The prize of the 2024 NHL Draft class is no secret. Boston University center Macklin Celebrini is this year’s consensus top prospect, and as a result, there’s no real suspense or debate around what the San Jose Sharks will do with the No. 1 pick later this month. The Athletic’s NHL prospect writers, Corey Pronman and Scott Wheeler, have Celebrini in a tier of his own atop their final draft rankings.
After that, though? This draft gets very interesting very quickly — starting with the Chicago Blackhawks, who hold the No. 2 pick. Wheeler’s next-best player is dynamic Russian winger Ivan Demidov. Pronman has Michigan State defenseman Artyom Levshunov in a tier by himself behind Celebrini. As The Athletic’s Scott Powers has written, those two players look to be the top candidates for Chicago, as the Blackhawks begin building around last summer’s No. 1 pick Connor Bedard.
So, we asked Pronman and Wheeler to formally debate the decision Chicago will face later this month, which will set the tone for the rest of the draft.
Read the debate here.
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Should Blackhawks draft Demidov or Levshunov at No. 2? Pronman and Wheeler debate
