NHL Prospect Roundup: Blackhawks’ Nick Lardis is a scoring machine

Credit: Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports

What’s the most important thing to do in a hockey game? Score goals. And do you know who’s great at it? Chicago Blackhawks prospect Nick Lardis.

The Brantford Bulldogs star is coming off a week for the ages, registering consecutive three-goal, four-point efforts against Brampton and Niagara. He registered 19 shots over those two games, which is just absurd. He’s averaging more than a point per game with 20 goals and 29 points in 19 games, which should put him on pace for more than 100 points for the first time in his OHL career.

If you’ve followed him closely since his draft year in 2023, you know just how good Lardis can be. A move from Peterborough to the Bulldogs in 2022-23 saw him score at an incredible rate, helping him jump up draft boards before the Blackhawks took him 67th overall. Injuries limited Lardis to just 37 games last year, but he still had 29 goals and 50 points during the regular season.

Lardis is putting up incredible numbers as a 19-year-old, which could get him a spot on Team Canada for the World Juniors. It’s going to be an upward battle with some of the high-quality talent they’ve got chasing spots, but Lardis is doing whatever it takes to get himself noticed. That’s especially important for the Blackhawks, who’ll likely have him simmer in the AHL at the end of the season before embarking on his first full pro campaign in 2025-26.

Lardis is legit – and if he can become an even more effective backchecker, he’ll be an impact player before too long.

OHL

– Man oh man, Joey Wilis is on a roll. He had FIVE goals in a 7-5 win over Flint on Wednesday and followed that up with six points in two games over the weekend. The Nashville Predators prospect gets to play with some quality competition in Saginaw – namely, Michael Misa – but he’s getting a chance to step into the spotlight a bit himself now. The 19-year-old American is trying his best to put himself on USA’s radar for the World Juniors, and although there’s plenty of competition for that, he’s heating up at the right time. Willis’ potential as an NHLer doesn’t seem to be completely clear at this point, but it’s good to see the 19-year-old posting breakout numbers.

WHL

– Caden Price is playing the best hockey of his career right now – and it might be enough to get him a spot on Canada’s World Junior team. Price has 22 assists and 28 points, putting him on pace for over 100 points. He’s also looking as quick and aggressive as we’ve seen from him over the past four years, as well. I really like how good he is with the puck and the fact that he’s pushing players around with more confidence right now is a promising sign. The Seattle Kraken have a good one here.

QMJHL

– I like watching Jan Golicic play – he might not be a high-end producer, but he’s a difficult son of a you-know-what to have to go up against. The Slovenian defender has 13 points in 21 games this year with Gatineau, including six points in his past four games. The Tampa Bay Lightning prospect is a physical defensive defenseman at 6-foot-5 who loves to push players through the glass and has the defensive awareness to stay on his man in front of the net. At the very least, Golicic should be a significant contributor to Slovenia’s men’s national team for a while – they’ve been lacking quality defensemen for most of the team’s top-division efforts.

USHL

– The Youngstown Phantoms have been getting some good results from Melvin Strahl recently. He’s 3-0 in his past three starts with just three goals allowed in that time frame. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect hasn’t been overly busy in recent starts, but he has a solid 8-4-0 record in his first year in North America and has continued to give Youngstown a chance to win every night. The Michigan State University commit is one of Sweden’s potential goalies for the World Juniors, so we’ll see if he continues to play well leading up to decision time.

AHL

– A week after the Vancouver Canucks called up Jonathan Lekkerimaki, they called up defenseman Elias Pettersson for the first time in the young Swedish defender’s career. The 20-year-old has four assists for Abbotsford, which isn’t much – but that seems to be the trend with players bearing that name this year, isn’t it? Instead, the defensive EP has looked good while averaging 18 minutes a night while blocking shots and landing hits. He’s solid in his own zone, often shutting down many of the AHL’s top goal-scorers. Having a big 6-foot-3 frame that he isn’t afraid to use doesn’t hurt, either. EP might end up just being a bottom-pairing defenseman in the NHL, but at his age, he has come quite a way since getting selected 80th overall in 2022.

– It might be time for the San Jose Sharks to give Collin Graf a shot with the big club. The 22-year-old pro rookie is up to 19 points in 14 games with the San Jose Barracuda – including nine during a six-game point streak. Graf is more of a playmaker than a goal-scorer, but he has an excellent shot that I think he’s still figuring out how to use against pro competition. The Sharks are bad, and maybe Graf could give them an extra scoring punch. I’m not sure what his pathway to getting ice time right now is, but I really want to see what he can do.

NCAA

– Jack Devine has been one of the best college players dating back to the start of 2023-24. But his stat line right now is hilarious – he has one goal and 21 points to lead the NCAA in scoring. He had 27 goals last year so it’s a bit crazy to see everyone else but Devine scoring for Denver, but they’re unstoppable with him leading the charge. The Florida Panthers‘ seventh-rounder is set to turn pro at the end of the season, and we’ll see if his college scoring exploits can transfer over to the next level.

– I’m an Aydar Suniev fan – no matter what level he has played, he has found a way to be productive. He’s up to 14 points in 12 games with UMass this season, which means it’s only a matter of time until he beats his freshman total of 25 points. The Russian goal-scorer had a solid three-point effort against Providence on Saturday, and he’s been one of the team’s better shot-generators from the get-go. The Calgary Flames took Suniev 80th overall in 2023 – at the time, his rugged frame and sharp-shooting abilities made him an attractive option. I feel like he’s a better two-way player now, too.

KHL

– It’s not every day a current U-22 NHL prospect is challenging for the KHL’s scoring lead. But Detroit Red Wings draft pick Dmitri Buchelnikov is having a career year at 21, registering 26 points in 27 games with Vityaz Moscow. That’s good for third in league scoring, just edging out teammates Derek Barach and Ivan Chekhovich. The skilled playmaker has seven multi-point games this year, including a three-point effort this past weekend. Buchelnikov bounced around different leagues the past few years before eventually establishing himself as a full-time KHLer last season. Now in Vityaz, he looks like one of the league’s top young stars. Buchelnikov has a KHL deal until 2026, so we’ll see if the 2022 second-rounder joins the Red Wings after that.

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NHL Prospect Roundup: Blackhawks’ Nick Lardis is a scoring machine

OHL

WHL

QMJHL

USHL

AHL

NCAA

KHL

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