As far as the hatred for Daley goes by some on this board, I would have to loved to seen the posts after the Phoenix series when Shane Doan was beating Oduya into the glass every chance he had, and Oduya was coughing up pucks in prime chances leading t goals...which at the time I believe was why folks in New jersey and ATL/WPG referred to him as the pizza man.

yet the coaching staff and front office stayed with him and wouldn't you know it....he and Hammer became the 2nd, 1st pairing that no other NHL team could match.

So yes, again...I liked the deal of Daley at the time. Did he suck while he was here? Sure....no worse then oduya, but the intangible thing here is Daley wanted out and drove his own way. That part is the most concerning to me because I felt over time, like Oduya, Daley could have been a serviceable D man and helluva lot better option then what they had all year with those Swedish dogs they kept rotating in.

Oh well...woulda coulda shoulda, but I am upset about the numerous national articles I keep reading about the pens turnaround and D stability came together once Daley arrived. Cant' argue that, and they and tampa, and STL look to be the cup favorites. Maybe San Jose.....

Too bad we couldn't see how Cooper would have done without (in 10 games) Kucherov's 9 goals, Johnson's 4, Killorn's 3 - that's 1.6 per game from their top line.

Q's top 2 lines had less than 1 GPG (in 7 games).
- StLBravesFan

I will say this...hawks stars just flat out got outplayed or better yet out produced. That's the main reason they are home. The PK getting torched, and the Hawks depth also contributed to that.

I will say Tampa without Stamkos and Stralman is impressive. Those triplets are a force. Hedman is becoming one of the best d men in the NHL.

However, top to bottom west was far more superior. Tampa wouldn't have lost in the 1st round to STL or LA or the Hawks or ANH.

Penguins and Washington were in the WC class....Tampa was close....the other 5 playoff teams out east were equivalent to WC wildcards like Nash or Minn.

And a shattered wrist certainly doesn't help with puck skills or shooting, his two weakest attributes.....
- EnzoD

Bollands back vs bickells knees vs krugers wrist.

What do all 3 have in common? Were all question marks prior to signing extensions.

I can't stand basketball. You seem to make a lot of references to it which I don't care for but I just skip the post rather than bring it up. There's a couple of guys here I won't even start to read because of stuff I've seen them post in the past. Just saying.
- 6628

Just posting something snarky on a slow day, Numbers - don't take me seriously.

I think with more time Gustafsson and Svedberg get better also. Rundblad will always be garbage and Rozy gave it all he had, but is just done. Johns may have been a better option than Gus/Rozy, but either way, I don't think having Johns necessarily means the Hawks advance.
- TheTrob

I agree that Gust and Sved will get better. Absolutely.

I don't think single-handedly Johns would have meant the Hawks advance, but he provides a different, more physical look--which the Hawks defense is lacking. I've seen him put some nice hits on Blues players, as well as clear his zone and handle the puck with confidence.

That's all I'm saying. He just seems like he's a bit a head of guys like Gust and Sved. Again, though, that's just my opinion, you know.

As far as the hatred for Daley goes by some on this board, I would have to loved to seen the posts after the Phoenix series when Shane Doan was beating Oduya into the glass every chance he had, and Oduya was coughing up pucks in prime chances leading t goals...which at the time I believe was why folks in New jersey and ATL/WPG referred to him as the pizza man.

yet the coaching staff and front office stayed with him and wouldn't you know it....he and Hammer became the 2nd, 1st pairing that no other NHL team could match.

So yes, again...I liked the deal of Daley at the time. Did he suck while he was here? Sure....no worse then oduya, but the intangible thing here is Daley wanted out and drove his own way. That part is the most concerning to me because I felt over time, like Oduya, Daley could have been a serviceable D man and helluva lot better option then what they had all year with those Swedish dogs they kept rotating in.

Oh well...woulda coulda shoulda, but I am upset about the numerous national articles I keep reading about the pens turnaround and D stability came together once Daley arrived. Cant' argue that, and they and tampa, and STL look to be the cup favorites. Maybe San Jose.....
- SteveRain

Screw the national articles. There is so much poor Hockey coverage out there you really need to take a lot of what you read and see with a grain of salt. ESPN, SI, USA Today, etc. are all absolutely horrible in their hockey coverage. Sure Daley made some difference in PIT, but the real change came when they switched coaches and Crosby, Kessel and a few others pulled their heads out of their rectums.

