I remember this one game where Hossa was out killing a 5 on 3 and he was all over the ice. Practically killed it on his own, keeping the puck away from whoever the Hawks were palying that night.

You definitely don't just replace him but thankfully RW's a position the Hawks seem to have a bit of a suprlus, though I'd still rather he play this season.

I'm not all that worried about Kane's LW. I think you'll see some different guys there at times courtesy of Q: Sharp, Schmalztz, Saad, Hartman.

The D on the otherhand is still a question mark and deepnding on how they look once the season starts, is where I could see potentially using Hossa's LTIR $$$.
- HawkintheD

If it's the same one I remember, he also cleanly won a draw in the d-zone toward the end of it that basically shut it down. Just a great hockey player and leader in all phases.

The best recap I've seen of camp and player comments: http://puckinhostile.blog...-blackhawks-prospect.html
- Mr Ricochet

Gate is my boy. And he knows it.

No, but he has an opinion and seemingly without an agenda. I like what I read for the most part.... Now I've never seen DeBrincat live but agree with his evaluation and posted as much after watching his CHL Prospects Game on You Tube. Posted a couple weeks ago if I were forced to bet a dollar today I'd say he wouldn't have a significant NHL career. But really waaaaaay too early to say one way or another on a 19yr old kid. But as a rule a smallish player needs to be quicker than anyone else on the ice as he points out.

Then he posts that Dennis Gilbert is not the greatest skater. I've seen the kid for a season in the USHL, was drafted after that season, and I had him as a +skater. So unless he put on so much size that his skating hasn't caught up to that the author and I have different views on what a solid or + skater is.

Agree on one disagree on another. I will say he likes to throw out technical terms about goalies and I like that he values a quiet body. Love to see his analysis on Crawford and his over sliding, tendencies to scramble, lunge, stab and be off balance. But nice to read he really likes Delia but he's not Hawk property. Same for the big goalie Peters who is Hawk property and only a 7th rounder was used.

Watched Matheson Iacopelli, who the writer liked, the whole year he set the USHL record for goals scored in a season with 41 and 65 points. Gets drafted by the Hawks after that year, doesn't have the grades to get into Western Michigan, forced back to the USHL and stinks the joint up with 37 points in 56 games and a -16. Stinks his first yr at WM and then has a solid 36 points in 40 games.

This kid is a big body with soft hands around the net and very good along the walls. Takes those kinds awhile but nice to have his kind in the pipeline.

Beau Starrett. Kid was drafted by the USHL Dubuque Fighting Saints. Breeds NHL draft picks (Gaudreau, Matheson, Girgensons all on the same team went in the 1st round of the same draft IIRC.), sends it's coaches to the NCAA where they win National Championships, Montgomery at Denver. Kid decides he's staying close to home to play in a league 4 rungs lower, USPHL, than to play with the big boys in the USHL and for the Saints. Red flag to me until he shows me otherwise.
- Mr Ricochet

He has no agenda. I talk to him 4-5 times a week about all things Hawks. He has a healthy dose of realism and a pretty good eye for what to look for in prospects, IMO.

Absolutely, he is. But he also signed that contract when he hadn't proved all that much and was 22-23.

Keith, Hjalmarsson, and Seabrook's second contracts were awesome as well. I'm not trying to argue here (and I didn't take your comment as such), but we need to look at the whole picture when we compare what our FO has done and other teams' situations.
- Chunk

Yes, exactly.

People saying Arvidsson is looking out for the future of his team are a little misguided imo - kid has one good season under his belt, so he didn't have much leverage going into arbitration to ask for any more than he did. If you look at his salary comparables when it comes to production/age/time in NHL, $4m was about where he should sign at this point in his career. It'll be a steal in the later years of his prime if he keeps performing as he did in a single season sample, but he didn't leave money on the table currently.

Josi is a freaking steal of the century.
- kwolf68

Josi > Subban

And yes, I'll admit that it is only my opinion

Josi > Subban

And yes, I'll admit that it is only my opinion
- 93Joe

I concur with your opinion.

Yes, exactly.

People saying Arvidsson is looking out for the future of his team are a little misguided imo - kid has one good season under his belt, so he didn't have much leverage going into arbitration to ask for much more than he did. If you look at his salary comparables when it comes to production/age, $4m was about where he should sign at this point in his career. It'll be a steal in the later years of his prime if he keeps performing as he did in a single season sample, but he didn't leave money on the table currently.
- L_B_R

Spot on, the only potential steal was the term, seven years is a bit surprising, who got the steal is yet to be determined.

