The other teams in the Central that got better on paper face the same +/- what-ifs that the Hawks do. Reality is that nothing matters til they drop the puck and then get to April. Seeding will be important but history has shown that road teams win a lot in the SCP, especially lately. It's fun to think about what could happen but there are SOOO many what-ifs in Chicago and around the league that it's hard to get too worked up one way or the other.

Play a solid regular season without burning out the core, stay healthy, improve the PP, peak at the right time, and have a hot goalie going into playoffs - sounds easy, right?

The biggest what-if in Chicago is more of a "who". Who gets moved to get them cap compliant. There will be a big trickle-down from that decision.

Anton Stralman played for a couple of teams before hitting his stride and finding a fit with the Rangers. And then somebody in Tampa decided he was worth $5M per season at the age of 27 or 28.

Not saying Runblad will go down that road, but somebody thinks he's worth a look and the draft pick they gave up to get him. Just saying ....
- RickJ

You make a very good point.

When I was kid when teams there was no RFA contract b/c the teams owned you and had little recourse but to wait, develop, or squawk and get traded or buried in the minor pros....and they groomed most defensemen (Bobby Orr, Gil Marotte got passes on the wait) and they got chances as NHLers at 26 & 27 yrs/ old and many, not until they were 30-32. The GMS/teams figured you knew what to do and did it by then and didn't negoiate bridge deals while you learned.

At the trade dealline Stan Bowman saw an opportunity to send a second round pick for one former first round defender and another minor pro defender, Mathieu Brisebois.

It is unfortunate that the description "journeyman" has been applied to Rundblad...to me a journeyman is a guy who is a solid minor pro then gets opportunities with varipous NHl clubs to do what he can to make a place for himself, not a young guy who so far hasn't capiitalized on his scant opportunities.

You can look at this move by Bowman two ways:

a) Take a chance on these guys, it's a second rounder there COULD be rewards, or

b) There is too much potential in skilled Runblad for us to pass on this deal.

Just remember Bowman had no gun to his head to that deal pick, so I guess it will be in Runbld's hands and we get an answer soon, right?

The other teams in the Central that got better on paper face the same +/- what-ifs that the Hawks do.
- bwarner929

Yeah the entire idea of " everyone getting better " always makes me chuckle after all the times over the course of years when I was told how on paper the Blackhawks got better in the off season...

So let me get this straight. You want to add a player who is bad at hockey and good at punching in order to deter would-be illegal hits on star players. Is that right?

If a guy can hit you, he's going to hit you. If he wants to hit you illegally, he knows he's going to hit you illegally, and no John Scott, Dan Carcillo, Paul Bisonnete or Joey Kocur is going to stop him before the fact. All you're doing is putting bad hockey players on the ice in place of good hockey players.

This whole notion of "he's going to think twice about running a guy because Mashinter is there" is garbage. Guys will do what they do, and they don't care if they get jumped (they actually like when you balance out their dumb penalties with your own), and if you get out of position chasing after them for the rest of the game with bad hockey players, then he's done even more damage.

Toughness is a guy playing hurt or going 5 periods into a playoff game. It's about taking hits and getting back up and playing the same way, getting in the way of a Shea Weber clapper, or making a good strong pass, even when you know you're gonna get blown up. It is NOT about "sending messages."
- Sandus

So when Backes or Thorton runs Toews, possibly concusses him, and they get nothing but a few minutes in the box SIMPLY because (literally) no one can do anything about it...you're cool with that? Well, on second thought maybe Duncan Keith will jump in and get his ass kicked or hair pulled simply out of obligation. People were going ape s*** about that kind of crap last year and rightly so.

Let me be clear, I don't think we need someone who can't play hockey worth a damn but rather is solely there as an enforcer. We need someone who can police the nonsense and still provide some level or scoring or assists. Who that person is, and whether they will come from Rockford, remains to be seen.

So when Backes or Thorton runs Toews, possibly concusses him, and they get nothing but a few minutes in the box SIMPLY because (literally) no one can do anything about it...you're cool with that? Well, on second thought maybe Duncan Keith will jump in and get his ass kicked or hair pulled simply out of obligation. People were going ape poop about that kind of crap last year and rightly so.
- Murph76

So how do you add this "need" of an enforcer? Where does the cap space and roster spot come from?

So when Backes or Thorton runs Toews, possibly concusses him, and they get nothing but a few minutes in the box SIMPLY because (literally) no one can do anything about it...you're cool with that? Well, on second thought maybe Duncan Keith will jump in and get his ass kicked or hair pulled simply out of obligation. People were going ape poop about that kind of crap last year and rightly so.
- Murph76

I know you seriously dont believe this ......


This happened while Bollig was on the ice .....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hckLGFCY86I

The tough guy fighters rarely prevent anything other than their own team from scoring goals .

So how do you add this "need" of an enforcer? Where does the cap space and roster spot come from?
- EKolb13

God willing, someone from Rockford will be able to step up.

