The 2023 version of Second City Hockey’s Top 25 Under 25 rankings continues a quartet of blue-liners and a forward who impressed in his first NCAA season. The voters for this year’s installment consisted of each of the four SCH writers, who submitted individual ballots.
No. 15 — Ryan Greene
- Position: Center
- Birth date: Oct 21, 2003 (19)
- Acquired via: Second-round pick (#57) in 2022 NHL Draft
- 2022-23 team: Boston University (NCAA)
- 2022-23 stats: 31 points (9 goals, 22 assists) in 38 regular seasons games
- Size: 6-foot-1, 174 pounds
- Contract: Unsigned
- Rankings: 12 (Eric), 17 (Mil), 17 (LBR), 17 (Dave)
- Last T25U25 ranking: N/A
Ryan Greene makes his debut on the SCH Top 25 Under 25 list. The crafty centerman out of Boston University put up 31 points in 38 games played last season, and his passing ability was put on display, with 22 assists in that span.
While it’s still a long road from the NCAA to the NHL, Greene’s overall skills seem like they could be a solid fit at forward for the Blackhawks sometime in the future, should he continue developing at this rate. He’s a fast skater and, even though his playmaking ability is what most are drawn to, he has shown he can also play as a solid two-way center. A speedy forward on the backcheck is always a plus, and the Hawks will need to get as fast as possible in order to compete for the playoffs in the near future.
No. 14 — Nolan Allan
- Position: Defense
- Birth date: April 28, 2003 (20)
- Acquired via: First-round pick (#32) in 2021 NHL Draft
- 2022-23 team: Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL), Prince Albert Raiders “C” (WHL)
- 2022-23 stats: 27 points (11 goals, 16 assists) in 57 regular seasons games
- Size: 6-foot-2, 194 pounds
- Contract: 3 years, $825,000 AAV (entry-level contract)
- Rankings: 17 (Eric), 15 (Mil), 14 (LBR), 13 (Dave)
- Last T25U25 ranking: #15
Nolan Allan jumped up one spot in the rankings this year, from 14 to 15. Allan is a defensive defenseman and his stats reflect that. He’s a solid skater, mobile for his size and he can get to his spots. He’s not afraid to lay into a hit and knock an opponent off the puck.
While he shines in his own end, Allan’s quality stickwork and vision have also allowed Allan to fire off some nice shots and dish out decent passes, setting up teammates to score when given the chance.
With the right partner, Allan could be used as a quality shutdown defender. He defends against the cycle well and has displayed good gap control. While he’s not the scoring threat some of the other players of this list are, he can be a very useful addition to the Blackhawks in his own right. After spending the last few seasons in the WHL, Allan will leap up to the AHL next season. How he handles that transition will go a long way towards forecasting where he ends up in the NHL, should he make it there.
No. 13 — Sam Rinzel
- Position: Defense
- Birth date: June 25, 2004 (19)
- Acquired via: First-round pick (#25) in 2022 NHL Draft
- 2022-23 team: Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL)
- 2022-23 stats: 36 points (9 goals, 27 assists) in 58 regular seasons games
- Size: 6-foot-4, 176 pounds
- Contract: -year, $ AAV
- Rankings: 13 (Eric), 13 (Mil), 13 (LBR), 14 (Dave)
- Last T25U25 ranking: #14
Sam Rinzel moved up one slot from last year’s rankings. Rinzel may take some time to arrive to the NHL, but there is undoubtedly a lot of hype over the all of the tools the 6-foot-4 blueliner has in his arsenal. He seems to be the perfect fit for the direction that the league is heading in, because Rinzel can skate, has good awareness, flashy stickwork and can move the puck.
If Rinzel can continue to put muscle mass on his ideal 6-4 frame and his talents truly translate to the NHL, he could become a very dangerous weapon for the Blackhawks blueline. Until he makes his debut, fans are forced to play the waiting game. But everything he’s shown has been positive so far, but he’ll need to continue taking more steps forward once he arrives on the University of Minnesota campus this fall.