Savvy, your love for Leddy and your anti-Q bias are always readily apparent, but until you show me the case where someone that Q has supposedly run out of town goes elsewhere and lights up the league, its a little off-base. Please don't bring up the Leddy argument either. Regardless of how he was treated by Q, whether real or perceived, he was a cap casualty and nothing more.

As in the bolded above, the failure to advance this year out of the first round is as much on their shoulders (if not more) as it is Q's.
- TheTrob

Let's leave Nick out of the conversation. We can agree to disagree on why he's not here: in my world, run off by Q and not trusted and would never make it as top 4. Cap casualty? Sort of. He was still an RFA with $2.7M contract, team still had his rights and probably could have gotten him signed for less than his new agreement but again, none of us will ever know.

My point really is there are others who seem to be NHL caliber and are not given a shot. Those that are are typically put through Q's meat grinder (or in this year's parlance, given the Gus treatment where he comes in, does fairly well but then ends up getting yo-yo'd because of some mistakes while others are given a free pass).

In Johns' case, never even got a sniff. I've never said Q has run off NHL all-stars with his treatment. Most of the guys we are talking about here are simply "serviceable" NHL players.

Q is not always going to have the luxury of 88/19/2/7/4 bailing his ass out of his idiotic lineups or game strategies. And they didn't this year, they couldn't overcome making the overall lineup weaker for the 1st 5 games against the Blues. Those guys in their post-series pressers alluded to much of this. For anyone that's skated on a roster with a few stars, you know how much the rest of the lineup matters.

With the Toew/Kane contracts taking up $21M, we're going to be seeing even more how Q is able to patch together a band of over-the-hill players PLUS low paid, entry level guys and make them successful. All fingers will point to Stan. Some should point to Q.

Bollands back vs bickells knees vs krugers wrist.

What do all 3 have in common? Were all question marks prior to signing extensions.
- SteveRain

With no one in the organization to potentially replace their skill set at the time they were signed. Kind of takes away leverage/options.

I will say this...hawks stars just flat out got outplayed or better yet out produced. That's the main reason they are home. The PK getting torched, and the Hawks depth also contributed to that.

I will say Tampa without Stamkos and Stralman is impressive. Those triplets are a force. Hedman is becoming one of the best d men in the NHL.

However, top to bottom west was far more superior. Tampa wouldn't have lost in the 1st round to STL or LA or the Hawks or ANH.

Penguins and Washington were in the WC class....Tampa was close....the other 5 playoff teams out east were equivalent to WC wildcards like Nash or Minn.
- SteveRain

Even without Stamkos and Stralman beating the Red Wings was pretty much a gimme. I think either Philly or the Islanders were only marginally better than the Wings, so winning the series 4-1 was not a complete surprise.

I don't agree that Tampa would have beat any of those WC teams in the first round, especially without Stamkos and Stralman. Playing the Wings allowed TB to build some confidence and rythm in playing without them, playing one of the WC conference teams its a toss-up if they advance.

Screw the national articles. There is so much poor Hockey coverage out there you really need to take a lot of what you read and see with a grain of salt. ESPN, SI, USA Today, etc. are all absolutely horrible in their hockey coverage. Sure Daley made some difference in PIT, but the real change came when they switched coaches and Crosby, Kessel and a few others pulled their heads out of their rectums.
- TheTrob

The classic thing that "main stream" sports media does is try to build a narrative around a single player or something/everything...Someone has a good series or plays well and they start drawing comparisons to great players of the past.

Take Hedman from last year. Granted, guy played great, but I was so sick of hearing about him every night. It started to become absurd. Talking about him like he was Bobby Orr.

nothing funnier than saying a dude who has been in the league for a short amount of time is right up there with a guy who put in years of work.

I think they do this in the playoffs a lot to try and get non-hockey people interested.

Let's leave Nick out of the conversation. We can agree to disagree on why he's not here: in my world, run off by Q and not trusted and would never make it as top 4. Cap casualty? Sort of. He was still an RFA with $2.7M contract, team still had his rights and probably could have gotten him signed for less than his new agreement but again, none of us will ever know.

