Even prior to scoring his first career hat trick to help clip the Red Wings by a score of 8-5, Dylan Strome was already starting to heat up not only offensively but also with his play without the puck and especially in the faceoff circle where he's been fairly strong all season as a much improved facet of his game at center.
Although Strome will rarely win foot races to pucks and won't ever challenge for a Selke Trophy, he's competing more consistently game to game and within a game, using his keen hockey sense to gain better positioning, and leveraging his size as much as possible to compensate for shortcomings like skating and strength.
The big question is do the Blackhawks retain him or continue to dangle him as trade bait. If the latter is still true, then Strome's stock is rising which bodes well for Chicago in terms of acquiring a much more valuable asset or two than what was originally projected when the Hawks were just hard pressed to find a suitor.
Yet, is it worth it now to keep Strome in the fold by signing him to an extension with sensible AAV and years? The Hawks need top 6 centers and he is proving again that he may have the juice to fulfill his potential to be one. Jonathan Toews's future is still uncertain while Kirby Dach has a long way to go to reach his own potential.
The trade deadline is still a shade under two months away so there's still time to evaluate whether Strome should be a fixture in Chicago as one of the go-to players to build around or he should be shipped out for futures while his stock may be as high as it could possibly be this season. Either way, it's exciting to see Strome thrive again.
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Blackhawks Game Summary
Starting Lineup
Hagel - Strome - Kane
DeBrincat - Toews - Lafferty
Kubalik - Dach - Kurashev
Borgstrom - Carpenter - Entwistle
McCabe - S Jones
de Haan - Murphy
C Jones - Gustafsson
Fleury
Soderblom
Scratches:
Connolly, Kalynuk
Abridged Boxscore
1st Goal (1-0): Kubalik (S Jones, Kurashev)
2nd Goal (2-0): Strome (DeBrincat, Kane) PP
3rd Goal (3-0): Strome (Kane)
4th Goal (4-0): Lafferty (Strome, McCabe)
5th Goal (4-1): Fabbri (unassisted)
6th Goal (4-2): Bertuzzi (Hronek)
7th Goal (4-3): Suter (Oesterle, Fabbri)
8th Goal (5-3): Strome (S Jones, Hagel) PP
9th Goal (6-3): DeBrincat (Toews, C Jones)
10th Goal (6-4): Seider (Raymond, Bertuzzi) PP
11th Goal (6-5): Larkin (unassisted)
12th Goal (7-5): Hagel (unassisted)
13th Goal (8-5): DeBrincat (unassisted) EN
SOG For/Against: 38/33
PP: 2-for-3
PK: 2-for-3
Faceoffs Won: 51%
Game Notes
* Strome had a career night with his hat trick and an assist; he also rattled off 6 shots on goal and was reliable at the dot winning 59% of his draws.
* Not to be outdone, buddy Alex DeBrincat contributed 3 points on 2 goals and an assist.
* Calvin de Haan continues to be a shot blocking machine racking up 4 more while Seth Jones, Connor Murphy, and Jake McCabe blocked 3 apiece.
Highlights
Goals by Dylan Strome
Goal by Sam Lafferty
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IceHogs Game Summary
Starting Lineup
Altybarmakian - Reichel - Teply
Hardman - McLaughlin - Busdeker
Yetman - Slavin - Gicewicz
Howarth - G Mitchell - Gabriel
Phillips - I Mitchell
Stanton - Watson
Beaudin - Galvas
Delia
Aubrun
Abridged Boxscore
1st Goal (0-1): Rossi (Rau, Addison)
2nd Goal (1-1): Hardman (Reichel, Galvas) PP
3rd Goal (1-2): Cramarossa (Hicketts) OT
SOG For/Against: 21/27
PP: 1-for-6
PK: 5-for-5
Game Notes
* As an illustration of how bitter the rivalry is between the Hogs and Wild, Ian Mitchell got in a fight with former Hogs forward Joseph Cramarossa while D.J. Busdeker fought with Calen Addison.
* Later in the game, Addison also got a 10-minute misconduct for instigating; no other penalties were assessed during that incident, though.
* Lukas Reichel remains hot by extending his point streak to 6 games picking up an apple; he has 11 points (4 goals + 7 assists) in these games and 13 points in his last 8 games.
Highlights
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Roster Updates
Brett Connolly was placed on waivers yesterday and has not been claimed at time of print. In a recent Athletic article, Scott Powers shared that interim general manager Kyle Davidson is more open to buyouts than his predecessor Stan Bowman was and suggested that Connolly and Tyler Johnson are candidates to be bought out if Davidson decides to go that route.
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General Manager Updates
Sources: Chicago Sun-Times, NBC Sports Chicago
Here are key points from Blackhawks CEO Danny Wirtz's press release on the team's search for a permanent general manager:
* The general manager position will be the "highest-ranking executive in Hockey Operations" and be a direct report to Wirtz.
* The Hawks will start outreaching to potential candidates this week.
* Davidson will not only be a candidate but has full autonomy to continue making hockey-related decisions in his role as the interim general manager.
* Candidates will include individuals in and out of the hockey industry.
* A final hiring decision is expected by the NHL trade deadline (March 21).
* There will be a town hall meeting next week for an audience that includes "fans, partners, staff, and media."
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