Hawks in Draft Contention

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USHL Waterloo Black Hawks

Hawks in Draft Contention

June 16, 2025 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Waterloo Black Hawks News Release


Waterloo, Iowa - A full season and a long playoff run have put Brady Peddle, Brendan McMorrow, and other Waterloo Black Hawks players onto the radar for this month's National Hockey League Draft.

NHL teams will select over 220 prospects during seven rounds on June 27th and 28th. There is an excellent chance Waterloo's strong draft history will be extended. Multiple active Waterloo skaters or alumni have been chosen in 14 of the past 15 NHL Drafts.

Peddle is ranked highest among the Black Hawks' draft candidates. The NHL's official Central Scouting department placed the Nova Scotia native 86th on its list of North American players. Peddle dressed for all 62 Waterloo contests during the regular season, making him one of just 29 skaters across the United States Hockey League to appear in all his team's games. The 6-foot, 3-inch defenseman was one of the league's most reliable first-year skaters (+12 plus/minus, tied for sixth among USHL rookies) while bringing a physical element. Peddle produced three goals and seven assists, then followed up with 10 more points (one goal, nine assists) during 15 playoff games. His final impression was a three-assist night during Game Five of the Clark Cup Final on May 20th against the Muskegon Lumberjacks.

McMorrow was Waterloo's leading goal-scorer, hitting the net 24 times (tied for 14th in the USHL). Fourteen of those scores came in power play situations, tying for second in the league. McMorrow also tied for first on the Black Hawks with six game-winning goals. The Denver recruit totaled 42 points and missed only four Waterloo games. Three of those absences were while he was skating for the U.S. Junior Select Team during a gold medal effort at the World Junior A Challenge in December. McMorrow was a major contributor to the Hawks' postseason run. He notched 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) to rank third on the team and tie for fifth leaguewide. The forward contributed a pair of game-winning goals in the playoffs, the most memorable of which came in double overtime during the Hawks' series-clinching victory over the Sioux Falls Stampede on April 22nd.

Alex Misiak joined the Black Hawks in January and played nearly half of the season in Waterloo. The Slovakian forward produced 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) in 28 games. One of Misiak's most memorable performances was a three-point night (one goal, two assists), which helped Waterloo pull away from Sioux Falls on January 30th ; the Hawks went on to win by an 8-3 final on the highest-scoring night of the regular season. Misiak also had three assists against the Stampede during a rematch on March 18th.

Goaltender Kam Hendrickson was added from the Omaha Lancers as the result of a trade just after Christmas. He posted a 10-6-1 record from 17 games after the deal. His Black Hawks debut was a 14-save victory against the archrival Cedar Rapids RoughRiders on January 4th. Hendrickson then won consecutive appearances against his former team on January 10th and 18th. The future Connecticut Huskies netminder delivered a 2.66 goals-against average during his time in Waterloo.

While Peddle, McMorrow (#144), Misiak (#92), and Hendrickson (#21-Goalies) are formal prospects based on Central Scouting assessments, other draft-eligible players may have attracted enough attention to also find themselves on the draft board.

Forward Chase Jette's 13 postseason points (five goals, eight assists) tied him for fourth in Waterloo playoff scoring. He had three multipoint nights during the run to the Clark Cup Final, and his overtime goal in Game Four against the Lumberjacks extended the series to a full five games. The Wisconsin recruit had 24 regular season points (15 goals, nine assists). Prior to the 2024/25 campaign, he appeared for the United States team which competed for the Hlinka Gretzky Cup last August.

Jesse Orlowsky was on the initial NHLCS watch list last October. The 6-foot, 2-inch forward recorded two goals and six assists in 28 games. He had a strong start to the post-Christmas schedule, but his season was cut short by a January injury.

Hawks alum Will Felicio was a 2024 Draft prospect and is still eligible this season. As a freshman at the University of Michigan, Felicio led the Wolverines with a +12 plus/minus differential. The defenseman produced two goals and nine assists in 25 NCAA games. In two of the last three NHL Drafts, a former Black Hawks defenseman has been picked following his first college season: David Gucciardi (Washington Capitals) in 2022 and Patrick Geary (Buffalo Sabres) in 2024.

Although the 2025 NHL Draft is focused squarely on players born in 2007, a number of older players are coming off strong seasons and remain eligible. Among them, Dylan Compton was the league's highest-scoring defenseman during both the 2024/25 regular season (45 points) and the 2025 playoffs (13 points), earning a place on the All-USHL Second Team.

Last summer, John Mustard was selected in the third round by the Chicago Blackhawks, then the Sabres picked Geary in the sixth round. In the months which followed, 13 Waterloo alumni appeared in at least one 2024/25 NHL game, including Sam Rinzel, who was drafted in 2022 between his first and second seasons skating at Young Arena.

Season tickets for the Black Hawks 2025/26 campaign are on sale now. Orders can be placed by calling the Black Hawks at (319) 232-3444 or online via tickets.waterlooblackhawks.com.

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United States Hockey League Stories from June 16, 2025


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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