​Two major data points are worth paying attention to for Chicago Blackhawks fans in understanding the mindset of a Kyle Davidson hunch, according to Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times.The recent trade for defenseman Bowen Byram, which involved the fourth overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, shocked some fans. The accompanying four-year, $50 million contract felt almost equally shocking at the time. That deal comes with a full No Movement Clause for the duration of the contract, per PuckPedia.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThere’s not a data point that would have motivated most executives to make either of those deals. Byram, once a fourth-overall selection for the Colorado Avalanche himself, has never been asked to be a number one defenseman on an NHL team. The Chicago Blackhawks — notably led by general manager Kyle Davidson — have a hunch that Byram can do that.The Byram trade isn’t the only evidence of Davidson going off of an honest-to-God hunch, Pope wrote.Mason West is a 2025 draft prospect with a remarkable story. The Edina, MN native was a rare two-sport athlete in high school. The rare part was the sports combination — football and hockey. West was a star quarterback at Edina High School and a potential three-star recruit, per 247 Sports.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBy hockey standards, he’s something of a project. Scouting website Elite Prospects described him with intrigue last year.“Beyond his imposing frame, West is a fluid skater with effortless extension, and the reach and skill combination to make high-level plays. A natural shooter, he loads his shots from the hip, using upper-body torque and frame transfer to generate power.”West brought many intriguing factors to the plate — being a right-handed shooting center with his 6-foot-6 frame, level of athleticism and youth. He was one of the younger players in his draft class. West was born about six weeks before the cut-off date for the 2026 class.A Kyle Davidson hunch led to Chicago trading two second-round draft choices and a fifth-round selection to move back into the first round in the 2025 NHL Draft. This was all done to select West in a spot that historically is hard to find NHL talent. It’s not likely that many general managers — certainly not analytically inclined — would have made that trade.Generally, blackjack players are encouraged to adhere to basic strategy to play the best odds. In sports, part of the analytics-based approach across the spectrum incorporates this mindset in part. But the inclusion of scouts, coaches and team executives in the process separates sports from the hard, cold math of blackjack.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOr, as Kyle Davidson himself describes it, some moves that defy models are worth the “grand-slam hack.” Both swings on West and Byram were for the fences. It’s a trait to be admired, not pilloried.There is no shortage of metrics to paint how bad the Blackhawks have been lately. There ar