TT and McNeil and Kruger plus picks for Kesler would have been greaaaaaaat.
- mrpaulish

Overpay from Hawks standpoint.

I would be happy if the Hawks just stand pat.
- carcus

I know you would Carc !


I honestly , if had to bet the ranch on it that the Hawks are as they will be going into battle in April , or if they do make any moves at all it will be for a #4-#5 D man .

So I think youll get your 1st wish .

Overpay from Hawks standpoint.
- vabeachbear

Just for the sake of conversatipn because Mr. Bowman thought it was an over pay as well.... but ...


Kesler would be as good or even better at the PK than Kruger , much better at the dot and an additional PP player . But the grit that the Hawks lack now would be fulfilled by Kesler .

McNeil and TT MAY BE NOTHING .

But we'll see.

Tomorrow is promised to no one nd the world won't meet you half-way ( Thank you, Stallone)

All there is this year and real shot this year. If you can make a trade that can get you closer to a Cup this year, make it.

Sharp, Bickell, Shaw. I don't care if any of them are gone if the trade brings back what is needed.

It does take two to tango but Stan did blink on the Jeff Carter deal it cost the Hawks a decent chance at a Cup that year.

Why can't Dahlbeck get a shot over Rozy/Eunblad/Cuminskey? He can't be worse
- furso27

Agreed . 100 %

I know you would Carc !


I honestly , if had to bet the ranch on it that the Hawks are as they will be going into battle in April , or if they do make any moves at all it will be for a #4-#5 D man .

So I think youll get your 1st wish .
- mrpaulish

Still a very good team and will give anyone they match up with a lot of problems. But I would be happy if they stand pat and don't upgrade at all.

There's a lot of doom-saying on this thread. A few comments ago someone wrote "Anyone who thinks the super-2 and core 5-6 plus kids is going to be anything but a fringe playoff team is delusional." That's just inane. There are 29 other teams that would love to have the Blackhawks core, and any time you have a core like that you have a chance to build a Stanley Cup contender. That's been proven over the past 6 seasons -- 2 Cups, 4 Conference Finals. It's the best stretch of dominance of any Chicago sports team in my lifetime.

Now, having said that, the cap is a reality. This happens as great players move into 2nd and 3rd level contracts. To continue to succeed, the Hawks will have to do a good job of acquiring, drafting and developing talent around the core, AND understanding when pieces of the core need to be moved.

On the second point, clearly the Hawks recognize that two pieces of the core over the last few years are going to have to go this off-season (Sharp and Oduya). Eventually, they know Hossa's coming into the final stretch of his career. And they'll have to watch for signs of deterioration from Keith and Seabrook as they get older.

On the first point, they have Saad and Hjalmarsson as top contributors, and they'll need to acquire or develop another top 4 D and 2 more top 6 F's. Not easy to do when you are drafting later in rounds, but far from impossible. Some of those players may already be in the system.

But I'll worry about those things when they get here. This team is good enough to win it again now. They have one upgrade to make -- improve the 3rd D pair so that teams can't just dump the puck in on Rosie's side. It doesn't take a star to make that improvement -- just a guy who is better than Rosie at what Rosie does, or a guy who is better than Rundblad at what Rundblad does. If they can find that guy -- that one tweak -- I'd still like this team's chances of coming out of the west.
- jam10sugar

you must have missed the Bulls run in the 90's or you are a very young man....

Even better than that - Iron Mike Keenan will be on his way back soon and Stanbo can finally fire that idiot Q.
- RickJ

You hire Keenan for your local beer league club...just keep him the heck away from the Blackhawks.

JJ, do you think with the start of spring-training (and all the positive moves the Chicago baseball teams made over the winter) will have McD on hightened alert to the teams media coverage? If the Blackhawks become 3rd or 4th place story, will he force a move just to get press?
- powerenforcer

...but thanks, I needed a good laugh. You're the best...