My point really is there are others who seem to be NHL caliber and are not given a shot. Those that are are typically put through Q's meat grinder (or in this year's parlance, given the Gus treatment where he comes in, does fairly well but then ends up getting yo-yo'd because of some mistakes while others are given a free pass).

In Johns' case, never even got a sniff. I've never said Q has run off NHL all-stars with his treatment. Most of the guys we are talking about here are simply "serviceable" NHL players.

Q is not always going to have the luxury of 88/19/2/7/4 bailing his ass out of his idiotic lineups or game strategies. And they didn't this year, they couldn't overcome making the overall lineup weaker for the 1st 5 games against the Blues. Those guys in their post-series pressers alluded to much of this. For anyone that's skated on a roster with a few stars, you know how much the rest of the lineup matters.

With the Toew/Kane contracts taking up $21M, we're going to be seeing even more how Q is able to patch together a band of over-the-hill players PLUS low paid, entry level guys and make them successful. All fingers will point to Stan. Some should point to Q.
- savvyone-1

You know one day I may just write a letter to Bolus and apologize because after watching the Hawks overpay that turd Bickell off of 1 good postseason run AND refusing to extend him earlier that year for less of a cap hit AND now extending Kruger for 3 million a year for a guy where if he scores you run to your bomb shelter as fire and brimstone is surely coming...........yet amazingly Bolland may have just have been the best out of this pack. I'm getting a soft space for Bolland...probably because I just curse every time I read somebody saying some team will take Bickell AND that Kruger will magically morph into a some decent depth scorer, just like so many lit candles waiting for Bolus to hit the 2C position.

I wish I had it on tape when Foley in early 2013 season vs Phoenix called out Bolus needing to produce in the 2c role...we know what happened....he didnt'. If I see him this summer I'm going to ask him to do the same with Kruger next year because why oh why they paid that kid that money..........


Hopefully Svedberg picks up basketball this offseason....and leaves the organization before Bowman extends him.

And as time has gone on, I am with you.....Star production 60%, Q line up screw ups 25%, PK/depth melt down 15% is where I am going with the hawks early exit.

http://nhl.nbcsports.com/...-league-goalie-johansson/

Lars Johansson, the SHL’s reigning Goalie of the Year, is reportedly close to signing on with the Chicago Blackhawks, per a pair of Swedish outlets (Expressen and Goteborgs-Posten.)

Johansson, 28, had terrific numbers for Frolunda this season, posting a .927 save percentage and 1.74 GAA during the regular season, and a .947 save percentage and 1.43 GAA in the playoffs.

Chicago would prove to be an interesting landing spot. Corey Crawford is locked in long-term, with a $6 million cap hit annually through 2020. His backup, Scott Darling, has one year left on a very affordable deal ($587,500) and posted solid-if-unspectacular numbers this year: 12-8-3, .915 save percentage, 2.58 GAA.

The ‘Hawks had a bit of a revolving door in goal with AHL Rockford this season, as four different ‘tenders — Mac Carruth, Michael Leighton, Mark Visentin and Drew MacIntyre — all got games. None of the four are currently under contract for next season. MacIntyre is out of the mix entirely, as he’s since signed in the German League. Leighton and Visentin are pending UFAs, while Carruth is a restricted free agent.

Johansson has spent his entire professional career in Sweden, having previously suited up for Mora and Vasteras.

Even without Stamkos and Stralman beating the Red Wings was pretty much a gimme. I think either Philly or the Islanders were only marginally better than the Wings, so winning the series 4-1 was not a complete surprise.

I don't agree that Tampa would have beat any of those WC teams in the first round, especially without Stamkos and Stralman. Playing the Wings allowed TB to build some confidence and rythm in playing without them, playing one of the WC conference teams its a toss-up if they advance.
- TheTrob

That was a typo....should have said WOULD HAVE lost....

Only Washington and Pittsburgh could have beaten those WC teams I listed.

Heard a rumour about a month ago (directly from the Panthers FO) that Uncle Dale hasn't been making the calls for a while. Behind the scenes, Tom Rowe has been in charge while Panthers owners pushed Dale out of the picture.

My "source" and I speculated that Dale will get "promoted" in the off-season where he'll see his golf game flourish.
- TyCamScore

Maybe Dale got pushed out of the picture after he gave Bolland that ridiculous contract. I wonder if Dale thinks with his heart rather than his head.

