And with that the Caps bury the Leafs.
- RedRevenge

Whats going to eventually do in the Caps, no net front presence, talented team but guys not creating screens

Even if the Preds fall on their face against the Blues they will have at least tied for their best season ever. Throw in a historic wonderful victory over a team that beat them twice in the playoffs previously there really is no losing this year. Just going to enjoy whatever happens, all is good.
- predsfan97

so the big mustard beating the hawks is your "cup"...if the players are thinking like you it will be over in about 10 days...

Leafs have almost nothing at defense. It's amazing they did so well. Reilly is great. Hunwick and Gardiner are ok (although Gardiner can be a trainwreck at times), but they don't have the talent at D to do anything yet. They need 2 capable D-men, probably someone who can play on their 1st and 2nd pair.

Future of the NHL is Edmonton, Toronto and Pittsburgh

Not sure how the Hawks figure out how to compete with the size , youth and speed of this league going forward.

Future of the NHL is Edmonton, Toronto and Pittsburgh

Not sure how the Hawks figure out how to compete with the size , youth and speed of this league going forward.
- Colbyboy

I think Winnipeg is a team to watch. They are LOAD-ED with young players (as well as high end prospects who are almost ready) on the cusp...

Coyotes are another team that has to stumble into it at some point.

Well I'm sure you predicted the Hawks in 5 or plotted out ways for the Hawks to comeback down 3-0.

You have to figure the Jets are going to get real good, real quick with all those stud young players. The Stars with Hitchcock are a goalie away from being good again (?Bishop). Blues, Preds, Wild should stay competitive.

Hocks are in salary cap jail, are going to lose Darling who I think was an unsung hero on your team, the core of the team is aging quickly , and you have a GM whose answer to fix problems is to find old former Hawks who want to come back cheaper. Not too much of a stretch, especially with an injury to Kane or Keith for you to have to fight to make the playoffs
- predsfan97

The hand full of Preds fans here seem to have a premature sense of hubris. Reminds me of the Blues trolls last year. Is that a byproduct of long-term meth use or cousins marrying each other or something?

Pekka Rinne is 34 years old. Pk Subban and RJ are 1-2 years younger than Toews and Kane. Poille is on a budget. Ryan Johannsen is an RFA this year and would probably rather be back home in VC next season if not a few years down the road. If you win a cup it will be fluke.... and you will wish you could enter cap hell... which you never will.

Your franchise's occasional visits to the cap ceiling are sort of like getting past the first round. Tourism.

Great post Matt Ahrens. Agreed on pretty much everything. Also, Toronto and Edmonton have a need for what we have, veteran defensemen with winning pedigree.

Stan will be eager to make "hockey trades" this off season as opposed to salary dumps to keep the band together.

I've heard on good authority that John McDonough's anger at how the Hawks performed against the Preds was tempered when he learned that his "One Goal" entry in the team's office pool to predict the average points per game the team scored in the playoffs was the winning entry.

I think Winnipeg is a team to watch. They are LOAD-ED with young players (as well as high end prospects who are almost ready) on the cusp...

Coyotes are another team that has to stumble into it at some point.
- kwolf68

100 percent agree on the Jets.

They are scary talented. Plenty of speed, size, physicality, and scoring ability.

And they've got a good amount of cap space to work with as well. If they can figure out which of their young guys is the future in net, and add a top-4 d-man, I think they are a playoff team next season.

Even if the Preds fall on their face against the Blues they will have at least tied for their best season ever. Throw in a historic wonderful victory over a team that beat them twice in the playoffs previously there really is no losing this year. Just going to enjoy whatever happens, all is good.
- predsfan97

Wow. I guess that would be called a low bar (not the prison cell kind either).

To get closer to the actual experience (the one we have had 3 times here since 2010) maybe you can write "Stanley" on one of those 2-liter bottles you cook up meth in and charge the Preds faithful to see it. Just make sure the jumbotron explains what it is. The same way you "hockey fans" in "smashville" had to have icing and penalties explained...

Future of the NHL is Edmonton, Toronto and Pittsburgh

Not sure how the Hawks figure out how to compete with the size , youth and speed of this league going forward.
- Colbyboy

Pittsburgh looks like they are the team to beat this season for sure, but I am not envious of their cap situation, which is arguably worse than ours.

This off-season, they'll have to re-sign Schultz, Sheary, and Bonino. Only Letang, Maata, and Cole are under contract for d-men as well. Daley, Dumoulin, Gaunce, Rudwehedel, Streit, and Hainsey are all FA's (though I don't expect the last two to be back anyways).

I think Pitt will be needing to clear out some salary as well this off-season.

Just watched the sports on WGN. Announcer says it looks like Darling is going to have to move on. Then Darling was interviewed and said he loved the last 3 years. Looked and sounded very emotional like they had just told him they weren't going to sign him. If so, I hope he winds up with a team on the come and does well. I'll be a fan of whatever team he winds up on.