Still a very good team and will give anyone they match up with a lot of problems. But I would be happy if they stand pat and don't upgrade at all.
- carcus

Agreed.

No all world beaters out there.

I think the Preds are smoke and mirrors. WOuld love for the Blues to catch them and have the Hawks destroy the Preds in the 1st round

Just for the sake of conversatipn because Mr. Bowman thought it was an over pay as well.... but ...


Kesler would be as good or even better at the PK than Kruger , much better at the dot and an additional PP player . But the grit that the Hawks lack now would be fulfilled by Kesler .

McNeil and TT MAY BE NOTHING .

But we'll see.
- mrpaulish

Much better at the dot? Nope. They are almost exactly the same. Kesler has a whopping 9 points on the PP and at the end of the day is a minus player. Plus, he is a creep of the highest order. Plus. There is another roster player who would have been gone.

And in the biggest games in his life, he does a Casper impersonation.

Still a very good team and will give anyone they match up with a lot of problems. But I would be happy if they stand pat and don't upgrade at all.
- carcus

As I will be happy if ANYONE wins a Cup other than your team of goons.

I would be happy if the Hawks just stand pat.
- carcus

And I'll be happy if the Blues repeat the playoff success they've enjoyed the last 2 years.

You hire Keenan for your local beer league club...just keep him the heck away from the Blackhawks.
- ArlingtonRob

Man, he would be perfect in Toronto.

Just for perspective sake, re: "don't trade away the future", 12 years of the future:

1998 Mark Bell 8th overall OK 3rd line player
1999 Steve McCarthy 23rd overall 55 points in 302 NHL games
2000 Mikhail Yakubov 10th overall 40 NHL games BUST
2000 Pavel Vorobiev 11th overall 57 NHL games BUST
2001 Tuomo Ruutu 9th overall OK top 6 forward
2001 Adam Munro 29th overall 17 NHL games BUST
2002 Anton Babchuk 21st overall OK 4-5 defenseman
2003 Brent Seabrook 14th overall NHL All Star HIT
2004 Cam Barker 3rd overall fringe NHL player BUST
2005 Jack Skille 7th overall 4th line journeyman BUST
2006 Jonathan Toews 3rd overall Franchise player HIT
2007 Patrick Kane 1st overall Elite player HIT
2008 Kyle Beach 11th overall 0 NHL games BUST
2009 Dylan Olsen 28th overall In AHL, fringe NHLer BUST?
2010 Kevin Hayes 24th overall Rangers, decent rookie yr HIT
- John Jaeckel

Yep

Overpay from Hawks standpoint.
- vabeachbear

...plus over-CAP.

Man, he would be perfect in Toronto.
- Elbows15

Now that would be fun to watch....especially during a complete rebuild.

Hawks have a pair of scouts at TOR/FLA tonight.



But dont get too excited there are avout 25 scouts registered for that game

The other end of the spectrum for perspective is by trading draft picks all the time...I introduce you to your Toronto Maple Leafs.

Its a fine line and trading picks is part of it.

Hawks have a pair of scouts at TOR/FLA tonight.



But dont get too excited there are avout 25 scouts registered for that game
- mrpaulish

DOMIN....oh.

Hawks have a pair of scouts at TOR/FLA tonight.



But dont get too excited there are avout 25 scouts registered for that game
- mrpaulish

JVR?!?! Kessel!?!?! Eklbad!?!?!

JVR?!?! Kessel!?!?! Eklbad!?!?!
- TommyHawk

Lol

sabres vs devils? what a (frank)ing joke.

Now that would be fun to watch....especially during a complete rebuild.
- ArlingtonRob

The practices would be glorious.

Hawks have a pair of scouts at TOR/FLA tonight.



But dont get too excited there are avout 25 scouts registered for that game
- mrpaulish

Tomas Kopecky come back home..

Tomas Kopecky come back home..
- z1990z

He would be ok.