John Jaeckel: Well, what did you expect?

Yup

Totally agree with everything you said JJ. The Blues are now the cream of the division and to me, looks like the Hawks are a long way behind.

One game. Wouldn't say "I told you so" just yet, imho.

Hammer needs to come back. TvR needs to get his poop together or be benched. And that poor excuse for a 4th line yesterday needs to be reworked.

I still don't believe this team is going to be as bad as some are predicting.

Kempny showed some toughness behind the net which impressed me too.

It's Over were Doomed ..JK Really we lost by 1 goal and had some seriously good chance to tie in the 3rd . HAWKS lost focus at the end of the 2nd and it really cost them , and it was not the kids that did that . I would give Schmaltz a short audition with Kane and Parnarin and AA Up with Toews , got nothing to lose but another game .If not ready send him down Panik on the 4th with Moose and Slugger . Still a believer Q needs to run more Practices , even more important with a young team ..

Play this season for the #1 pick!.

I was particularly impressed by the way in which the Blues defended the PAK line - they took away a lot of time and space from those guys. It's early, and I'm sure Arti and Patrick will dial up their mojo - but last night the Blues covered them well.

It's Over were Doomed ..JK Really we lost by 1 goal and had some seriously good chance to tie in the 3rd . HAWKS lost focus at the end of the 2nd and it really cost them , and it was not the kids that did that . I would give Schmaltz a short audition with Kane and Parnarin and AA Up with Toews , got nothing to lose but another game .If not ready send him down Panik on the 4th with Moose and Slugger . Still a believer Q needs to run more Practices , even more important with a young team ..
- oldduffman

Agreed on all this except that it was close. It wasn't close. The first period was close.

I agree, more work, more time, but the sheer number of kids is a problem. For all the GOOD things Forsling did last night, he really struggled at times.

Panik is so rough around the edges. And he's really still a kid. Schmaltz is not ready. Has talent. But he is not ready for the physicality of the NHL. At all.

Work in progress.

One game. Wouldn't say "I told you so" just yet, imho.

Hammer needs to come back. TvR needs to get his poop together or be benched. And that poor excuse for a 4th line yesterday needs to be reworked.

I still don't believe this team is going to be as bad as some are predicting.
- teh_HAWKZ

No "I told you so's" but at the same time, anyone still thinking the "youth movement" is a really good thing is high.

Work in progress at best.

Hey, not only is it one game, but it's the first game with a few new guys playing in the show for real. Factor in a suspension and maybe a health issue or two and what the hell. When you give a team 3 PP goals and 2 EN goals it doesn't see so bad. Even strength play might not have been pretty, but it was still even. I think they deserve time to dial it in. That's where it gets interesting for me. Q doesn't have the loaded team now, but he still has plenty to work with. While I feel he needs time to sort it out, remember he wasn't here for the whole camp, this is the kind of year where you EARN your induction. They all have a lot of work to do.

The fourth line, albeit in limited minutes, stunk. Period.

And while Nick Schmaltz' speed and offensive instincts jumped out at times when he had a couple of shifts in the third period with Kane and Panarin, he was otherwise a rumor—and 20% in the dot.
- John Jaeckel

It stunk like fresh manure.

Honestly, if Schmaltz doesn't show any improvement after the next couple of games, he needs to get sent to RKFD.

Thanks for giving the Blues props JJ.

I think the Hawks will be fine. They may finish 2-4 in the Central, but I think they'll make it into the playoffs for sure. As long as Hossa doesn't finally show his age or you suffer a huge injury, your high end guys will pull through and cover up the deficiencies.

Totally agree with everything you said JJ. The Blues are now the cream of the division and to me, looks like the Hawks are a long way behind.
- Studebakerhawk

Good to see you posting again!

Kempny showed some toughness behind the net which impressed me too.
- arps714

Agreed. The early indications are that Kempny was a solid acquisition - great for a third pairing - and possibly higher - due to an injury or if his play continues to elevate.

