No. 2 overall, his grade likely would’ve been higher. But this grade was issued relative to the expectations of where he was drafted.



A good shift from Artyom Levshunov (#55), in my opinion. Lands a reverse hit, has a couple shots, and pushes the puck up the ice. #Blackhawks #IceHogs #HawksProspects pic.twitter.com/9WlNt9VuOK— Chicago Prospects (@Chi_Prospects) January 23, 2025



Paul Ludwinski



Center/Left Wing, drafted in the second round (39th overall) in 2022 NHL Draft



2024-25 season with IceHogs: 41 GP, 3 G, 1 A, 4 P, 14 PIM, 22 SOG



Grade: F



Ludwinski, like Hayes, seems to be on the road to becoming an afterthought in the organization’s long-term plans. He’s been a great skater, but he’s struggled to impact a single other aspect of the ice this season. His offensive production is nearly non-existent, largely coming in a single game, and he looks completely overwhelmed in most scenarios. While he can physically keep up with the play due to his foot speed, his hockey IQ and decision making make it feel unlikely that Ludwinski will even retain an AHL job long-term. His decision making has been abysmal, constantly turning over the puck due to not knowing where or how to move it, and those missed opportunities due to missing simplistic reads are necessary hurdles to clear on the path to the NHL. Defensively, he’s been relatively unimpressive as well. He loses his man in coverage due to his consistent inability to process play structure and where his opponents are going, while lacking the physicality to compensate for those errors. He’s often outmuscled on the boards, in front of the net, on the blue line in transition. His confidence seems to be shot as he’ll defer most reads, and he plays with uncertainty and without assertiveness in almost every scenario. A significant turnaround would need to start soon for Ludwinski to be considered any part of the long-term future here.



Paul Ludwinski (#90) capitalizes on a bad Iowa turnover and makes it 2-0! #Blackhawks #IceHogs #HawksProspects pic.twitter.com/QK0PszYxBJ— Chicago Prospects (@Chi_Prospects) January 18, 2025



Samuel Savoie



Center/Left Wing, drafted in the third round (81st overall) in 2022 NHL Draft



2024-25 season with IceHogs: 48 GP, 6 G, 9 A, 15 P, 19 PIM, 73 SOG



Grade: C



Savoie’s season has been entertaining to watch but with a bit of a mix in terms of total impact. Savoie combines extremely high-energy play and impressive skating with his desire to be involved in all areas of the ice, but neither his offensive or defensive game has grown at a rate that currently looks projectable. His skating is a constant and remains his greatest strength along with the combination of speed, agility, and raw power which allows him to pressure opponents, and be a nightmare on the forecheck where Savoie attacks with confidence. He creates havoc everywhere he goes as a total wrecking ball, a disruptor who never stops fighting to win battles or throw his small frame around. This all sounds great, until it’s contextualized in terms of hurting his offense. Savoie is so constantly worried about being fast and being active everywhere at once that he’s not able to consistently generate scoring chances or slow the game down enough to make plays for his teammates. He often fumbles passes or turns the puck over trying to do too much at high speed. His decision making remains inconsistent because he can find himself in a poor situation due to his speed and tenacity with no way to recover. It’s great that he’ll re-engage to try to win a puck back, but if he slowed down and focused slightly on improving his on-ice vision, there would be a more clear path forward for him. His defensive skills have improved as well and he’s become more confident in terms of his willingness to throw hits, or challenge opponents in the neutral zone. He’ll unfortunately find himself completely out of position at times and uses speed as a crutch, rather than a skill. It all comes down to how he’s able to see the ice. If Savoie can be coached to slow things down before speeding them back up, that’ll help him be the best version of himself in the future.



Samuel Savoie’s first goal as an IceHog is *chefs kiss* 🤌Hogs 4 – Griffins 0 at the end of the 2nd pic.twitter.com/WZnpyD1YfB— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) October 13, 2024...

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