With no one in the organization to potentially replace their skill set at the time they were signed. Kind of takes away leverage/options.
- bhawks2241

Ahh.....

Bolland....coming off a huge year playing with Havlat and ladd was signed because Uncle Dale so badly wanted that Mikita comparison to hit.....I'll give you that one.

Bickell...they could have extended mid season, chose NOT to, and got bent over. Not did he dominate and paint them into a corner but Bowman had no viable options because he dealt away Brouwer, Jimmy Hayes, and the other kids weren't ready.

Kruger....again, dealt away Danault and the rest is history.

Just sad.

You know one day I may just write a letter to Bolus and apologize because after watching the Hawks overpay that turd Bickell off of 1 good postseason run AND refusing to extend him earlier that year for less of a cap hit AND now extending Kruger for 3 million a year for a guy where if he scores you run to your bomb shelter as fire and brimstone is surely coming...........yet amazingly Bolland may have just have been the best out of this pack. I'm getting a soft space for Bolland...probably because I just curse every time I read somebody saying some team will take Bickell AND that Kruger will magically morph into a some decent depth scorer, just like so many lit candles waiting for Bolus to hit the 2C position.

I wish I had it on tape when Foley in early 2013 season vs Phoenix called out Bolus needing to produce in the 2c role...we know what happened....he didnt'. If I see him this summer I'm going to ask him to do the same with Kruger next year because why oh why they paid that kid that money..........


Hopefully Svedberg picks up basketball this offseason....and leaves the organization before Bowman extends him.

And as time has gone on, I am with you.....Star production 60%, Q line up screw ups 25%, PK/depth melt down 15% is where I am going with the hawks early exit.
- SteveRain

Rain Man, I love your passionate posts!

In your honor, I am re-posting my ode to the Bolus man. Hope you enjoy!

“The Ballad of Davey Bolland” (by Savvyone)
(sung to the tune of “Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald”)

The legend lives on from the UC on down
Of the player they called "The Rat."
“The Rat”, it is told, is always playoff gold
When the season of hockey turns frightening.
With a aching old back and a melon made mush
You know that this rat is hurting.
With a groin that is pulled, how did this happen to you
In the season that saw Hawks win plenty.

“The Rat” was the pride of the Blackhawks side
Coming back from all of his inj’ries.
As this hockey player goes, he was more hurt than most
And his legend lived on for seasons.
Including this year when he played a new role
And was the new 2nd line center.
Well the Hawks soon found out his legend was for naught,
Fourteen points was all he could muster.

Could it be true, “The Rat” was only foolin’ you
With his playoff performances before then.
Now he was broke and couldn’t be fixed
Yet Q kept trottin’ him out there.
His fans couldn’t believe “The Rat” was but gone
When his injuries were not gonna’ be healing.
Like a ship good and true, it’s “The Rat” and Q
That will be thrown overboard at the end of this season.

The legend lives on from the UC on down
Of the player they called "The Rat."
“The Rat”, it is told, is always playoff gold
When the season of hockey turns bold.
With a aching old back and a melon made mush
You know that this rat is hurting.
Now a groin that is pulled, what more can happen to you
In the season that saw them come up empty.

TT+ Shaw's rights+Svedberg to Ottawa for Cody Ceci. Leading Canadian Dmen with over 20min/game in the Worlds so far.

Maybe Dale got pushed out of the picture after he gave Bolland that ridiculous contract. I wonder if Dale thinks with his heart rather than his head.
- Dieselhead

His biggest flaw...no question.

From what I heard his unwillingness to play the corporate game led to quick move to get McDonough's right hand man, Scotty Bowman's, son promoted.

To save face, the Hawks got his name on the cup.....

Yet show me the last dread after dread after dread piece constructed by the McDonough puppets in the media about cap hell like the parade in the spring of 2010? Funny how when the puppet master isn't feeding those guys talking points, Barry Rozner and his cronies going silent...and even when backing Foley he doesn't even whisper McDonoughs name who backed Bettman in Foley's time start rant.

All with his non lit cigar and the confines of his house, Barry marches on....what a sap. He's desperately trying to get into radio...if I were Hanley I'd be careful....