No "I told you so's" but at the same time, anyone still thinking the "youth movement" is a really good thing is high.

Work in progress at best.
- John Jaeckel

Agreed.

I'm not throwing in the towel on Chicago just yet. Any team with Toews, Kane, Panarin, Keith, Seabrooke, Crawford & to a lesser extent an aging Hossa & Campbell along with Haljmarsson can easily compete for a cup.

I ended up ranking Chicago 3rd in the Central edging out Dallas by 1 point. StL, Nashville, Chicago, Dallas, Winnipeg, Minnesota, Colorado. You can flip flop the bottom 3 anyway you like the points separation in the standings will be minuscule.

Remove a top 4 Dman screwing up the pairings, dress 6 rookies & the sky is falling playing against what will be a top 3 if not the best team in the west & a top 6 overall perhaps as high as 3rd? I don't think so.

Q is trying to push square pegs into round holes. Panik isn't a top 6 winger. He's barely a 3rd line winger. Move Motte to Toews line, Panik back. Motte & Kempny will need time to learn to kill penalties in Chicago's system. Losing Desjardins hurts in this role.

Chicago is in cap hell & not sure how they solve that issue. With out sacrificing a core piece they can't & how does that help. How is Chicago getting through the season with $55,180 in cap space? Not possible.

Quick hits from the Hawks side of things after last night.

JVR is terrible and clearly picked/ focused on
Cambell looks slow
Tootoo was a ghost, not surprising
Toews looks like hes lost a step or jump, maybe just this game
Bot 6 are going to get the top 6 worn out by the allstar break

Hey, not only is it one game, but it's the first game with a few new guys playing in the show for real. Factor in a suspension and maybe a health issue or two and what the hell. When you give a team 3 PP goals and 2 EN goals it doesn't see so bad. Even strength play might not have been pretty, but it was still even. I think they deserve time to dial it in. That's where it gets interesting for me. Q doesn't have the loaded team now, but he still has plenty to work with. While I feel he needs time to sort it out, remember he wasn't here for the whole camp, this is the kind of year where you EARN your induction. They all have a lot of work to do.
- 6628

Agreed.

And based on JUST ONE GAME (sort of, because last night was a continuation of the preseason):

Motte and Hartman, fine

Forsling, boom or bust, if it were up to me, I'd keep playing him and sit TVR

Schmaltz, not ready, he is obviously a top 6 style player, does not fit in a checking role, not ready for top 6 in the NHL

Hinostroza, yeah, ok whatever, he's fine as a 4th line energy player

I think the larger questions are: TVR or Forsling, and do you tinker with moving Motte up and Panik down (eventually), Panrin with Toews? Kane with Toews?

I'm not throwing in the towel on Chicago just yet.
- striker777

I don't believe that anyone else is either.

It's one game .....5 Central teams will be playing in the post season

So after seeing what Stamkos and others have signed for and the cap staying put do you think Toews and Kane would still get the same contracts if signed today?

>>>But the "delusion" that this team as currently composed merits consideration as a Cup contender should be over this morning. Clearly, the chemistry is not there—yet—and that is not at all surprising due to the number of rookies on the ice, and injury and a suspension to two key veterans, and numerous players still getting back into the swing of things after the World Cup.<<<

hopefully they can bail water for awhile and get that ole team game going as Q likes to say..

Richard panik...
tvr...

market price at the time... also, stamkos has three less cups than 88 & 19.

Quick hits from the Hawks side of things after last night.

JVR is terrible and clearly picked/ focused on
Cambell looks slow
Tootoo was a ghost, not surprising
Toews looks like hes lost a step or jump, maybe just this game
Bot 6 are going to get the top 6 worn out by the allstar break
- Gerk

-I agree JVR look lost
- Don't talk bad about soupy, I took a beating last week for that
-Hated the tootoo signing
-I keep waiting for the real Toews to appear