I think the HAWKS will finish 13th 14th or 15th out west . Have to embrace the rebuild . The next few years high draft picks and creating cap space. It's been a great run but time to realise it's WAY over. I look forward to it , hopefully great young talent just down the road a bit. . Just don't want a half ass attempt to try and make this team competitive when it should be realized we are so far off from so many other teams.

I know Rumorbreak is a bit wacky, but they posted the following:

PIT/MTL are the frontrunners for Duclair. Domi/Droun want to play with him and Bergevin wants to bring him in.

Hearing TOR has offered Calvin De Haan a 3-year deal worth $3M per and then plan on flipping Gardiner+ for a top-4 RHD.

The first one is just interesting since we could give a poop about Duclair and I didn't k there would be all that much interest in him.

The second might be an avenue for Stan to do som..... oh who am I kidding...

I'm not liking the trend here with Toews. Last year we needed a left wing to help get him straight. We get him Saad to "help" with that.

Now we get him a veteran to help him with team leadership?

All that is remaining is a right wing to replace Hossa and Toews should be all set.
- Rota's Rooter

Outside of Hossa, one of the biggest losses for this team was Shaw. He brought that energy every night. Was fearless and did what he had to so the team could win. This team lacks all of that in a major way. I keep harping on the zero identity. This team has none. Its a bunch of perimeter ice dancers at this point. Of all three FA signings, the only one with value may be Kunitz because he brings that Shaw like mentality, but he is 38 and who knows if he will be effective anymore.

The most consistent/lunch pail guy they had last year was Bouma. You need guys like that. Wingles was an excellent utility guy with energy and they traded him, then failed to sign him when FA hit. Doesnt matter. By January, Stan and Q will be gone and the journey to fix this team will really start.

Understanding where you are as an organIzation to me is key. That the Hawks didn't commit to term is and was the key for me going in to FA and that's what the Hawks did which makes me believe, no matter what is said publicly, they understand where they are.

From The Athletic speaking about VAN and DET:

It’s hard to imagine the meetings that lead to the conclusion that moves like this are a good idea. One wonders what Jim Benning thinks the Canucks are likely to do next year with Beagle and what they’d be likely to do without him but with the best player available who would sign a one-year contract. I can’t really imagine that the difference is even as much as a win and yet Vancouver made a four-year commitment.

It’s probably not fun but bad NHL teams would do well to adopt the thinking that they basically have to earn the right to get involved in July 1. If you can’t reasonably expect to be in the playoff mix, it’s impossible to justify going more than a year with any run-of-the-mill player outside of a really good deal, which is basically never there.

These signings won’t kill the Canucks or the Red Wings. That’s not the problem. The problem is what they say about the Canucks and the Red Wings, how they perceive where they are, how they assess risk and how they think things work. It would be one thing if these were one-off decisions but they happen over and over and over. There’s a small but growing group of teams that just avoid these sorts of things. The longer it takes Detroit and Vancouver to get smart and join those teams, the less likely it is that their rebuilds (or whatever it is that Detroit is doing) ever get off the ground and, if they do, the more likely it is that it blows up somewhere along the way. Put another way, Jay Beagle or Mike Green won’t kill you but the process that leads to you signing them for term will.
- Mr Ricochet

Brilliant- EXACTLY- There was NOTHING in FA available which the Hawks could afford AND would have moved the needle enough to warrant an outlay of money or term. Tavares was about it, and we could not afford $11 million a year (yes lament the terrible contracts handed out to the various players all you want, what is done is done and that is the reality).

The Manning signing is odd, but have to think some of our D depth is being shopped for who knows what at this point (top-4 D? 2/3C? #2 LW?) but doubt it can bring back a difference maker who will propel this team into SC contention. BUT it may bring back another piece which can be used as we slowly transition from the CORE to the next generation. I would prefer just ripping the band-aid off, but trading Keith, Kane, Toews (if anyone would take him at this point), Seabs (same as Toews) and Crawford (health unknown) would be a PR nightmare, and cost the team millions in revenue and countless fans, so we go the "rebuild on the fly" and hope that Kane and others have one fight left in them, not ins 2018-2019 but 2020-2021.

