December is going to be a busy month for the Blackhawks’ prospects. NCAA and CHL games are heating up, but there will be players who leave their respective teams for camps to get ready for the World Junior Championship as soon as next week. It’s also worth noting again that Minnesota-Duluth goaltender Adam Gajan will play in the Spengler Cup on the college select team; that tournament overlaps with the World Juniors.
Just this past weekend I updated our top 20 Blackhawks prospect rankings. But there’s a lot going on with the Blackhawks’ pipeline right now, so let’s look at a few notes, news items and updates.
World Junior Championship invites
We have now seen three Blackhawks prospects receive official invites to preliminary rosters for the 2026 World Junior Championship. AJ Spellacy is on the list for the United States and Václav Nestrašil is on the list for Czechia. Canada will name their preliminary roster on Monday, and I expect Marek Vanacker to be included (it would be disappointing if he somehow isn’t).
Sweden made it officially official and has Blackhawks prospect Anton Frondell on their preliminary roster for the World Juniors. He’s expected to play a significant role on that team — which is a legit gold medal contender.
JVM-truppen är här! ?⁰Förbundskapten Magnus Hävelid har tagit ut 26 spelare inför Junior-VM i Minnesota, USA. Målet är tydligt: utmana om guldet!? t.co/4gXxJNyJnw pic.twitter.com/M6qHvFeyKA
— Tre Kronor (@Trekronorse) December 5, 2025Mark Eaton Talks Development
Ben Pope provided some really good updates and comments on a number of Blackhawks prospects from Mark Eaton this week. They talked about Spellacy, Jack Pridham, John Mustard, Sacha Boisvert and, of course, Roman Kantserov. I love these comments from Eaton about the KHL’s scoring leader transitioning his game to the NHL at some point in the not-too-distant future:
“He’s short in stature, but he’s stocky,” Eaton said. “He’s very solid and strong on his skates. He has that low center of gravity where he’s hard to knock off-balance. That will certainly serve him well over here. And he’s such a smart player, as well.
“The tough areas…get even tougher when you get over to the NHL. The netfront areas, the walls, the corners — those will be a step up for him. But he’s proven all along he learns to adjust and find a way. I wouldn’t expect anything different at the NHL.”
My other big takeaway from Eaton’s comments in this Pope article are that the Blackhawks are really high on Mustard’s ability to create and generate offense. He’s another great skater, and he’s had a really good start to his sophomore season.
Blackhawks prospect Roman Kantserov leads the KHL with 22 goals and continues to raise his stock ahead of his expected 2026 NHL arrival."He has the skill but also the bulldog mentality where he’s going to battle."New story: t.co/Eyhz7faUf5
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) December 4, 2025Behm’s Stock Rising
Mitch Brown at Elite Prospects published a stock watch for prospects in the WHL on Friday, and it was headlined by Blackhawks prospect Nathan Behm. Brown writes that he’s emerging as an elite scorer in the WHL (he ranks second in the league with 41 points). Here’s part of his evaluation of Behm’s game this season:
Combining vision, creativity, and reach, there isn’t a pass Behm can’t make. He fakes defenders before dropping pucks back, shows shot before ripping a pass across the slot, and uses his full reach to adjust to passing lanes, ensuring pucks always get through. Really leaning into that rush and high-cycle playmaking has only amplified his scoring threat, too, as he’s on pace to eclipse last year’s 31 goals by 10.
What’s particularly exciting about Behm’s offensive surge is how it’s complemented by more power elements. He’s taking the puck hard to the net more often, leveraging his frame to win more battles, and has become a more engaged forechecker. While there’s still work to be done in those facets, his unique skill set and upward trajectory make him a big-time riser in the prospect sphere.
Colton Davies shared this terrific November highlight package of Behm on Twitter this week:
A big November for #Blackhawks prospect Nathan Behm: 8G • 12A • 20PTSNow at 41 points in 26 games and 2nd in WHL scoring.Here are his November highlights@DraftProHockey | #WHL pic.twitter.com/NWvVHGI5gh
— Colton Davies (@coltonrdavies) December 4, 2025League Leaders
WHL — entering Friday’s action, Behm ranks second in the league with 41 points and is tied for fifth in the league with 25 assists. OHL — entering Friday’s action, Vanacker is tied for fourth in the league with 38 points. Vanacker leads the OHL with 24 goals — still five goals better than second place. He’s also tied for third with seven power play goals. Pridham ranks second in the OHL with three short-handed goals. NCAA – entering this weekend’s action, Nestrašil’s 19 points are good for a tie (with Porter Martone) for second among all freshman skaters. His five power play goals rank second among freshman and are tied for eighth in the country. NCAA — entering this weekend’s action, Gajan’s 12 wins rank second in the NCAA. His 1.78 goals against average is tied for third among goalies with at least 10 appearances. And his .925 save percentage ranks eighth among goalies with at least 10 appearances.Hence then, the article about blackhawks prospect notes world juniors invites behm s stock rising eaton talks more was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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