One of the more hotly debated topics in Blackhawk Nation is the tenure of Dale Tallon as GM.
Generally speaking, it is agreed he made some great trades: like Brandon Bochenski for Kris Versteeg and Matt Ellison for Patrick Sharp. His free agent signings were a mixed bag at best, and he notably overpaid on a few high profile contracts. And his drafts were also a mixed bag.
But Tallon did have some later round scores, like Troy Brouwer in the 7th round in 2004.
And, especially, Niklas Hjalmarsson in the 4th round in 2005.
Hawk fans and the North American hockey world started to hear about Hjalmarsson during the 2006 World Juniors. People began to talk about his solid three zone play and big hitting.
Hjalmarsson debuted in North American pro hockey in 2007-2008 with the Rockford Ice Hogs in the AHL. The whispers intensified: potential top 4 NHL defenseman.
I spoke with then Rockford coach Mike Haviland about Hjalmarsson in the fall of 2007. Haviland was incredibly high on him. He described him as having all the tools you expect from a Swedish defenseman. Responsible, can jump into the play and makes a good first pass out of the zone. But he said what really separated Hjalmarsson was a raw competitiveness, which Haviland put this way: "he just flattens people."
Late last season, Hjalmarsson was called up from Rockford and solved a season-long problem on the Hawk defense: providing the solid, steady play needed to anchor Brian Campbell's second pairing. In the playoffs, he didn't look out of place at all. When I first saw him play in 2007, I thought he reminded me a bit of Steve Smith. And he still does, though I think he has more offensive upside than #5.
Pierre Maguire repeatedly compares him to Niklas Kronwall.
Last night on the CSNC broadcast of the Hawks' unfortunate loss in Nashville, Eddie Olczyk revealed another comparison, coming from none other than Scotty Bowman. And this comparison was to Nik Lidstrom.
Now, Edzo qualified that by saying he thought it might be a stretch to compare Hjalmarsson to Lidstrom offensively. And I agree.
But I will also say that, going back to well before he was associated with the Hawks, I have felt Scotty Bowman was one of the best—if not the singular best—judge of talent in North American hockey.
And I think Hawk fans are only beginning to see how good Hjalmarsson can be. When he first came up in 2007, he would get way out of position in order to deliver big hits. Last season, he compensated, rarely delivering hits, but always being in position and covering his responsibilities.
But this year, his entire game seems to be coming together. He is blocking shots, using his stick (a la Duncan Keith) to disrupt plays, making great, long first passes out of the zone— and delivering some big open ice hits. And the hockey world is noticing.
I would argue the career projection for Hjalmarsson now has to be top pairing defenseman. He can be that good.
During Olczyk's comments last night, I had to wonder where exactly the Hawks' see Hjalmarsson going in his career. Edzo painfully and obviously stopped short of putting huge expectations on Hjalmarsson. But the expectations are clearly there.
And as the current batch of young stars matures and reaches free agency, the Blackhawks will need younger players like Hjalmarsson and perhaps OHL defenseman Shawn Lalonde to optimize their talent so that they can eventually step in, in case a Duncan Keith or a Brent Seabrook leaves for big dollars elsewhere.
RANDOM SHOTS:
The Hawks looked very sluggish last night in losing to Nashville, 2-0. Cristobal Huet played arguably his best game of the season, holding the energized Preds to one goal before being pulled for an extra attacker late in the third. I won't be surprised if Joel Quenneville doesn't come back with Huet tonight versus his old team, les Habitents de Montreal.
Patrick Kane also continued his stellar play. Kane has clearly gained a step of speed through offseason conditioning and his confidence and creativity with the puck are breathtaking at times. However, his linemates and the rest of the Hawks (with the exception of Kris Versteeg) looked like they were skating in wet concrete last night.
JJ
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • 
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