Marek Vanacker (born April 12, 2006) is a Canadian

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

who plays for the

Brantford Bulldogs The Brantford Bulldogs are a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) that began to play in the 2023–24 season. Based in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, the Bulldogs play their home games at Brantford Civic Centre. The fr ...

in the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...

(OHL) and is a prospect within the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (N ...

organization of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(NHL). He was selected 27th overall by the Blackhawks in the

2024 NHL Entry Draft The 2024 NHL entry draft was the 62nd NHL entry draft, entry draft for the National Hockey League. It was held on June 28–29, 2024, at Sphere (venue), Sphere in the Las Vegas Valley. As per their April 2024 agreement, all draft rights held by ...

Playing career

On April 20, 2022, Vanacker was selected 23rd overall by the

Hamilton Bulldogs The Hamilton Bulldogs were a Canadian major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) that began to play in the 2015–16 season. Based in Hamilton, Ontario, the Bulldogs played home games at FirstOntario Centre. They were purc ...

in the 2022 OHL Draft and signed with the team on May 21, 2022. In his rookie 2022–23 season, he tallied four goals and 12 assists over 55 games with the

. The following year, 2023–24, he enjoyed a breakout season, posting 36 goals, 46 assists, 22 power‑play points, and five shorthanded goals in 68 regular‑season games. He finished as the team's leader in both goals and total points and ranked second in assists. In the playoffs, he added three goals and four assists across six games. On June 28, 2024, Vanacker's strong junior performance and offensive upside led to him being selected 27th overall by the

in the first round of the

. After several weeks of evaluation and negotiations, the Blackhawks officially signed him on August 5, 2024, to a standard three‑year entry‑level contract.

International play

On April 16, 2024, Vanacker earned the honour of being selected to join Canada's under-18 national team for the prestigious

2024 IIHF World U18 Championships The 2024 IIHF U18 World Championship was the 25th such event organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation. Teams participated at several levels of competition. These tournaments served as qualifications for the 2025 competition. Top Di ...

. Throughout the tournament, he contributed one goal in six games, demonstrating his skill and versatility as a forward. More importantly, Vanacker's consistent play helped Canada navigate through tough competition, culminating in the team winning the gold medal.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vanacker, Marek 2006 births Living people 21st-century Canadian sportsmen Chicago Blackhawks draft picks Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL) players Ice hockey people from Ontario NHL first-round draft picks