So when Backes or Thorton runs Toews, possibly concusses him, and they get nothing but a few minutes in the box SIMPLY because (literally) no one can do anything about it...you're cool with that? Well, on second thought maybe Duncan Keith will jump in and get his ass kicked or hair pulled simply out of obligation. People were going ape poop about that kind of crap last year and rightly so.
- Murph76

So - when Backes runs Toews, and someone goes and fights Backes, and then Backes runs someone else because fighting isn't going to deter a Backes - you're OK with that?

All fighting does is get you and the other guy a major (and maybe your guy an instigator) and revs up the crowd and makes you feel good for 2 minutes.

Until you realize a headhunter is a headhunter and a headhunter will always go back to hunting heads.

I know you seriously dont believe this ......


This happened while Bollig was on the ice .....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hckLGFCY86I

The tough guy fighters rarely prevent anything other than their own team from scoring goals .
- mrpaulish

I'm not saying they need to be there as a preventative measure, I'm saying it would be nice for at least some kind of punishment to be given out if the refs. fail miserably.

I know you seriously dont believe this ......


This happened while Bollig was on the ice .....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hckLGFCY86I

The tough guy fighters rarely prevent anything other than their own team from scoring goals .
- mrpaulish

Probly the most glaring reason Im perfectly fine with Bollig being gone. He watched that happen, and waited for a wistle to go do something about it. I dont care if its the playoffs or whatever, Torres should have been jumped immediately after that hit happened.

gets my blood boiling to watch that video

So - when Backes runs Toews, and someone goes and fights Backes, and then Backes runs someone else because fighting isn't going to deter a Backes - you're OK with that?

All fighting does is get you and the other guy a major (and maybe your guy an instigator) and revs up the crowd and makes you feel good for 2 minutes.

Until you realize a headhunter is a headhunter and a headhunter will always go back to hunting heads.
- StLBravesFan

Yes, at least someone will have done something about it and sent a statement that you can't run our stars and get off scott free.

Probly the most glaring reason Im perfectly fine with Bollig being gone. He watched that happen, and waited for a wistle to go do something about it. I dont care if its the playoffs or whatever, Torres should have been jumped immediately after that hit happened.

gets my blood boiling to watch that video
- BlazinMike

Yes, that was an epic fail on Bollig's part.

So when Backes or Thorton runs Toews, possibly concusses him, and they get nothing but a few minutes in the box SIMPLY because (literally) no one can do anything about it...you're cool with that? Well, on second thought maybe Duncan Keith will jump in and get his ass kicked or hair pulled simply out of obligation. People were going ape s*** about that kind of crap last year and rightly so.

Let me be clear, I don't think we need someone who can't play hockey worth a damn but rather is solely there as an enforcer. We need someone who can police the nonsense and still provide some level or scoring or assists. Who that person is, and whether they will come from Rockford, remains to be seen.
- Murph76

Two of the meanest and toughest players in the NHL, Milan Lucic and Zedano Chara, were playing the night Marc Savard's career was ended with a cheap shot. Are you suggesting there is a bigger tougher player somewhere who is so intimidating no one would even consider touching a Hawk star player?

So when Backes or Thorton runs Toews, possibly concusses him, and they get nothing but a few minutes in the box SIMPLY because (literally) no one can do anything about it...you're cool with that? Well, on second thought maybe Duncan Keith will jump in and get his ass kicked or hair pulled simply out of obligation. People were going ape s*** about that kind of crap last year and rightly so.

Let me be clear, I don't think we need someone who can't play hockey worth a damn but rather is solely there as an enforcer. We need someone who can police the nonsense and still provide some level or scoring or assists. Who that person is, and whether they will come from Rockford, remains to be seen.
- Murph76

Don't worry, you guys already have Seabrook who can run players.

I love that fans complain about Backes. It makes no sense. Yes, he plays physical. He will hit Toews or Kane. And most of the time it will be completely legal. Still, fans will complain about him even when Seabrook is as dirty if not more from that single headshot.

Maybe I need to talk to Blues fans about what we are going to do when Seabrook goes head hunting this year? But I won't.......don't feel like talking to myself today in a Blues thread.

God willing, someone from Rockford will be able to step up.
- Murph76

Okay, you have a couple of guys there that could possibly fill that role. However, the question remains - where does the roster spot and cap room come from?

I figure the Hawks are going to have to move more than $3 million in cap room to carry a 14th forward full time. If Bowman can't clear that much room, carrying a 14th forward might be out of the question, except for short stints when absolutely needed.

Then there is the need to get under the cap ceiling in the first place. If Bowman trades away a forward, you have a roster spot for that. That is if Bowman even sees it necessary to fill the enforcer's role in the first place. If he doesn't and trades a defenseman away instead, the 13 forwards he already has cannot pass through waivers, and every one of them are here in Chicago for a reason. Bowman didn't re-up Regin just to ship him to Rockford. Morin wouldn't pass through waivers without a claim. The rest of them pretty much have roles on paper or are locks to stick with the team.