Alright then... lets see your line up?!
- z1990z

Your top two lines stay the same and you have to hope the vets bounce back.

Lines three and four improved and the defense got slightly better with Manning.

Ward will be solid.

Not an outrageous improvement, but the best they could do in a Free Agent "frenzy" that had most guys priced way outside anything the Hawks could afford.

Haven't seen this mentioned anywhere (apologies if it's been said earlier)...

WPG's loss of Stasny could create an opportunity to move Toews. WPG is in their "window" and Lord knows they are short in the NHL. It would clearly spell "firesale" by the Hawks. you'd have to think the Hawks could get back Trouba, a middle 6 forward and possibly more AHL/prospects to make salaries match. Toews could be a difference-maker on a team with a lack of veterans.

Babcock LOVES keith and toews, and it Tavares would have gone elsewhere, probably could have dealt 19 up there.

Agreed. that was point. in 2-3 years 2/7 will be even older and slower, and who knows who will be in between the pipes. CC is getting old...…..
- SteveRain

CC is 33, not 37

CC is 33, not 37
- ObeseOprah

In 2-3 years he will be 35-36. that was my point.

Brilliant- EXACTLY- There was NOTHING in FA available which the Hawks could afford AND would have moved the needle enough to warrant an outlay of money or term. Tavares was about it, and we could not afford $11 million a year (yes lament the terrible contracts handed out to the various players all you want, what is done is done and that is the reality).

The Manning signing is odd, but have to think some of our D depth is being shopped for who knows what at this point (top-4 D? 2/3C? #2 LW?) but doubt it can bring back a difference maker who will propel this team into SC contention. BUT it may bring back another piece which can be used as we slowly transition from the CORE to the next generation. I would prefer just ripping the band-aid off, but trading Keith, Kane, Toews (if anyone would take him at this point), Seabs (same as Toews) and Crawford (health unknown) would be a PR nightmare, and cost the team millions in revenue and countless fans, so we go the "rebuild on the fly" and hope that Kane and others have one fight left in them, not ins 2018-2019 but 2020-2021.
- Revco38

The point was this. This Hawks team came out and said last year was unacceptable and would not happen again. If they were serious then they needed to be aggressive in FA in trying to bring in some impact help. You cant have it both ways. Are teams over paying in contract and term? Yep. That is FA. The biggest need on this team by far was D. They had cap money. Maybe you overpay a bit to bring in a legit top 4 guy. The Ward and Manning signing were wtf moments. Just dumb money spent on Ward. Veteran yeah, but now so is Forsberg. Oh well..

Also, someone beat me to the punch....

I really think TOR is all-in right now. I think a TDL of Keith makes a lot of sense for all parties. Not only would you expect the Hawks to get a haul in return (maybe a promising F and D prospect included), but I think Kane would finally get an "A" on the sweater.

I know Rumorbreak is a bit wacky, but they posted the following:

PIT/MTL are the frontrunners for Duclair. Domi/Droun want to play with him and Bergevin wants to bring him in.

Hearing TOR has offered Calvin De Haan a 3-year deal worth $3M per and then plan on flipping Gardiner+ for a top-4 RHD.

The first one is just interesting since we could give a poop about Duclair and I didn't k there would be all that much interest in him.

The second might be an avenue for Stan to do som..... oh who am I kidding...
- Chunk

That guy is a fraud. The Saturday of the draft he had Tavares signed in NYI for 8 years and 11 million. Then deleted the tweet. He also had Pacioretty to the Sharks and had to delete that one as well.

All he does is recycle what he reads and tweets it immediately and tries to beat a few of the blue check mark guys.

I trust my 3 yr old on rumors more so than that clown.

