Nick Schmaltz (born Nicholas Schmaltz on February 23, 1996) in Madison, Wisconsin) is an American professional ice hockey forward currently playing for the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL).
He was selected by the Blackhawks in the first round (20th overall) of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.
Playing Career
Junior
During the 2010-11 season, Schmaltz played for the Chicago Mission AAA Youth Hockey Club (where his future teammates Ryan Hartman and Vinnie Hinostroza also played for) where he got 19 goals, 35 assists and 22 penalty minutes in 32 games. He also participated in USA Hockey's Select 15 Festival in July of 2011.
In the 2011-12 season, he made his debut with the United States Hockey League (USHL), skating in 11 games with the Green Bay Gamblers and playing for the Chicago Mission U16 team. He played with the Gamblers from 2012-2014 where in his first season, he was named to the 2012–13 USHL All- Rookie Team.
Schmaltz also played for the USA U16 team in the 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games where scored 1 goal with 3 assists and was +7 with 2 penalty minutes in 11 USHL games. With the Chicago Mission, he scored 23 goals with 23 assists in 25 games.
He was drafted in the 4th round (76th overall) by the Winsdor Spitfires in the 2012 OHL Priority Draft despite making a commitment to join his older brother, Jordan at the University of North Dakota in the 2014-15 season.
In the 2012-13 season, Schmaltz was one of four players to skate in all 64 games for Green Bay and was the Gamblers fourth-leading scorer as a 16-year-old. He scored 18 goals with 34 assists and was +2 with 15 penalty minutes.
The defending Clark Cup champions finished second in the East Division and they lost to Youngstown in a first round series. He scored 1 goal with 1 assist and was -2 in four playoff games.
In the 2013-14 season, he led Green Bay in scoring in his second USHL season and skated for the USA at the 2013 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament and 2013 World Junior A Challenge.
He scored 18 goals with 45 assists and was minus-3 with 16 penalty minutes in 55 regular season games as the Gamblers finished fourth in the Eastern Division. Schmaltz scored 1 goal with 2 assists and was minus-1 with 17 penalty minutes in the four-game playoff series with eventual Clark Cup champion Indiana.
Schmaltz led all scorers with five goals in five games at the Ivan Hlinka tournament and his eight points were tied for second behind Canada’s Spencer Watson (who had 10). The USA lost to Canada, 4-0, in the gold medal game.
The USA finished first at the 2013 U19 World Junior A Challenge and he scored 2 goals with 4 assists, finishing plus-2 with 8 penalty minutes in six games.
Schmaltz participated in the 2013 CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game in September and he was ranked 19th amongst North American skaters in the Central Scouting final rankings.
College
In the 2014-15 season, Schmaltz joined his brother Jordan at the University of North Dakota where had 26 points in 38 games for the Fighting Sioux as a freshman. He played for the USA U20 team in the 2015 World Juniors along with fellow Blackhawks’ prospects Tyler Motte and Anthony Louis].
He scored 5 goals with 21 assists and was +3 with 12 penalty minutes for North Dakota. The Fighting Sioux finished first in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference regular season, falling 3-1 to St. Cloud State in the NCHC semifinals and 5-1 to Denver in the third-place game.
North Dakota received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, defeating Quinnipiac and St. Cloud State by identical 4-1 scores to capture the NCAA West Regional before falling 5-3 to Boston University in the Frozen Four semifinals.
Schmaltz was +2 with 1 assist and no penalties in five games for the USA at the WJC. The USA finished fifth, losing 3-2 to Russia in the quarterfinals.
He was ranked 19th by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau on their final list of the top draft-eligible North American skaters leading into the 2014 NHL Entry Draft and he was projected to be a first-round selection.
During his sophomore season with the North Dakota Fighting Hawks, Schmaltz scored the game-winning goal in the semi-final game of the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament to send North Dakota to the championship game where he got an assist in the game.
After his sophomore season with the North Dakota Fighting Hawks, he ended his collegiate career to turn professional and signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Blackhawks on June 19, 2016.
Professional
On October 12, 2016, Schmaltz made his NHL debut in the season opener against the St. Louis Blues. On October 15, 2016, he scored his first NHL goal in a game against the Washington Capitals.
On December 4, 2016, he was reassigned to the Blackhawks' AHL team, the Rockford IceHogs. While in Rockford, he tallied 6 goals & 3 assists. On January 14, 2017, he was recalled back to the Blackhawks.
Career Statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2011–12 | Green Bay Gamblers | USHL | 11 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Green Bay Gamblers | USHL | 64 | 18 | 34 | 52 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2013–14 | Green Bay Gamblers | USHL | 55 | 18 | 45 | 63 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 17 | ||
| 2014–15 | U. of North Dakota | NCHC | 38 | 5 | 21 | 26 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | U. of North Dakota | NCHC | 37 | 11 | 35 | 46 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 61 | 6 | 22 | 28 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | 12 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 61 | 6 | 22 | 28 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | United States | IH18 | 2nd | 5 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2015 | United States | WJC | 5th | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2016 | United States | WJC | 3rd | 7 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 4 | |
| Junior totals | 17 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 6 | ||||
International Play
While playing with the United States men's national ice hockey team at the 2013 World Junior A Challenge, Schmaltz was named the tournament's most valuable player as he led Team USA to capture the gold medal.
He represented the United States in the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship where he notched eight points (2 goals and 6 assists) in seven games en route to winning a bronze medal.
Accolades
| Honours | Year |
|---|---|
| USHL Clark Cup Champion | 2011-12 |
| USHL All-Rookie Team | 2012–13 |
| World Junior A Challenge Gold Medal | 2013 |
| World Junior A Challenge Most Valuable Player | 2013 |
| NCAA (NCHC) All-Rookie Team | 2014-15 |
| U20 WJC Bronze Medal | 2015-16 |
| NCAA Frozen Four Champion | 2016 |
Personal Life
Nick grew up in Verona, Wisconsin.
His older brother, Jordan was drafted in the first round by the St. Louis Blues in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft and he currently plays for the Chicago Wolves in the AHL.
His father, Mike and uncles Marc & Monte lettered in football at the University of North Dakota.
Gallery
Headshots
