It was never going to be perfect.There was zero likelihood of everything going exactly as planned for Kyle Davidson when he set out to execute his rebuild as Chicago Blackhawks general manager.Davidson’s goal was largely to rebuild the Blackhawks through the draft, and that meant accumulating many picks and then selecting many players. He and his director of amateur scouting, Mike Doneghey, knew they’d likely have some misses in there, but they always believed as long as they drafted well enough as a whole, the misses wouldn’t be missed.The other real possibility of drafting so many prospects in such a short time was that not all those drafted players would feel like they had the clear path to the NHL. When a team drafts 38 players, including 28 in the first three rounds, over the last four years, some of those players might think their NHL goal might be easier achieved elsewhere.That has happened twice to the Blackhawks under Davidson. Forward Dominic James, a 2022 sixth-round pick, declined a contract offer, opted to wait out the Blackhawks’ signing rights after finishing his college career and became an unrestricted free agent in August. He later signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning.On Monday, the Blackhawks traded the rights to forward Jack Pridham, a 2024 third-round pick, to the Lightning for a third-round pick just before his draft rights were set to expire later in the day. It’s unclear whether the Blackhawks offered Pridham a contract, but he made it clear he didn’t plan to sign with Chicago even if he committed to a college and extended its rights window. The Blackhawks saw the writing on the wall and recouped the same draft pick value. The Lightning announced after the trade Pridham had committed to a school, giving them two years to retain his rights.The Blackhawks liked both prospects and had developmental plans for each. For James, the Blackhawks wanted him to end the 2024-25 season with the Rockford IceHogs in the AHL and begin his entry-level contract the next season with the chance of making the NHL out of training camp. For Pridham, the Blackhawks drafted him with the belief he’d play in college and was in no rush to turn pro. They thought his game and body would benefit from college hockey.In both cases, the players didn’t share the Blackhawks’ vision and weren’t completely confident there would be a roster spot waiting for them in the end. They looked at the plethora of young players in the Blackhawks system — from the NHL to AHL to unsigned — and the math didn’t add up. The Blackhawks’ pool of under-23 players was crowded, and a growing number of players were taking up NHL spots.After this season, 10 players Davidson drafted, including seven forwards, have already played in the NHL. Roman Kantserov, who recently signed, will likely make No. 11 come next season, and there’s a chance the Blackhawks could have even more next season with A.J. Spellacy (who was drafted just before Pridham) and Marek Vanacker (a 2024 first-round pick) starting their entry-level deals. There are plenty of other Davidson draft picks with the IceHogs, too.