Leafs have almost nothing at defense. It's amazing they did so well. Reilly is great. Hunwick and Gardiner are ok (although Gardiner can be a trainwreck at times), but they don't have the talent at D to do anything yet. They need 2 capable D-men, probably someone who can play on their 1st and 2nd pair.
- kwolf68

Brent Seabrook perhaps?

Brent Seabrook perhaps?
- matt_ahrens

Would be a great fit although Leafs have nothing much in their minors that really excites me as most of their good young players are already on the Leafs. Not sure what you could get for Seabrook given his salary, but it wouldn't be more than a couple prospects.

I think Winnipeg is a team to watch. They are LOAD-ED with young players (as well as high end prospects who are almost ready) on the cusp...

Coyotes are another team that has to stumble into it at some point.
- kwolf68

Same problem as the Leafs - behind the blueline that group of 7 guys isn't good enough to win big.

Morrissey had a very good season, Trouba is very good but probably wants out, Meyers basically missed the season, Enstrom is small and nearing the end of the line and Buff plays Hudson Bay rules back there.

Coach Maurice - they can do better than him but don't want to pay top dollar for a very good one.

I'm really curious which direction the Blackhawks go this off season. I should say that I don't dislike anyone on the season ending roster, I enjoy cheering for all of them.

If recent history tells me anything, they'll do less than I want them to do. That's been true of the past two off seasons and trade deadlines. Teams need some turnover throughout the roster each year just to keep the guys hungry. This team looked complacent in the playoffs, that's a problem.

It seems most likely that 19 and 88 are staying. 81 & 2 as well because of the recapture penalties. I hope they keep Crawford. Like JJ said in this blog, he's one of a few that showed up in the playoffs this year (81 was another.)

That leaves 15, 72, 16, 7, and 4 as the remaining core. I think at least two of them needs to be moved, including one of the two defensemen. I wouldn't mind if they were all replaced, honestly. Those 5 guys have a $24.6m combined cap hit next year. With the top two salaries on the roster eating $21m of cap space, that $24.6m needs to spread across 7 or 8 productive players. The one I'd most like to keep is Hammer, because I think produces the most value versus his contract.

I'd try to get one or two guys who have some term at a reasonable rate. I'd also be open to rentals like JVR or Bozak. Definitely need to get stronger down the middle.

Keep some but not all of the younger guys: Schmalz, Hartman, Motte, Hino, Forsling, etc. but no need to keep them all. To make some hockey trades that bring back talent when what you are offering are generally over paid players, you need to add value some place.

Bring back Panik and Kempny. They are both only 26 and still getting better; hopefully sign them on the cheap.
- matt_ahrens

I'm not sure recent history should be the metric here. In a sense, a series loss like this may be a blessing in disguise. Rather see management be serious about a retool than allow the slow creep of decay like Detroit had due to misplaced belief they could contend.

NTC's and NMC's can be waived folks. After the collective noshow by this group in round 1 Stan may have some leverage to get some players to waive... some may even want to.

The one trade I will never understand is Danault. He was cost controlled center depth and a quality PKer. That one just stings and something tells me it was a gift to Bergevin (who scouted Danault). I also see a number of other ex Hawk management (Chevy) who got similar gifts since 2010. Maybe favors like that get returned at some point? If Maciver gets the Buffalo job you may have another possible partner on a key trade.

Chemistry/cap trade? Julien may have a problem with Pacioretty. Bergevin is under fire. I could see names like Panarin, Hammer, Pacioretty, Galchenyuk and Beaulieu being discussed. Maybe more. And teams like the Sabres, Flames and Jets needs the right kind of veteran leadership and don't necessarily need more prospects or picks. Potential trade partners are there this year.

Wow. I guess that would be called a low bar (not the prison cell kind either).

To get closer to the actual experience (the one we have had 3 times here since 2010) maybe you can write "Stanley" on one of those 2-liter bottles you cook up meth in and charge the Preds faithful to see it. Just make sure the jumbotron explains what it is. The same you "hockey fans" in "smashville" had to have icing and penalties explained...
- tredbrta

I hope it feels good unloading like that. Maybe you could bring up some of these issues with your Therapist next week.

Same problem as the Leafs - behind the blueline that group of 7 guys isn't good enough to win big.

Morrissey had a very good season, Trouba is very good but probably wants out, Meyers basically missed the season, Enstrom is small and nearing the end of the line and Buff plays Hudson Bay rules back there.

Coach Maurice - they can do better than him but don't want to pay top dollar for a very good one.
- RickJ

With their talent at forward in the Peg and on the farm they could get those D-men they need. Moving Trouba would be huge, but you'd have to figure he'd bring in multiple top prospects, including D. However, with a D prospect you're still "breaking in" guys which restricts your overall potential. However, if I were Winnipeg I'd make that guy happy, add another D-man and they could easily compete for the playoffs. Chevy has done a fine job building a nice pipeline there, NOW they gotta exploit it and not just add to it by trading legit NHL players. Trouba and Morissey are potential stars. Strange team there....

