Funny, listening to him with Sirott andf Troy the other night on the radio after the game, I thought to myself, he would make a great NHL coach some day. And I would not be terribly surprised at all to see him eventually coach the Slovak national team.

I also remember the crap I took on the HotStove blog over the summer for saying he was a dark horse Hart Candidate.
- John Jaeckel

I like Toews a lot. But Hossa is our best player when healthy.

UC crowd needs to start throwing Kit-Kat bars on the ice when he scores
- pri$ey

I don't disagree with your points. But the same people ragging on him now were praising him earlier this season... And you know what? The same people will be jumping back on when he lights it up again. I think it's typical Chicago sport fan bs..
- ilinkhawk

Yeah, but not me. I was impressed with how he came into cap and the start he got off to. He was saying and doing all the right things. Listen, other than this little slump, I have no huge beef with the kid in spite of what some would like to think. I think he's immature on and off the ice. I am not sure he is as great as some would like to believe. Beyond that, he's generally an asset to this team, and sometimes a great one.

Agreed.. He is around the net alot as well. Completely over exaggeration as usual when it comes to Kane.
- ilinkhawk

I disagree. He is better on the perimeter and his production goes down in physical games against physical teams, it is undeniable.

Again, he is not the only Hawk player with flaws in his game either. He is not the best player on the team either.

I like Toews a lot. But Hossa is our best player when healthy.
- ilinkhawk

It's close for me.

JJ, you guys are just destined to piss off another player & agent with topics like this? yes? then they ask for a trade! the kid is 22 years old , leave him be! there is only 1 gretzky, lemieux, ect! he'll be a solid player in the long run!
as a longtime fan & season ticket holder i don't want to get another kick in the nuts because some media people poured gas on a fire and caused management to knee jerk react and trade a person!
here: remember the phil esposito trade, the toni tanti trade, the jeremy roenick trade, the belfour trade,the chelios trade! i know some of them were caused by ownership in the past but the bottom line is that a hostile enviroment caused the situation and we wound up getting stiffed and not fair value:
if you want to trade kane to the sabres, i'm stan bowman and i'm saying " vanek, pominville,myers & miller ALL in the deal or hang up!! end of story! in other words the conversation would last 20 seconds period! it ain't happening!
you want to call guys out, start with bickell, hjalmersson FRICKEN NICK LEDDY,frolik, ect! guys that refuse to play hard and check and get dirty! guys that should be wearing a skirt in the ice capades rather than playing in the NHL!
you get my point JJ! just don't need that controversy right now! leave the kid be! i'm tired of everyone giving leddy a pass, yeah the kid is 20, but he's a D man and he's got size! grow some balls nick and put a body on someone when you need to! this is big boy hockey! same with hjalmer! JJ you can't tell me for 1 minute that crawford wouldn't have loved to break that stick over leddy's head the other night instead of the net, he was so mad but took the high road! i'm sure he told him in the room to "grow a set already will ya!"
how about we just wait and see what stan bowman does in the next month and what the team looks like once all the injuries are all healed!
hopefully stan adds a guy like paul gausted who has some of the tools we are looking for and slot him into the 3rd line role and move up bolland between hossa & sharp.
i'm still not sold on stalberg, i don't see john leclair written anywhere in the same sentence in the future which is what tazer and kane actually need !
i feel stalberg will eventually be written in the same sentence as ken yaremchuk or peter marsh, "geez i got the puck , i'm fast , what do i do with it!" thats where i see stalberg fitting in ! JMO only!
would love to see stan add tim gleason also and keep him past this year.
also for what it's worth scott should be playing wing on the fourth ahead of bickell and a couple of others now until they figure it out. give me a guy that gives it his all every nite and he's playing ahead of a few of these carpet riders!
jimmy hayes will be a nice player but he probably needs some more work in rockford with his skating!
lastly, loosing torch behind the bench hurt! thats all i'm going to say, you guys connect the dots! later everyone!
- wonthecup10

I love your posts even if I need a couple of drops of Visine after I read them. They come from the heart, that's what's important.

