The question now is does Nill buyout both Lehtonen and Niemi to sign Bishop?
- walleyeb1

No, he somehow gets Stan to take one of them here

yeah...Nill is a genius


Wake me up when the Lord of No Rings team does something in the playoffs


Dallas is a joke

The question now is does Nill buyout both Lehtonen and Niemi to sign Bishop?
- walleyeb1

Does he already have a wink/wink, nod/nod thing with LV that they will take one of them?

He has to sign Bishop first


Waiting for the 4yr-28mil dollar deal

He has to sign Bishop first


Waiting for the 4yr-28mil dollar deal
- PatShart

When the Hawks beat the Bolts in the 15 Cup, Tampa was touted as the next big heavy weight. Wow have things changed. For both clubs.

When the Hawks beat the Bolts in the 15 Cup, Tampa was touted as the next big heavy weight. Wow have things changed. For both clubs.

- z1990z

I think Tampa is still in the mix for a few years. It was a wierd season for them, they played better than their record indicates, just like the hawks played worse than theirs.

Hedman is very good. Drouin is emerging (if he isnt traded instead of Johnson). Palat is rounding out his game. Kucherov is a wizard.

Hawks don't win the third cup without the top four of Keith/Seabrook/Oduya/Hjarll. No way they were fitting Leddy's salary demands with that group. Sorry
- PatShart

Perhaps, but just as that comment is speculation, I'd speculate that the Hawks get out of the 1st round the last two years if Leddy was still on the team. You simply cannot afford to give away an (objective) #2/#3 Dman for essentially NOTHING. You could argue that the lack of Quality Defenseman behind 2,4&7 was the biggest reason the Hawks lost to both Nashville and STL the last two years. Campbell, Oduya and TVR simply could not match the speed and skill of the Nashville forwards all series. Yes, scoring depth and physicality were also lacking, but no True #4D is still a bigger issue than lacking a Top 6 Wing, IMO. Kempny is a project and has physical skills you need, but his agility and edges need work as does his decision making. TWT if Kempny can be a #4, but right now he is a 3rd pair Dman as are TVR, Campbell and Oduya. Just my $0.02

Perhaps, but just as that comment is speculation, I'd speculate that the Hawks get out of the 1st round the last two years if Leddy was still on the team. You simply cannot afford to give away an (objective) #2/#3 Dman for essentially NOTHING. You could argue that the lack of Quality Defenseman behind 2,4&7 was the biggest reason the Hawks lost to both Nashville and STL the last two years. Campbell, Oduya and TVR simply could not match the speed and skill of the Nashville forwards all series. Yes, scoring depth and physicality were also lacking, but no True #4D is still a bigger issue than lacking a Top 6 Wing, IMO. Kempny is a project and has physical skills you need, but his agility and edges need work as does his decision making. TWT if Kempny can be a #4, but right now he is a 3rd pair Dman as are TVR, Campbell and Oduya. Just my $0.02
- EnzoD

I agree Leddy was a talented D, but..... Q did not like him. So byeeeeeeeeeeeee

Well, Stan is in a trap (of largely his own creation) and he may finally be at the point he needs to gnaw his leg off to save himself:

Not that I want to trade him, but Kane to Buffalo with Eichel or Ristolainen as centerpieces might be feasible. Personally, I'd prefer Ristolainen as he's only 22 and is locked up for 5 years at a 5.4M hit while Eichel only has 1 year on his ELC at 3.775. He'd be an expensive RFA though and doesn't seem likely to go for a bridge deal. Kane would probably waive to go back home to Buffalo tho, and that's one of the big moving parts.

Toews to the Peg for Trouba +? Same deal, maybe he'd waive to go back home. Based on the last couple of seasons, Hawks would be selling low on Toews and high on Kane. Regardless, 19, 7 and 88's contracts add up to almost 40% of the cap and 7 isn't going anywhere- 2 years of a declining Sharp cost the Hawks their best D prospect with $$ coming back and only 1yr./4M of Bickell cost TT. Imagine what 48M of Seabrook would "get" you. Ugh. Vegas will take a hard pass on Kruger I'd wager- 3M for a 5 goal sub 20 point role player will be easy to resist, unless they struggle to get to the cap floor. The rest of the salaries produce commensurate or better than their hits, so unless someone needs to go for other reasons, it's cap musical chairs to replace them. JMO