Brilliant- EXACTLY- There was NOTHING in FA available which the Hawks could afford AND would have moved the needle enough to warrant an outlay of money or term.
- Revco38

For me it's how the Hawks look at themselves. Not handing out term yesterday tells me they aren't delusional about where they are now.

All the cliches are met. Can't fix a problem until you identify it. Rome wasn't built in a day. Journey of 10,000 miles begins with the first step. Hawks checked all those boxes yesterday. Now comes the part that is just as difficult, how to execute the plan and do they have the hockey minds and managerial structure to do so?

Only one team won the cup last year. Only 2 made the final.

Would you rather be a Winnipeg fan? They failed. (Cap hell.)

Boston? Fail. San Jose? Fail. (Years of fail.) Edmonton has the new Gretzky. Fail.
The "great Babcock ". Fail.

30 fails. One winner. The sky is not falling.

Go Hocks

RainMan....you GOTTA think Duncan Keith is traded this year after the Hawks start out 5-10-5 or something like that. Duncan Keith to Toronto for 2019 1st, 2020 1st and their Top Non-NHL (blue close to ready) prospect (forward or D doesn't matter as long as he's a stud).

Seabrook and Toews are boat anchors that would take a 1980 USA vs USSR type Miracle On Ice to move without retaining 50% of their cap hit (which makes it not worth the move IMO).

BLOW IT UP and guarantee you get a Top 5 pick next year with cap flexibility moving forward.
- EnzoD

Enzo--I wish but I think it would take 2/7/19 going to the Hawks and asking to be dealt for it to happen. This organization IMO is still conscience of the 90s when the Eagle, Roenick and Chelios all left and then we got the dark days of the Dirk Graham led Hawks and the Michael Grosek trade, and on it went.

I think seabrook would be the only anchor not to be able to be traded. As the cap goes up teams looking for a center who are contenders right now would take a chance on 19....Not sure they would give up a ton...to make it worth Bowman's time but I think he's moveable. No question 2 is the most appealing.

Think we should all start prepping for a disappointing trade deadline day. Highly doubt Keith, Toews, seabrook or any other of the core gets traded.

Only one team won the cup last year. Only 2 made the final.

Would you rather be a Winnipeg fan? They failed. (Cap hell.)

Boston? Fail. San Jose? Fail. (Years of fail.) Edmonton has the new Gretzky. Fail.
The "great Babcock ". Fail.

30 fails. One winner. The sky is not falling.

Go Hocks
- hocktock

Think we should all start prepping for a disappointing trade deadline day. Highly doubt Keith, Toews, seabrook or any other of the core gets traded.
- BlazinMike

Until the Hawks get a legit hockey guy to be GM, it will more of the same.

6+ in cap space on those 3 stellar FA signings. Geezus. If Hawks ownership doesnt care, why should we? They handed Stan the check book.
- z1990z

I don't disagree but lets see if Bowman can maneuver a trade that makes it work for the long term. IF not, then to Maggie's point, if they are seriously (according to rumors) going to fire Q by say thanksgiving, then I would also fire Bowman at the same time.

IMO, they are linked together....you honestly can't fire one without the other. They win and deserve credit together, and they should be dismissed together.

Only one team won the cup last year. Only 2 made the final.

Would you rather be a Winnipeg fan? They failed. (Cap hell.)

Boston? Fail. San Jose? Fail. (Years of fail.) Edmonton has the new Gretzky. Fail.
The "great Babcock ". Fail.

30 fails. One winner. The sky is not falling.

Go Hocks
- hocktock

The Jets lost in the Conference Final after beating a Preds team the round earlier that wiped up across the ice in our last playoff appearance. Boston and San Jose? Competitive teams that made the playoffs. Toronto? Playoffs too. There is a theme here. Those teams are trending the right way. We are not!

