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Chicago Blackhawks Blogger •
Hawk training camp opened yesterday. And aside from a fight between Jake Dowell and Bracken Kearns (decision: Dowell), there wasn't much to report.
Tweets from the scrimmage indicated Jonathan Toews looked great, as did Brent Sopel.
If the year off helped Sopel regain his edge, that's very good news for a Blackhawk defense that needs physicality, experience and another right-handed shot. The other competitors for the 6-7 defense slots are Aaron Johnson, Jordan Hendry and Richard Petiot, all left-handed shots.
In truth, the only real position battles this year are the aforementioned reserve defensemen, on the fourth line and backup goaltender.
CONTENDERS AND PRETENDERS:
I would say, of all the Rockford and recently signed junior and NCAA prospects, Jack Skille has the best shot of playing significant time with the Hawks this year. I will also say, as of last year, he still looked like a player in search of his game at the NHL level. Skille's NHL future is most likely as a Kris Draper/Kirk Maltby type of player. So that said, he needs to fully commit himself to being a defense-first, grinding player up and down the ice.
Many here have wondered why Troy Brouwer didn't score at the NHL level like he did in junior and the AHL. It's precisely because Brouwer made this commitment. That's not to say he will never score 20 goals in a season (I believe he can/will). But he also knew to make it to the Hawks, he needed to recognize and optimize himself within his role, which, in his case is a pure power forward/space creator who can complement skilled forwards.
Skille, I think, needs to be a disruptor, a cross-checker and a defensive pest. He's shown he can do the first two. But the defensive pest part, not to mention a bit more willingness to get his nose dirty would help him tremendously.
After Skille, perhaps Bryan Bickell or Evan Brophey might earn some minutes at some point due to injury or some other event. Akim Aliu has all kinds of talent and an NHL ready body, but the Hawks want him to spend a full year at Rockford and round out his game.
In my opinion, and in spite of the Hawks hyping this possibility earlier in the summer, I do not see how Kyle Beach makes the Hawks, beyond a ten game look-see before he returns to the WHL.
Shawn Lalonde is another talented recent draftee who really is just not ready for the NHL yet.
THE GOALIE CONUNDRUM:
Here's one school of thought: the Hawks might want to take the better of the two backup goalie candidates
. . . and send him to Rockford. Why? Simple. Assuming he stays healthy, Cristobal Huet is going to play 50-60 games. The backup, 20-30.
If the Hawks feel that one or the other is a clear future #1 goalie, but the other is also potentially a solid NHL backup, it might make sense to keep the guy you feel is destined to be a backup, and let the other guy work as #1 in Rockford, getting plenty of minutes, being in the #1 mindset.
Again, that's assuming the you feel the guy you keep as backup can deliver on that job.
And the more likely scenario is the better of the two remains in Chicago as those 20-30 games will no doubt be very important for playoff position.
More to come.
JJ
Tweets from the scrimmage indicated Jonathan Toews looked great, as did Brent Sopel.
If the year off helped Sopel regain his edge, that's very good news for a Blackhawk defense that needs physicality, experience and another right-handed shot. The other competitors for the 6-7 defense slots are Aaron Johnson, Jordan Hendry and Richard Petiot, all left-handed shots.
In truth, the only real position battles this year are the aforementioned reserve defensemen, on the fourth line and backup goaltender.
CONTENDERS AND PRETENDERS:
I would say, of all the Rockford and recently signed junior and NCAA prospects, Jack Skille has the best shot of playing significant time with the Hawks this year. I will also say, as of last year, he still looked like a player in search of his game at the NHL level. Skille's NHL future is most likely as a Kris Draper/Kirk Maltby type of player. So that said, he needs to fully commit himself to being a defense-first, grinding player up and down the ice.
Many here have wondered why Troy Brouwer didn't score at the NHL level like he did in junior and the AHL. It's precisely because Brouwer made this commitment. That's not to say he will never score 20 goals in a season (I believe he can/will). But he also knew to make it to the Hawks, he needed to recognize and optimize himself within his role, which, in his case is a pure power forward/space creator who can complement skilled forwards.
Skille, I think, needs to be a disruptor, a cross-checker and a defensive pest. He's shown he can do the first two. But the defensive pest part, not to mention a bit more willingness to get his nose dirty would help him tremendously.
After Skille, perhaps Bryan Bickell or Evan Brophey might earn some minutes at some point due to injury or some other event. Akim Aliu has all kinds of talent and an NHL ready body, but the Hawks want him to spend a full year at Rockford and round out his game.
In my opinion, and in spite of the Hawks hyping this possibility earlier in the summer, I do not see how Kyle Beach makes the Hawks, beyond a ten game look-see before he returns to the WHL.
Shawn Lalonde is another talented recent draftee who really is just not ready for the NHL yet.
THE GOALIE CONUNDRUM:
Here's one school of thought: the Hawks might want to take the better of the two backup goalie candidates
. . . and send him to Rockford. Why? Simple. Assuming he stays healthy, Cristobal Huet is going to play 50-60 games. The backup, 20-30.
If the Hawks feel that one or the other is a clear future #1 goalie, but the other is also potentially a solid NHL backup, it might make sense to keep the guy you feel is destined to be a backup, and let the other guy work as #1 in Rockford, getting plenty of minutes, being in the #1 mindset.
Again, that's assuming the you feel the guy you keep as backup can deliver on that job.
And the more likely scenario is the better of the two remains in Chicago as those 20-30 games will no doubt be very important for playoff position.
More to come.
JJ
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