Let's leave Nick out of the conversation. We can agree to disagree on why he's not here: in my world, run off by Q and not trusted and would never make it as top 4. Cap casualty? Sort of. He was still an RFA with $2.7M contract, team still had his rights and probably could have gotten him signed for less than his new agreement but again, none of us will ever know.

My point really is there are others who seem to be NHL caliber and are not given a shot. Those that are are typically put through Q's meat grinder (or in this year's parlance, given the Gus treatment where he comes in, does fairly well but then ends up getting yo-yo'd because of some mistakes while others are given a free pass).

In Johns' case, never even got a sniff. I've never said Q has run off NHL all-stars with his treatment. Most of the guys we are talking about here are simply "serviceable" NHL players.

Q is not always going to have the luxury of 88/19/2/7/4 bailing his ass out of his idiotic lineups or game strategies. And they didn't this year, they couldn't overcome making the overall lineup weaker for the 1st 5 games against the Blues. Those guys in their post-series pressers alluded to much of this. For anyone that's skated on a roster with a few stars, you know how much the rest of the lineup matters.

With the Toew/Kane contracts taking up $21M, we're going to be seeing even more how Q is able to patch together a band of over-the-hill players PLUS low paid, entry level guys and make them successful. All fingers will point to Stan. Some should point to Q.
- savvyone-1

Yeah, we differ on our opinion of Leddy. I think he is in reality a 4D on a championship team, and thus at $5.5 mil making too much. He is NEVER going to be better than Hjalmarsson, and thus should never be paid more, and we know he wasn't going to sign for $4mil.

I think Q will be gone before 19/88/2/4/7/81. He is not going to be around for any type of "rebuild". I am not a Q apologist by any sense. There are plenty of things I question with his personnel decisions, style of play, PP, PK, etc. That being said however, none of us really know the reason behind some of the decisions. We don't see practices, we don't know what he is looking at in games, we don't know what he has asked of certain players. We can all speculate, but it is just that, speculation.

I fully agree that a lot of this will be on Stan and the scouting/development department to make this "model" work. Can a cup be won by a team with 5-7 highly paid superstars and the rest low paid veterans and prospects? Only time will tell. Maybe PIT does it this year.

That was a typo....should have said WOULD HAVE lost....

Only Washington and Pittsburgh could have beaten those WC teams I listed.
- SteveRain

Phew......thought maybe you were losing it.

Rain Man, I love your passionate posts!

In your honor, I am re-posting my ode to the Bolus man. Hope you enjoy!

“The Ballad of Davey Bolland” (by Savvyone)
(sung to the tune of “Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald”)

The legend lives on from the UC on down
Of the player they called "The Rat."
“The Rat”, it is told, is always playoff gold
When the season of hockey turns frightening.
With a aching old back and a melon made mush
You know that this rat is hurting.
With a groin that is pulled, how did this happen to you
In the season that saw Hawks win plenty.

“The Rat” was the pride of the Blackhawks side
Coming back from all of his inj’ries.
As this hockey player goes, he was more hurt than most
And his legend lived on for seasons.
Including this year when he played a new role
And was the new 2nd line center.
Well the Hawks soon found out his legend was for naught,
Fourteen points was all he could muster.

Could it be true, “The Rat” was only foolin’ you
With his playoff performances before then.
Now he was broke and couldn’t be fixed
Yet Q kept trottin’ him out there.
His fans couldn’t believe “The Rat” was but gone
When his injuries were not gonna’ be healing.
Like a ship good and true, it’s “The Rat” and Q
That will be thrown overboard at the end of this season.

The legend lives on from the UC on down
Of the player they called "The Rat."
“The Rat”, it is told, is always playoff gold
When the season of hockey turns bold.
With a aching old back and a melon made mush
You know that this rat is hurting.
Now a groin that is pulled, what more can happen to you
In the season that saw them come up empty.
- savvyone-1

Thanks. You as well....I don't always think of q's screw ups.

I will always remember sitting on a beach in gulf shores, which I am no red neck, but it was nice....and hearing others complain about how the Hawks could trade Bolland at the draft.....I just smiled and pounded my drinks in a secret celebration. If the damn jelly fish weren't all over I may have gone LT Dan style and backstroked forever..........

Phew......thought maybe you were losing it.
- TheTrob

Not yet....others may disagree....