Perhaps, but just as that comment is speculation, I'd speculate that the Hawks get out of the 1st round the last two years if Leddy was still on the team. You simply cannot afford to give away an (objective) #2/#3 Dman for essentially NOTHING. You could argue that the lack of Quality Defenseman behind 2,4&7 was the biggest reason the Hawks lost to both Nashville and STL the last two years. Campbell, Oduya and TVR simply could not match the speed and skill of the Nashville forwards all series. Yes, scoring depth and physicality were also lacking, but no True #4D is still a bigger issue than lacking a Top 6 Wing, IMO. Kempny is a project and has physical skills you need, but his agility and edges need work as does his decision making. TWT if Kempny can be a #4, but right now he is a 3rd pair Dman as are TVR, Campbell and Oduya. Just my $0.02
- EnzoD

Losing Byfuglien hurt more than Leddy. And a younger Ladd. And Bickell succumbing to MS his time here and not knowing/it eating up 4mil not being able to LTIR him.


I know the fact is they won a cup after dumping The Great Nick Leddy amd as a betting man, they'll make one more run at a Cup before Leddy's isles do with him as a top 2 pairing defenceman. If he was a number 4 on a team, fine. While he may be better than a 35yr old Seabrook, his prime won't touch Brent's, who was a cornerstone to 3 Cups while he Leddy's not done that for a team

Losing Byfuglien hurt more than Leddy. And a younger Ladd. And Bickell succumbing to MS his time here and not knowing/it eating up 4mil not being able to LTIR him.


I know the fact is they won a cup after dumping The Great Nick Leddy amd as a betting man, they'll make one more run at a Cup before Leddy's isles do with him as a top 2 pairing defenceman. If he was a number 4 on a team, fine. While he may be better than a 35yr old Seabrook, his prime won't touch Brent's, who was a cornerstone to 3 Cups while he Leddy's not done that for a team
- PatShart

My point is that Bowman got jack poop for Leddy, Buff, Sharp and the list goes on. The annual bleeding of talent has clearly caught up to this team. Hockey is a team sport and Leddy is an impact player and just now entering his prime. Seabrook at 25 vs Leddy at 25 is irrelevant and impossible to truly compare. However, Leddy and Stephen Johns would've been an upgrade over the D Core Q had the last two years. Hawks had a stacked roster all 3 times they won, and the big name players either forgot this fact or didn't give a frank when requesting Top $$. The "Toews needs a legit Top 6 Wing to produce" is nauseating. We both agree that Kane carried bottom 6 forwards on Line 2 for most of his career while Toews had All-Stars and HOFer Hossa on his line for the entirety of his. 19, 88, and 7 wanted to get the big $$, and Here we are...stuck between a rock and the hard salary cap. IDK what Bowman will do, but I'm nkt expecting major changes, even though a substantial Salary Structure shakeup is necessary.

Perhaps, but just as that comment is speculation, I'd speculate that the Hawks get out of the 1st round the last two years if Leddy was still on the team. You simply cannot afford to give away an (objective) #2/#3 Dman for essentially NOTHING. You could argue that the lack of Quality Defenseman behind 2,4&7 was the biggest reason the Hawks lost to both Nashville and STL the last two years. Campbell, Oduya and TVR simply could not match the speed and skill of the Nashville forwards all series. Yes, scoring depth and physicality were also lacking, but no True #4D is still a bigger issue than lacking a Top 6 Wing, IMO. Kempny is a project and has physical skills you need, but his agility and edges need work as does his decision making. TWT if Kempny can be a #4, but right now he is a 3rd pair Dman as are TVR, Campbell and Oduya. Just my $0.02
- EnzoD

It's also "speculation" that more was offered for Leddy, Sharp or whoever in a trade that Stan turned down. But that doesn't stop some from continuing to harp on it after they dumped him and went on to win another championship

yeah...Nill is a genius


Wake me up when the Lord of No Rings team does something in the playoffs


Dallas is a joke
- PatShart

For a little comic relief, back when the Hawks drafted Vorobiev and Yakubov back to back??? Ott and Justin Williams were drafted later in that first round.



- z1990z

It's always good to remember just how brutally bad things were here for a long time before the current golden era ....