No. 12 — Ethan del Mastro
- Position: Defense
- Birth date: Jan 5, 2003 (20)
- Acquired via: Fourth-round pick (#105) in 2021 NHL Draft
- 2022-23 team: Mississauga Steelheads (OHL), Sarnia Sting (OHL)
- 2022-23 stats: 59 points (7 goals, 52 assists) in 52 regular seasons games
- Size: 6-foot-4, 205 pounds
- Contract: 3 years, $855,833 AAV (entry-level contract)
- Rankings: 8 (Eric), 12 (Mil), 12 (LBR), 11 (Dave)
- Last T25U25 ranking: #20
Ethan del Mastro took a giant leap in our rankings, moving from 20 last season to 12 this year. He’s another big-body defensemen who the Blackhawks hope to put to good use very soon. He racked up 59 points in 52 games during his run in the OHL last season, split between Mississauga and Sarnia — with 52 of those points being assists. Averaging an apple per game from the blue line is a very encouraging sign, regardless of which league the player does it in, although he probably won’t produce at that same rate when he gets to the NHL.
Del Mastro has a bomb of a shot and can be useful in all three zones, as well as special teams, but where he really shines is in his own end. Shot suppression has been a strong suit and well, if nothing else, that’s what the Blackhawks desperately need.
He turned 20 earlier this summer and seeing the leaps the former 2021 fourth-round pick took within the last few seasons leave everyone wondering what his ceiling could be by the time he’s NHL-ready. More clarity on that picture should come into focus during the upcoming season, when del Mastro begins his professional hockey career with the IceHogs.
No. 11 — Alex Vlasic
- Position: Defense
- Birth date: Jun 5, 2001 (22)
- Acquired via: Second-round pick (#43) in 2019 NHL Draft
- 2022-23 team: Chicago Blackhawks (NHL), Rockford IceHogs (AHL)
- 2022-23 stats: 20 points (2 goals, 18 assists) in 62 regular seasons games
- Size: 6-foot-6, 198 pounds
- Contract: 1 year, $916,667 AAV (entry-level contract)
- Rankings: 14 (Eric), 10 (Mil), 7 (LBR), 9 (Dave)
- Last T25U25 ranking: #9
Alex Vlasic rounds out this defense-heavy block. While he did drop from 9 down to 11 on our list, that may have more to do with what the Hawks have added, rather than where Vlasic actually stands. It should be noted here that Vlasic was ranked as high as No. 7 and as low as No. 14 by the SCH staff, indicative of how many players with similar potential exist in the organization now.
While we’ve had the opportunity to see a small sample size of Vlasic at the NHL level and understand that he leans towards being more of a defensive defensemen, it’s still hard to tell exactly where he could top out. The good news is that he has the attributes to be a mainstay on the blueline. At 6-foot-6 and nearly 200 pounds, he has great size and can move pretty well for his stature. He performed well when paired with Seth Jones last season, and could potentially benefit in that role again.
Vlasic can contribute in all three zones, although he’ll never really be known as an offensive dynamo. Still, he can put the puck where it needs to be, which can help at times in the offensive zone but should also allow him to help his team escape aggressive forechecks in the D-zone. Vlasic seems like he could be part of the Blackhawks NHL roster for the majority of the upcoming season as long as he continues to improve at the same rate as in the past, but he’ll have a decent amount of competition for one of those spots when training camp arrives, too.
Fun Fact about Vlasic: he and the band Fall Out Boy were both born in Wilmette, IL in 2001. So, while some will settle for calling him a “hometown guy” you can expect a plethora of Warped Tour worthy nicknames and references coming from me.
2023 Blackhawks Top 25 Under 25 list (so far):
Nos. 11-15: Vlasic, del Mastro, Rinzel, Allan, Green
Nos. 16-20: Guttman, Kantserov, Hayes, Dach, Ludwinski
Nos. 21-25: Safonov, Luypen, Lardis, Savoie, Gajan
Honorable Mentions: Misiak, Roos, Stauber, Thompson