Josi > Subban

And yes, I'll admit that it is only my opinion
- 93Joe

Josi is their best blueliner and it's not even close.

Comparing this to Kane/Toews seems to be a popular talking point on the Twitterverse past few hours

Аrpon Basu‏
@ArponBasu

The Predators have Victor Arvidsson, Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, Mattias Ekholm and Ryan Ellis at a combined $20.5 million cap hit.
- pdx2ord

If the Preds win a cup or two in the next few years, what are these players going to get in their next deals? Yeah, 21.0 Million for 19 and 88 is tough to swallow, but, winning is expensive.

If the Preds win a cup or two in the next few years, what are these players going to get in their next deals? Yeah, 21.0 Million for 19 and 88 is tough to swallow, but, winning is expensive.
- Tanuki

Toews and Kane are top talents at the time of their current deals. Not a fair comparison. We can compare their $6.3M AAV deals in Dec 2009 to be closer in comparison. No titles yet and coming off their ELCs. Those were 5 year terms.

Not sure if I want to compare any of these young Preds to 19/88 yet.

How about Sharp and Seabs to Aarvidsson and Josi. At similar ages, Sharp and Seabs signed 4 and 3 yr deals respectively in 2008 for $3.9M and 3.5M AAVs. Yes the term is shorter, but the cap was a lot lower as well and like the young Preds, 10 and 7 had yet to win anything as of the winter 2008.

In Jan/Feb 2008 did we expect 10/7 to be as good as they were 2009-2015?

EDIT: Gotta adjust for cap increases over the years.

With each passing year it becomes more and more obvious, no matter how painful it is for diehard optimists to admit, that the Kane and Toews contracts are absolutely horrendous, and will continue to cripple our team's depth/chances at creating a Cup contending roster.

No way around it, no debating it, they are both overpaid. Toews is MASSIVELY overpaid, and our GM made a BIG TIME mistake handing out those deals. "But he thought the Cap was going to be higher" isn't a good enough excuse. You can't just assume those things and hand out money like that without KNOWING for a fact first. Very stupid mistake on his part.

With each passing year it becomes more and more obvious, no matter how painful it is for diehard optimists to admit, that the Kane and Toews contracts are absolutely horrendous, and will continue to cripple our team's depth/chances at creating a Cup contending roster.

No way around it, no debating it, they are both overpaid. Toews is MASSIVELY overpaid, and our GM made a BIG TIME mistake handing out those deals. "But he thought the Cap was going to be higher" isn't a good enough excuse. You can't just assume those things and hand out money like that without KNOWING for a fact first. Very stupid mistake on his part.
- SimpleJack

We get it - can't change it

Ok now that all " fan boy pennant waving" bull crap is over...... We gettin Matt Duchene or Evander Kane or What? Still need another top 6 guy , not buyin the stock report from kiddie land yet! Gotta think 1or the other will find their way to Chicago way before camp starts now that Bimboland week end is over and the Hawks made a killing money wise. Let's get down to some serious hockey trade talk now boys!

Ok now that all " fan boy pennant waving" bull crap is over...... We gettin Matt Duchene or Evander Kane or What? Still need another top 6 guy , not buyin the stock report from kiddie land yet! Gotta think 1or the other will find their way to Chicago way before camp starts now that Bimboland week end is over and the Hawks made a killing money wise. Let's get down to some serious hockey trade talk now boys!
- wonthecup10

Kiddie Land. I remember that place. Now Bimboland week is another story.

What a beautiful night for a game at the grand, old North side ball yard.

With each passing year it becomes more and more obvious, no matter how painful it is for diehard optimists to admit, that the Kane and Toews contracts are absolutely horrendous, and will continue to cripple our team's depth/chances at creating a Cup contending roster.

No way around it, no debating it, they are both overpaid. Toews is MASSIVELY overpaid, and our GM made a BIG TIME mistake handing out those deals. "But he thought the Cap was going to be higher" isn't a good enough excuse. You can't just assume those things and hand out money like that without KNOWING for a fact first. Very stupid mistake on his part.
- SimpleJack

The contracts are less of burden each year as the cap grows and other players get paid as much or more. Hopefully 19 has a bounce back year and Kane keeps improving too; because if they are earning their cap hit, this is a good team.

BUT, it is still a problem because of the ripple effect all the way down the roster. Another way of gauging the impact is to see the number of players who consume 80% of the cap. For the Blackhawks, it's 10 (including Hossa.) For the Penguins it is 13, Capitols 11, Stars 12, Lightening 13. But the Predators it is over 20! Yes, that will change when Johansen is signed but even then it'll be in the high teens.