The best deterrent for cheap shots is a strong PP. Scoring early on the PP is the best way to stop teams from taking cheap shots against you, unless they don't care about giving up goals.
That is what pisses me off about this Blackhawk team the last few seasons, the PP has been crap. Look at Edmonton, they are not a great "team" but their PP is much more damaging then Chicago's the last few seasons.

Happy 20th Birthday to our saviour and soon to be 2nd line centre Teuvo Teravainen!!!

The best deterrent for cheap shots is a strong PP. Scoring early on the PP is the best way to stop teams from taking cheap shots against you, unless they don't care about giving up goals.
That is what pisses me off about this Blackhawk team the last few seasons, the PP has been crap. Look at Edmonton, they are not a great "team" but their PP is much more damaging then Chicago's the last few seasons.
- powerenforcer

The other teams in the Central that got better on paper face the same +/- what-ifs that the Hawks do. Reality is that nothing matters til they drop the puck and then get to April. Seeding will be important but history has shown that road teams win a lot in the SCP, especially lately. It's fun to think about what could happen but there are SOOO many what-ifs in Chicago and around the league that it's hard to get too worked up one way or the other.

Play a solid regular season without burning out the core, stay healthy, improve the PP, peak at the right time, and have a hot goalie going into playoffs - sounds easy, right?

The biggest what-if in Chicago is more of a "who". Who gets moved to get them cap compliant. There will be a big trickle-down from that decision.
- bwarner929

Very true.
You could run the same analysis on every team. Add-ons to teams don't necessarily equate to success on the ice -e.g. everyone was conceding the Cup to St. Louis after the TDL last year.
Our farm system is not receiving enough credit as an injury cushion (LTIR, of course). We have a lot of hungry depth there that would be in the NHL on other teams. We all saw what success LA had with their young energy against us last year.

Don't worry, you guys already have Seabrook who can run players.

I love that fans complain about Backes. It makes no sense. Yes, he plays physical. He will hit Toews or Kane. And most of the time it will be completely legal. Still, fans will complain about him even when Seabrook is as dirty if not more from that single headshot.

Maybe I need to talk to Blues fans about what we are going to do when Seabrook goes head hunting this year? But I won't.......don't feel like talking to myself today in a Blues thread.

- carcus

One huge difference is Seabrook won't back down from anyone once he has committed a cheap shot. I've seen Backes running around after Toews and Hossa, but wanted no part of Bickell or Bollig when they asked him to drop em.

Two of the meanest and toughest players in the NHL, Milan Lucic and Zedano Chara, were playing the night Marc Savard's career was ended with a cheap shot. Are you suggesting there is a bigger tougher player somewhere who is so intimidating no one would even consider touching a Hawk star player?
- paulr

Not much being said aboout it but you can see the way the league is headed. If you are a tough guy/goon who can't play at all, roster spots are very limited (San Jose excepted with John Scott). Shanahan won't sit by idily watching Randy Carlyle play Colton Orr and Fraser McClelland 2 minutes a night and paying them $750K a year while better players are in the AHL.

And all you get from most of these goons are staged fights.

So if a team wants a fighter on their roster, he had better be able to play some.

Maybe I need to talk to Blues fans about what we are going to do when Seabrook goes head hunting this year? But I won't.......don't feel like talking to myself today in a Blues thread.

- carcus

If travels go well over the next few days, I may try and post something up again.

Should I debate the cap/roster size situation on the Blues or how the NHLPA supports the money and not the membership?

The best deterrent for cheap shots is a strong PP. Scoring early on the PP is the best way to stop teams from taking cheap shots against you, unless they don't care about giving up goals.
That is what pisses me off about this Blackhawk team the last few seasons, the PP has been crap. Look at Edmonton, they are not a great "team" but their PP is much more damaging then Chicago's the last few seasons.
- powerenforcer

I'd trade scoreboard victory for a fight victory most days.

Not much being said aboout it but you can see the way the league is headed. If you are a tough guy/goon who can't play at all, roster spots are very limited (San Jose excepted with John Scott). Shanahan won't sit by idily watching Randy Carlyle play Colton Orr and Fraser McClelland 2 minutes a night and paying them $750K a year while better players are in the AHL.

And all you get from most of these goons are staged fights.

So if a team wants a fighter on their roster, he had better be able to play some.
- RickJ

And beside the staged fights I noticed the Habs, Sens, Bruins etc. just stayed away when the Leafs wanted to fight last year. That made the Leaf's 4th line completely useless.

One huge difference is Seabrook won't back down from anyone once he has committed a cheap shot. I've seen Backes running around after Toews and Hossa, but wanted no part of Bickell or Bollig when they asked him to drop em.
- paulr

What would happen if Reaves goes after Seabrook? Do you really think he would drop the gloves? No way. Doesn't really matter because I fully expect Backes and Seabrook to have a go in the first game or nothing at all to happen to Seabrook which is fine by me, frankly preferred. If backs and seabrook want to go to settle it or whatever you want to call it, fine. If they have let it go, why wouldn't the rest of us. It doesn't seem that hard of a concept to me but maybe that is the libertarian part of me