I swear I'm not trying to pick on bad first-round picks that the Blackhawks have made in the mid-late 2000s. However, the masses have spoken and a lot of people wanted me to cover Mr. Kyle Beach.
So, here we are.
Blargg… do I really have to talk about Kyle Beach?
This appeal to draft the next big "power forward" at this time I believe was the main reason for Dale Tallon selecting Beach 11th overall in 2008.
It was to be a perfect formula, Toews down the middle (3rd overall in 2006), Kane on the right-side (1st overall in 2007) and – their "protector", tough guy Kyle Beach on the LW.
Beach had tons of talent and was ranked amongst the best skaters in NA in his draft year. He was coming off 60 points (27 goals, 33 assists) in 60 games with a whopping 220 minutes spent in the penalty box.
Well, that didn't really work out and Beach failed to play a single game in the NHL, awarding him, the bust of the 2008 draft.
Because, even though Beach had a bad reputation, what the Hawks failed to take into account is just how bad it was and this immaturity ruined his career.
He was blacklisted by Team Canada from international play. Rumour has it that he urinated in a water bottle and served it up to a teammate. Many other whispers surfaced after this pick was made which I'm sure Dale Tallon and the Hawks scouts would have loved to have back.
Let's dive into some other fun stuff about Mr. Beach.
Kyle Beach in a snapshot:
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How did the player join the Blackhawks organization?
As mentioned above, Kyle Beach was drafted 11th overall in the 2008 draft.
This was the Steven Stamkos and Drew Doughty draft.
Want to see the rest of the picks and where Beach fits amongst them? Check out below:
2008 draft results:
So, as you can see, Kyle Beach is an easy candidate for the bust of the draft that year.
That next pick of Tyler Myers would have been a great one for Tallon. Myers is still going strong with over 700 NHL games.
The Hawks had Seabrook and Keith coming into their prime, plus guys like Wisniewski, Byfuglien, Sopel were on the team and a kid named Niklas Hjalmarsson was just coming on to the scene, but still, you need to take the best player available in that spot. Unfortunately, the Hawks deemed that to be Beach, not Myers or Erik Karlsson.
As I always say though, at this time, hindsight is 20/20 and Beach was a guy that on paper could have been the next Jarome Iginla.
The problem was, this entire draft was a miss by Tallon and his scouts. The only player that came out of this year for the Hawks was Ben Smith in the 5th round.
Woof.
Where were the Blackhawks at this time?
The Toews and Kane era had begun in Chicago and they Hawks were coming off of a 40-34-8, good for 88 points and 3rd in the Central Division.
This was an exciting time for the Hawks as it finally looked like they were on the right path.
They hadn't quite hit their full stride but you could see the foundation was there.
I mentioned above that it would have been a perfect marriage with Beach riding shotgun with Toews and Kane. It appeared that his skill set was pound in a bunch of goals while pounding in faces.
Perfect! A protector for the wonder kids.
Well, we know that didn't happen and Beach next saw a game in the NHL.
Why this player stood out for me?
I selected Beach to cover today because – well – he was one of the most popular choices amongst you all.
I had him on my list though as he was a guy that wasn't as frustrating to me as Jack Skille, but more like a parent, I was "just disappointed."
The first thing that comes to mind for me regarding Beach was his notable absence from Team Canada in any international events.
I love the World Junior Hockey Championships that occur every year at Christmas time and I always loved A) cheering for Team Canada and B) following along with Blackhawks prospects.
So, when there are a bunch of Blackhawks picks on Team Canada, that's a win-win in my books.
Beach was always a guy that I wanted to see on Team Canada. He was from Northern B.C. and played in the WHL. He put up big points and was a tough, hard-hitting winger that Canadians would surely love and fall in love with as a nation.
So why wasn't he ever invited to tryout camp or asked to play anywhere?
Well, I later found out that he was blacklisted for questionable decisions and behaviour and would not be wearing the red and white anytime soon – if ever.
From the moment Young Tyler found that out, I became skeptical of this pick as I hold the character of a player (and people in general) in very high regard.
Where is the player now?
Who cares?
Just joking, I'm sure Kyle has matured and hopefully he regrets his missed opportunity to become a star, or at the very least a role player in Chicago when they were winning Stanley Cups.
Beach suited up for DVTK Jegesmedvék in the Slovakian league where he was 7th on the team in scoring while racking on 104 PIMS (ok, maybe he hasn't matured).
Beach, now 30 years old, will probably toil around in the less-leagues in Europe until he decides to finally hang them up.
This was a true waste of talent and a pick that will go down in Hawks' history as one of the worst 1st rounders in the last 20 years.
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Stay safe and see ya out there!
TC
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • 
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