These words came out of Joel Quenneville’s mouth in his post-game interview after a 2-0 loss to the Canadiens when asked if he’s worried about his team’s lack of offense.
You think, Joel?
Removing the 10-1 anomaly that was the Blackhawks opening night thumping of the Penguins and the Hawks are averaging 2.36 goals / game. That would be only 2nd lowest to the Oilers (another team that is searching for answers).
What else are we starting to think about, crew?
I know I have some questions that are going through my head. The biggest one being, “what is this team?… followed up quickly with “what’s the short-term future of this team?…
John McDonough and the Blackhawks brand has been undeniably the best in pro sports in the last decade. Their turnaround from a laughable franchise that wouldn’t even air their own games on TV, to a mediocre team at best in the early 2000’s has come a long way.
Stan Bowman, who sits, as the mastermind behind this team is all too familiar with this history and McDonough would be the first to remind him.
The offseason moves that shipped out a game-breaker like Artemi Panarin and one of the biggest warriors this team has seen in a long time, Niklas Hjarlmasson were very calculated.
To someone sitting in the cheap sits (which don’t exist anymore in the UC), they would follow along with the narrative that Bowman fed the media since an embarrassing sweep to the Predators in the 1st round of last year’s playoffs; “we need to be tougher to play against… and “changes are coming.…
I applaud Stan for bold moves like this where other GMs might have gone the safe route and stuck with the horses in the stable.
Another notion was that these moves were cap related. They were, indeed.
However, the biggest underlying strategy that I got out of that is, Rocky, McDonough, Stan and Co. making pro-active moves to stay relevant for another 10-years.
Jumping in and being an aggressive GM can be a really good thing when you’re seeing holes and financial hurdles in comings years. It can, however, backfire pretty easily (think Marc Bergevin would love PK Subban back?).
Am I sitting here and telling you those trades that Stan made in the offseason were bad ones? No. I still think it’s too early to tell and let’s do a deeper dive together on those moves at a later date.
I would like to continue to ask some hard questions though. How much longer does Joel Quenneville call the shots behind the bench?
I heard this summer was the first time in a couple years that Stan Bowman truly took a big chunk of power back. Believe it or not, there is a huge power struggle between these two men.
Not that Quenneville was the one to blame for that sweep, it was Bowman’s team, but that’s the way it goes. There are some fans out there would like to see Coach Q fired tomorrow.
I warn you, the grass isn’t always greener, and unless they hire Paul MacLean, who’s going to fill the elite moustache status?
Quenneville is the best coach I’ve watched during my support of the Chicago Blackhawks. I feel like he hasn’t received the love from the league with Olympic and Jack Adams snubs over the years and I would like nothing more than to see him guide these 2017-18 Hawks to the promise land. However, it’s getting close to that time that I start to put past feelings behind to start looking at this from a business perspective (the way McDonough and Co. are constantly evaluating).
How much of an impact can a different voice behind the bench make?
We know the story of Mike Sullivan taking over from a fired Mike Johnston. That worked out really well. It also helped to have a revitalized Crosby and Malkin, along with youngsters that had been marinating in the minors for years.
Now, let’s look at a more recent case, the LA Kings, who sit 10-2-2 (3rd in the league) since John Stevens took over. Stevens, the former Associate Coach, took over for Darryl Sutter.
Is that coaching or the players?
I asked my source that very question, “It is 100% due to coaching. Part style and loosening up the reigns. Seemed like the older players we tired of Sutter. Gone are the Jordan Nolan’s and in are the younger, faster guys like Kempe and Iafallo who are finally able to get playing time.…
So, for those wanting a coaching change this year, they may be on to something. Would Kevin Dineen be the immediate replacement? People say he’s part of the problem right now, but we all know Q has the final say and John Stevens is case and point that an assistant coach can swing in and spark a team. Who’s the “new… core moving forward?
The keystone, “unmovable… pieces that the Hawks have had over the years have remained in Toews, Kane, Keith and Seabrook. Sure, there were some others who had spot duty, but those guys were, and have been, “the core… during these successful years.
Toews and Seabrook have been getting beat up on message boards for years now. Kane has consistently done his thing and appears to be getting better every year, albeit in a funk right now. Keith is a world-class talent and has been on a great contract for 23 years (or it seems that way).
As this season unfolds, Stan may be forced to make difficult decisions. He wants to get younger and faster, that, we know for sure.
More than ever do they need that next wave of key players coming up. The Penguins were able to do it. The Predators as well have injected young talent into a potent lineup.
In my opinion, Stan needs to determine who these younger players are and let Quenneville, Colliton and others develop.
The main issues there is the timeline and overall skill. Are the Debrincats, Sikuras, Hartmans and Haydens paths lining up with this aging core? Is that next wave talented enough?
Those questions, will determine who stays, who goes and finally who coaches this team moving forward. They do not, under any circumstances, want to fall back to being the forgotten franchise again.
I will have a Flyers preview on Thursday. JL