Same problem as the Leafs - behind the blueline that group of 7 guys isn't good enough to win big.

Morrissey had a very good season, Trouba is very good but probably wants out, Meyers basically missed the season, Enstrom is small and nearing the end of the line and Buff plays Hudson Bay rules back there.

Coach Maurice - they can do better than him but don't want to pay top dollar for a very good one.
- RickJ

And Chevy is another GM seriously handcuffed by an internal budget.

One silver lining for the Hawks. Not only can they cap spend but they can afford to bury salary. Not many teams have that luxury. There are also a number of players who have cap hits exceeding their actual salary on this roster in coming years. Makes them more attractive to cap floor players.

With their talent at forward in the Peg and on the farm they could get those D-men they need. Moving Trouba would be huge, but you'd have to figure he'd bring in multiple top prospects, including D. However, with a D prospect you're still "breaking in" guys which restricts your overall potential. However, if I were Winnipeg I'd make that guy happy, add another D-man and they could easily compete for the playoffs. Chevy has done a fine job building a nice pipeline there, NOW they gotta exploit it and not just add to it by trading legit NHL players. Trouba and Morissey are potential stars. Strange team there....
- kwolf68

If I was a Winnipeg season ticket holder I wouldn't be happy just competing for a playoff spot. They have all sorts of talent up front but their goaltending is very weak and depth on defence needs to be addressed. And the worst thing about them is being very undisciplined - way too many penalties and Maurice can't or won't fix it.

Aside from that they have speed, size and some nasty guys willing to play very physically. They are at least the equal of Calgary and are definitely better than LA. Should be in the playoffs next season.

I hope it feels good unloading like that. Maybe you could bring up some of these issues with your Therapist next week.
- predsfan97

Therapy? Like beating up a car outside of a stadium due to collective frustration? Or trolling here after your franchise's first round victory - which is apparently what you equate with a Stanley Cup?

Go back to McCann's thread and mind meld with the other Preds fan. Discuss the over and under on the number of "stars" on your current roster will pull a Ryan Suter....

Just watched the sports on WGN. Announcer says it looks like Darling is going to have to move on. Then Darling was interviewed and said he loved the last 3 years. Looked and sounded very emotional like they had just told him they weren't going to sign him. If so, I hope he winds up with a team on the come and does well. I'll be a fan of whatever team he winds up on.
- 6628

hmmm...

1. craw staying and hawks look for another cheap #2
2. craw moving and the hawks look for another #1 outside the org via trade
3. craw moving and hawks look to UFA: doesn't seem to be a fit there

also hawks have 3 UFA goalies: darling, johansson and carruth

I'm not sure recent history should be the metric here. In a sense, a series loss like this may be a blessing in disguise. Rather see management be serious about a retool than allow the slow creep of decay like Detroit had due to misplaced belief they could contend.

NTC's and NMC's can be waived folks. After the collective noshow by this group in round 1 Stan may have some leverage to get some players to waive... some may even want to.

The one trade I will never understand is Danault. He was cost controlled center depth and a quality PKer. That one just stings and something tells me it was a gift to Bergevin (who scouted Danault). I also see a number of other ex Hawk management (Chevy) who got similar gifts since 2010. Maybe favors like that get returned at some point? If Maciver gets the Buffalo job you may have another possible partner on a key trade.

Chemistry/cap trade? Julien may have a problem with Pacioretty. Bergevin is under fire. I could see names like Panarin, Hammer, Pacioretty, Galchenyuk and Beaulieu being discussed. Maybe more. And teams like the Sabres, Flames and Jets needs the right kind of veteran leadership and don't necessarily need more prospects or picks. Potential trade partners are there this year.
- tredbrta

they invested 4 years to prepare that kid and then ship him for two rent-a-bums like weiss and fleischman...

some say it was him or kruger and they chose krugs for 3 mildo per...now he looks like a goner...

go figure...

they invested 4 years to prepare that kid and then ship him for two rent-a-bums like weiss and fleischman...

some say it was him or kruger and they chose krugs for 3 mildo per...now he looks like a goner...

go figure...
- bogiedoc

I didn't mind that trade at the time because I wanted the Hawks to go for another Cup but what they really needed was another defenseman.

In hindsight, it looks worse every day. Some say he isn't a bottom six defensive minded C but that just would make him a cheaper 2LC than AA.

the pre-lockout feel has returned...tons of clutching and grabbing, interference, blatant trips and crosschecks, almost never called. None of it favors any team, but it makes for boring hockey. Lets open the ice up by calling penalties.
- kwolf68

Probably won't happen until after the next lockout. The brain dead morons in the NHL office love this style of play - they are not about to change what they like. SMH!!!!