HockeyBuzz's Blackhawks writer John Jaeckel fills in for Ek today:
The conventional wisdom says: no. The logic says: no until proven otherwise. The current evidence says: maybe.
Obviously, I cover the Chicago Blackhawks, a team any observers feel is the best in the NHL—not just because the Stanley Cup resides at 1901 W. Michigan Avenue (figuratively at least), but also because at times this year’s Hawks’ club looks every bit as good as last year’s. And that was clearly the best team in the league then.
But that was . . .then. And this is now.
The two issues that seem to be the flies in any repeat ointment are the salary cap and the fatigue players endure after playing along playoffs, then enjoying a short summer filled with parades, appearances and perhaps some late nights here and there.
This Hawk team went into the summer of 2013 with the need to shed some, though not much, salary cap. Gone soon were oft-injured playoff hero Dave Bolland, penalty killing wiz Michal Frolik and speedy winger Viktor Stalberg. The plan was to plug in some “well-seasoned… rookies from the Hawks’ AHL affiliate in Rockford, and count on the continued growth of youngsters like Brandon Saad (seen by many as Stalberg 2.0), Marcus Kruger (who has third line shutdown C written all over him) and someone to fill Frolik’s role. Goalie Ray Emery was replaced—at a higher annual salary—by Nikolai Khabibulin.
But the road to hell is paved with good intentions. And if wishes was fishes, hey, we’d have us a fry. Saad and Kruger have stepped up, but no one has really filled Frolik’s role. Et voila, the Hawks’ penalty kill has plummeted to 29th in the league. And while the Hawks currently outscore every team in the league, they are also having an uncharacteristically hard time keeping the puck out of their own net.
The now-injured Khabibulin has been a disaster. Highly touted Finnish rookie Antti Raanta will get a look in the meantime.
Recently, GM Stan Bowman shipped two reasonably good prospects—former first round selection Dylan Olsen and second rounder Jimmy Hayes—to Florida for former Hawk Kris Versteeg. Again, the desire to fill a role with a “type… of player is evident. Versteeg is not Frolik. but the two players possess some similar qualities: speed, the ability to play on pretty much any line—and kill penalties.
But you can also argue that the Hawks’ defensive woes-especially later in games—might reflect fatigue. And if that’s the case, it won’t get any better after 6-7 Hawks represent their countries at the Sochi Olympics.
The question remains, can this team repeat? Well, in spite of all the dire news above, they still look awfully good some nights. Most nights, in fact. And it can be argued their problems are the kind that can be worked out over the course of the season—especially with a trade or two, and Bowman will have room to make deals before the deadline. But the point of the blog is: can any team repeat nowadays in the parity-driven, salary-capped NHL? I would argue that since the 2005 lockout and the institution of the salary cap, no Cup Champion was both as dominant as the 2012-13 Hawks and as well-positioned cap-wise going into the following season to repeat.
If they fail to seal the deal—which the odds say they, mmmm, probably will not—then at least a stronger argument can be made that a repeat is likely impossible.
But this is why they’ll play the games. Your thoughts? Thanks for reading.
JJ