I get the idea of what you want to acquire, like Gleason for example. Who/what are you prepared to give up to get him?

thanks maggie, i guess you lived through the same crap back in the day also!
don't want to see that again!
- wonthecup10

Remember the other Esposito??

So do the Hawks. It is not a bad bet. Not a sure thing either.
- John Jaeckel

Nothing's a sure thing: look at Sid the Kid.

I don't disagree with your points. But the same people ragging on him now were praising him earlier this season... And you know what? The same people will be jumping back on when he lights it up again. I think it's typical Chicago sport fan bs..
- ilinkhawk

Not living in Chicago, I'm starting to get a real sense of that..

I like Toews a lot. But Hossa is our best player when healthy.
- ilinkhawk

I agree and Hossa should be at this point in his career.

Remember the other Esposito??
- Maggie

And if Kane stumbles into Stan Bowman and McDonough at a team gathering and tells them they are going to f-up the whole franchise....Maybe the same thing will happen but the trade won't be so lopsided.

JJ, you guys are just destined to piss off another player & agent with topics like this? yes? then they ask for a trade! the kid is 22 years old , leave him be! there is only 1 gretzky, lemieux, ect!.....
- wonthecup10

Sounds to me like there's at least three of them

And if Kane stumbles into Stan Bowman and McDonough at a team gathering and tells them they are going to f-up the whole franchise....Maybe the same thing will happen but the trade won't be so lopsided.
- Al

I assume you are saying that's what Phil did and I would hope Kane is not that stupid and also, different owners, no Billy Wirtz and no Pulford!

I disagree. He is better on the perimeter and his production goes down in physical games against physical teams, it is undeniable.

Again, he is not the only Hawk player with flaws in his game either. He is not the best player on the team either.
- John Jaeckel

So you don't think when we won the Cup... Those were not physical games and series? Go re watch the Stanley Cup or the Canuck series. He was one of the best players out there. He obviously isn't a physical horse. But to say he just runs when things get physical is false. Our core was great and still is great. What has changed? Supporting cast. If we can put the right people in those positions, we aren't having this conversation. Bowman has failed in this area.

So you don't think when we won the Cup... Those were not physical games and series? Go re watch the Stanley Cup or the Canuck series. He was one of the best players out there. He obviously isn't a physical horse. But to say he just runs when things get physical is false. Our core was great and still is great. What has changed? Supporting cast. If we can put the right people in those positions, we aren't having this conversation. Bowman has failed in this area.
- ilinkhawk

It's not just the physical play, it's where the play is. Seems to me that other teams are concentrating more on stopping the Hawks in the neutral zone, before they get into the offensive zone - giving Kane much less room to work and create space. Once the Hawks get established in the offensive zone, Kane is pretty good at creating his space, with and without the puck, controlling the puck, cycling, dealing with the pass. It's just a lot harder to get the puck and, and gain control, and that hurts Kane's game.

Now it's time to see if he - and the whole team - can adjust.

Which is, of course, the main mark of a good player: they always catch up to you, then you have to show that you can adjust.

I assume you are saying that's what Phil did and I would hope Kane is not that stupid and also, different owners, no Billy Wirtz and no Pulford!
- Maggie

Yes what Phil Espo did....

It was all Tommy Ivan and Billy Reay....Not Wirtz.

I love your posts even if I need a couple of drops of Visine after I read them. They come from the heart, that's what's important.

I get the idea of what you want to acquire, like Gleason for example. Who/what are you prepared to give up to get him?
- RickJ

rick i would probably think about giving them either pirri & a pick or maybe lalonde. don't know if i would part with olsen just yet! the reason being is possibly it may take a D man like hjalmerrson to get that either 2 center or looch type winger for 19&88.
i like bolland jumping up if you could pry paul gausted out of buffalo for your #3 center. i think we get everybody healthy rick plus add those 2 at the deadline, we could make a run. also in my trades some of what i may be prepared to give the canes & sabres would have to be on the premise that gleason & gausted sign for next year also.