Think we should all start prepping for a disappointing trade deadline day. Highly doubt Keith, Toews, seabrook or any other of the core gets traded.
- BlazinMike

Don't disagree.....not saying it will ever happen, just think it's the right path to a quicker solution to win long term.

Again, IMO it would take 2/7/19 requesting a trade for them to be dealt.

The point was this. This Hawks team came out and said last year was unacceptable and would not happen again. If they were serious then they needed to be aggressive in FA in trying to bring in some impact help. You cant have it both ways. Are teams over paying in contract and term? Yep. That is FA. The biggest need on this team by far was D. They had cap money. Maybe you overpay a bit to bring in a legit top 4 guy. The Ward and Manning signing were wtf moments. Just dumb money spent on Ward. Veteran yeah, but now so is Forsberg. Oh well..
- z1990z

Z, you are on a hockey board in July. You have to understand by now that you can't believe most, if any, of what an organIzation says publicly. That stuff is for the consumption of a casual fan not a hard core.

For me it's don't tell my ears show my eyes. Hawks did that yesterday, they are in a rebuild. What kind? They'll show my eyes that too as it plays out.

As Zo points out if they move Keith to TOR after a 5-10-5 start it's full on with any of the Core 1.0 to follow, at least those moveable. If not and they assimilate Core 2.0 on the fly it's a soft rebuild.

For me it's how the Hawks look at themselves. Not handing out term yesterday tells me they aren't delusional about where they are now.

All the cliches are met. Can't fix a problem until you identify it. Rome wasn't built in a day. Journey of 10,000 miles begins with the first step. Hawks checked all those boxes yesterday. Now comes the part that is just as difficult, how to execute the plan and do they have the hockey minds and managerial structure to do so?
- Mr Ricochet

One thing they have to do is keep the fan base. Can't go back to 6k and 7K fans a night.

In my opinion they get more slack and room to work it if they come out and admit it.

i don't mind that he drafted guys with a higher ceiling but longer time to get here, or that he didn't over pay yesterday and take on more bad contracts.

I will mind if he comes out this summer and says "We like our team, and our goal is a SC.

We aren't that stupid.

Theo and Jed got lots of space by being honest about the entire process. Fans can take the losing if they know you working at the best way to get great again.

This board has become a drag overnight. Haha.

Nothing wrong with being disappointed, but it's not like the Hawks are a team of Mites going out there to compete against NHL teams. Now people are already declaring the TDL as a failure..? How can you when it hasn't even happened yet.

What did people want to see from Free Agency? The Hawks get Tavares, Karlsson, Stastny, or any of the high-caliber (and priced) players? I mean, it just wasn't going to happen.

Gotta' make due with what you have for now.

I don't disagree but lets see if Bowman can maneuver a trade that makes it work for the long term. IF not, then to Maggie's point, if they are seriously (according to rumors) going to fire Q by say thanksgiving, then I would also fire Bowman at the same time.

IMO, they are linked together....you honestly can't fire one without the other. They win and deserve credit together, and they should be dismissed together.
- SteveRain

Not contradicting you SR but more thinking aloud....

What is the point of terminating anyone if the roster is hot garbage and there is no real room to manuver and make the team competitive? Why let Bowman handle the draft and FA if he is to get fired midseason? It seems to me that this would have been better to do once the Hawks were in the 17-18 toilet than it does now.

Z, you are on a hockey board in July. You have to understand by now that you can't believe most, if any, of what an organIzation says publicly. That stuff is for the consumption of a casual fan not a hard core.

For me it's don't tell my ears show my eyes. Hawks did that yesterday, they are in a rebuild. What kind? They'll show my eyes that too as it plays out.

As Zo points out if they move Keith to TOR after a 5-10-5 start it's full on with any of the Core 1.0 to follow, at least those moveable. If not and they assimilate Core 2.0 on the fly it's a soft rebuild.
- Mr Ricochet

I was hoping for some aggression in FA for one last run. Yes I can that is not happening now and the full rebuild is on.