The ‘Hawks have taken three defensemen in the first round of the draft over the past two years: Henri Jokiharju, Nicolas Beaudin and Adam Boqvist.
Without even considering second-round picks such as Ian Mitchell and Chad Krys, other prospects, current roster defensemen or possible free agent targets, the Blackhawks hope to have already selected half of the future defense corps in the first round of the draft over the last two years.
If the Blackhawks select Bowen Byram this year, that number goes up to four, rounding out two of three defensive pairings. In other words, there will likely be some odd men out over the coming years.