Yes, winning a cup gets expensive, I get that players get paid when they win. But to stay competitive, the talent, skill, and experience needs to be spread throughout the roster. For a team like the Blackhawks with two guys making $21m on the top of the cap, they need to get better value for money from everyone else, which is why Hammer and Saad were traded; not so much for this season but from three seasons from now when the hope is that they'll both be a better value than the guys that were traded for them. It's also why I wouldn't be surprised to see Seabrook or AA traded in the next year or two, for players who will be a better value for money now or in the future, especially starting the 2019-20 season.

Ok now that all " fan boy pennant waving" bull crap is over...... We gettin Matt Duchene or Evander Kane or What? Still need another top 6 guy , not buyin the stock report from kiddie land yet! Gotta think 1or the other will find their way to Chicago way before camp starts now that Bimboland week end is over and the Hawks made a killing money wise. Let's get down to some serious hockey trade talk now boys!
- wonthecup10

Or on day two of the season.

Kiddie Land. I remember that place. Now Bimboland week is another story.

What a beautiful night for a game at the grand, old North side ball yard.
- blackhawk24

Yep, Randall Grichuk, Cub Killer, they were just saying the Cards are open to dealing him, I would think he is a building piece. I would love to see him on the North Side, but never would happen .

Yep, Randall Grichuk, Cub Killer, they were just saying the Cards are open to dealing him, I would think he is a building piece. I would love to see him on the North Side, but never would happen .
- wonthecup10

Remember when all those young Cubs hitters used to be good? What happened?

Bryant is on pace for a pathetic amount of RBIs, even if nobody's been getting on base in front of him. Rizzo is batting around .250...meh. Russel cant hit. Baez is an average hitter at best. Contreres is average. Happ started off with a bunch of XBH but is slowing down. Heyward and Schwarber are terrible. Even the vets like Zobrist can't hit anymore. All of that and i haven't even mentioned the pitching which is worse. This team is done. One WS is all they're getting, and who knows it might be another 108 years before they see another.

Remember when all those young Cubs hitters used to be good? What happened?

Bryant is on pace for a pathetic amount of RBIs, even if nobody's been getting on base in front of him. Rizzo is batting around .250...meh. Russel cant hit. Baez is an average hitter at best. Contreres is average. Happ started off with a bunch of XBH but is slowing down. Heyward and Schwarber are terrible. Even the vets like Zobrist can't hit anymore. All of that and i haven't even mentioned the pitching which is worse. This team is done. One WS is all they're getting, and who knows it might be another 108 years before they see another.
- SimpleJack

Oh, oh. Yet another bitter one.

Josi is their best blueliner and it's not even close.
- 35Tony0

One of the top 2 way defenders in the league. One of my favorite players.

Yep, Randall Grichuk, Cub Killer, they were just saying the Cards are open to dealing him, I would think he is a building piece. I would love to see him on the North Side, but never would happen .
- wonthecup10

They who, the four letter network? Mozeliak/Girsch would need to be blown away on an offer to let Grichuk go. Colleague of mine, originally from that area told me Grichuk is likely there to stay.

They who, the four letter network? Mozeliak/Girsch would need to be blown away on an offer to let Grichuk go. Colleague of mine, originally from that area told me Grichuk is likely there to stay.
- blackhawk24

Commentators in I believe the second inning were saying depending on the Cards play next week, they could be open to dealing him. I agree , you don't trade him PERIOD!

Oh, oh. Yet another bitter one.
- blackhawk24

He should be happy if he is a Sox fan what they are doing, but Poor Ricky, he's gonna get another Chicago Bend over right about the time those kids show up. Boche or Girardi may come available ......and there goes Ricky...... Again!

He should be happy if he is a Sox fan what they are doing, but Poor Ricky, he's gonna get another Chicago Bend over right about the time those kids show up. Boche or Girardi may come available ......and there goes Ricky...... Again!
- wonthecup10

Not sure about being happy. Fans often get too anxious. There are still idiots out there female doging about the Cubs waiting a couple weeks to bring up Bryant.

Ricky knows. He knew on the North side too. For now, he is a bridge guy.

Are you spit-balling about Boche? Always liked him. And Girardi was my choice for a few years.

Kiddie Land. I remember that place. Now Bimboland week is another story.

What a beautiful night for a game at the grand, old North side ball yard.
- blackhawk24

The one on North Avenue? The one on Skokie Highway (next to the Henry's Drive In)?