East is a joke....really is....I've watched these games and the Hawks would have smoked most of these teams, and they weren't even at their best.

NBC is praying Pittsburgh makes it....and then I don't care who plays them I will pulling HARD for the WC. I HATE Crosby. What a whiny girl......loved seeing oVi smack him across the wrist last week.

His biggest flaw...no question.

From what I heard his unwillingness to play the corporate game led to quick move to get McDonough's right hand man, Scotty Bowman's, son promoted.

To save face, the Hawks got his name on the cup.....

Yet show me the last dread after dread after dread piece constructed by the McDonough puppets in the media about cap hell like the parade in the spring of 2010? Funny how when the puppet master isn't feeding those guys talking points, Barry Rozner and his cronies going silent...and even when backing Foley he doesn't even whisper McDonoughs name who backed Bettman in Foley's time start rant.

All with his non lit cigar and the confines of his house, Barry marches on....what a sap. He's desperately trying to get into radio...if I were Hanley I'd be careful....
- SteveRain

Yeah Dale has given out some questionable contracts, but I still contend that the blunder he takes the biggest blame for here with the Hawks wasn't even his fault. I believe it was Buf and a few others weren't qualified in time and it cost the Hawks some $'s to keep them, thus some cap hell, wasn't it Stanley that was in charge of contracts at the time? I know Tallon ultimately took the bullet for the blunder as the GM, but he easily could have thrown Stan under the bus.

Yeah, we differ on our opinion of Leddy. I think he is in reality a 4D on a championship team, and thus at $5.5 mil making too much. He is NEVER going to be better than Hjalmarsson, and thus should never be paid more, and we know he wasn't going to sign for $4mil.

I think Q will be gone before 19/88/2/4/7/81. He is not going to be around for any type of "rebuild". I am not a Q apologist by any sense. There are plenty of things I question with his personnel decisions, style of play, PP, PK, etc. That being said however, none of us really know the reason behind some of the decisions. We don't see practices, we don't know what he is looking at in games, we don't know what he has asked of certain players. We can all speculate, but it is just that, speculation.

I fully agree that a lot of this will be on Stan and the scouting/development department to make this "model" work. Can a cup be won by a team with 5-7 highly paid superstars and the rest low paid veterans and prospects? Only time will tell. Maybe PIT does it this year.
- TheTrob

After the lineup follies this year I wonder if the powers that be regret letting Mike Sullivan leave to go to the Penguins.

Yeah, we differ on our opinion of Leddy. I think he is in reality a 4D on a championship team, and thus at $5.5 mil making too much. He is NEVER going to be better than Hjalmarsson, and thus should never be paid more, and we know he wasn't going to sign for $4mil.

I think Q will be gone before 19/88/2/4/7/81. He is not going to be around for any type of "rebuild". I am not a Q apologist by any sense. There are plenty of things I question with his personnel decisions, style of play, PP, PK, etc. That being said however, none of us really know the reason behind some of the decisions. We don't see practices, we don't know what he is looking at in games, we don't know what he has asked of certain players. We can all speculate, but it is just that, speculation.

I fully agree that a lot of this will be on Stan and the scouting/development department to make this "model" work. Can a cup be won by a team with 5-7 highly paid superstars and the rest low paid veterans and prospects? Only time will tell. Maybe PIT does it this year.
- TheTrob

Trob, I don't know we differ all that much on that opinion. From a purely defensive side, I'd say Nick is a top 4 on a championship caliber team -- where he's ahead of that is his ability to push the play. And if he would have stayed, no way he gets that same level of contract (which is why it worked out for him well with NYI).

I have been to a # of Hawk practices, nothing unusual there. Those guys are all pushed to practice at top/game speed and Q isn't writing anything down. I suspect much of what happens/gets decided is via game film. PK strategy was a real mess once they went back to the collapsing box. PP has been an aggravation -- with the top talent, you'd expect it to be more successful and the inability to modify things in-game and in-series was and is frustrating.

Also agree that Q won't be here for a rebuild -- which could be as early as a year away. Rebuild in my mind isn't a complete overhaul but more as you state, a few top paid guys filled in around them with various pieces.

Personally pulling for Sullivan, he's done a great job so far, would like to see him get to SCF (plus, I really dislike the arrogant attitude Cooper exudes).