It's also "speculation" that more was offered for Leddy, Sharp or whoever in a trade that Stan turned down. But that doesn't stop some from continuing to harp on it after they dumped him and went on to win another championship
- PatShart

It's not just Leddy. All I know is that Leddy is at least equal to and possibly a better defenseman than Larson, and Shero got Taylor Hall in return. And bc Bowman only provided 4 NHL Dmen for the 2015 playoff run, that grind probably aged 2,4&7 by 3 years. Keith has never been the same since that run, and looking forward, who in the system can play those big minutes the next 5-10 years? Bowman has made plenty of mistakes to get this team to where it stands today.

It's not just Leddy. All I know is that Leddy is at least equal to and possibly a better defenseman than Larson, and Shero got Taylor Hall in return. And bc Bowman only provided 4 NHL Dmen for the 2015 playoff run, that grind probably aged 2,4&7 by 3 years. Keith has never been the same since that run, and looking forward, who in the system can play those big minutes the next 5-10 years? Bowman has made plenty of mistakes to get this team to where it stands today.
- EnzoD

What most love about this board - thoughtful discussion!

Great Write-up JJ

Sorry to Hijack the post, but does anyone have a way to watch USHL games for free? HockeyTV only sells month packages now for 30 dollars and this is Game 5 of the playoffs to go to the Clark Cup (My cousin is on Sioux City).

I'm a recent college grad and I would rather not pay 30 dollars to watch one game if I do not need to.

Thanks in advance, keep the posts coming!

It's not just Leddy. All I know is that Leddy is at least equal to and possibly a better defenseman than Larson, and Shero got Taylor Hall in return. And bc Bowman only provided 4 NHL Dmen for the 2015 playoff run, that grind probably aged 2,4&7 by 3 years. Keith has never been the same since that run, and looking forward, who in the system can play those big minutes the next 5-10 years? Bowman has made plenty of mistakes to get this team to where it stands today.
- EnzoD

Now Stan can right this wrong and get Leddy back, for Panarin.

Maybe Stan can find a way to unload Crawford and bring back Niemi. The quality of goaltending remains the same and the Hawks save $1.5 million in cap space.

Now Stan can right this wrong and get Leddy back, for Panarin.
- DarthKane

Toss in Anders Lee and I'd take that trade in a second.

I think Tampa is still in the mix for a few years. It was a wierd season for them, they played better than their record indicates, just like the hawks played worse than theirs.

Hedman is very good. Drouin is emerging (if he isnt traded instead of Johnson). Palat is rounding out his game. Kucherov is a wizard.
- kinigitt

Did someone say Hossa-lite?

So Dallas, with two $5m goalies on their roster for 2017/18, adds a 3rd. Have fun with that. Niemi to Hawks for a bag of pucks and 50% retained.

Hawks need a 2C who can win faceoffs. Especially if Kruger is unloaded, the team needs another center. Maybe two.

Top-mid 6 Centers,
And a goalie look like the needs right now.

I still think a lot more onus is on the players and coaches for the lack of compete they showed in the playoffs. You don't win the western conference and then get beat by an 8th seed so badly you get swept in 4 games (and score none at home). The team Stan put on the ice and gave the coaches isn't perfect, but it isn't that bad either. That is why some people have been getting fired. Stan admitted his needs to be better, but the coaches didn't do so great on a whole.


The coaches need to get the most out of their teams and that didn't happen. The teams that are still playing right now are getting more out of their players not less.

Stan made some mistakes and this team has to get younger. The playoffs was a failure from the players out.

I still think a lot more onus is on the players and coaches for the lack of compete they showed in the playoffs. You don't win the western conference and then get beat by an 8th seed so badly you get swept in 4 games (and score none at home). The team Stan put on the ice and gave the coaches isn't perfect, but it isn't that bad either. That is why some people have been getting fired. Stan admitted his needs to be better, but the coaches didn't do so great on a whole.


The coaches need to get the most out of their teams and that didn't happen. The teams that are still playing right now are getting more out of their players not less.

Stan made some mistakes and this team has to get younger. The playoffs was a failure from the players out.
- breadbag

No doubt and one way to encourage behavior is to send one person packing. Many players were rightfully rewarded when times were good, an inverse action is now required.