John Jaeckel‏ @jaeckel · 4h4 hours ago

. . . also hearing today, Hawk brass having a hard time agreeing among eachother on deals/moves. Holding things up. All for now.

I'm normally not one to gossip as such, but if this is true, we are effed.

Dysfunction at the top always leads to dysfunction at the bottom. It is just a matter of time.
- Chunk

Too many cooks. And the head cook couldn't boil water

Too many cooks. And the head cook couldn't boil water
- 6628

They all seem to be the true meaning of insanity

Too many cooks. And the head cook couldn't boil water
- 6628

Always been an issue with this regime.

It's worked in the past but it's a different time now and the Hawks are in an interesting place.

My concern is if they haven't decided a gameplan for this team by now... that's scary.

I have a blog coming out tomorrow about this and looking a bit into the future.

Mcego to involved stick to the business side of the hawks. Let bowman and his staff do what needs to be done have wonder how of these bad moves that we all blame bowman for are actually mcego fault.

It's true, you are Deadpool!
- riozzo

Damn it...you figured me out.

Mcego to involved stick to the business side of the hawks. Let bowman and his staff do what needs to be done have wonder how of these bad moves that we all blame bowman for are actually mcego fault.
- Scott1977

That's not necessarily it. While McDonough wants to be kept in the loop, he is the first one to admit when it comes to player personnel decisions, that's not his bag.

The indecision comes more from McIsaac vs. Bowman, and Bowman vs. the scouting department. There are varying ideas about how each wants this team constructed - and who will actually fit in the coaching scheme.

And before any of you start about this being a Quenneville issue, just stop. He coached them to three Cups, and it wasn't just the talent on the ice. He is considered to be one of the best in game adjusting coaches in the league - he sees trends in a game - both from his team and the other - and tries to shake things up when needed.

When they were winning the Cups with him doing this, most of you weren't complaining. Now that they are not winning, you complain about him.

You can't have it both ways.

That's not necessarily it. While McDonough wants to be kept in the loop, he is the first one to admit when it comes to player personnel decisions, that's not his bag.
- dahawks8819

That is called plausible deniability. A game all first class weasels play. Always have someone in between you and the problem. Guarantee you anytime a decision on players goes well his scribe is off to Wikipedia to update his bio to ensure credit is due.

This is bad news folks. Two months before camp and the leadership has no plan, or consensus around its execution if there is one.

In the "positive developments for the coming year" category:

via Chris Kuc of The Athletic:

"To that end, look for Seabrook, holder of the albatross of a contract with a $6.875 million cap hit that could impact the team's roster moves through the 2023-2024 season, to regain his footing. A source said Seabrook has been diligently following strength and conditioning coach Paul Goodman's workout regimens this offseason and has lost a significant amount of weight. That should help Seabrook recapture the step or two he appeared to lose last season and again make him more than a No.5 or No.6 defenseman."

Lack of punctuation aside, it's good to hear!

In the "positive developments for the coming year" category:

via Chris Kuc of The Athletic:

"To that end, look for Seabrook, holder of the albatross of a contract with a $6.875 million cap hit that could impact the team's roster moves through the 2023-2024 season, to regain his footing. A source said Seabrook has been diligently following strength and conditioning coach Paul Goodman's workout regimens this offseason and has lost a significant amount of weight. That should help Seabrook recapture the step or two he appeared to lose last season and again make him more than a No.5 or No.6 defenseman."

Lack of punctuation aside, it's good to hear!
- Chunk

Someone got the Sicilian message

D2D, you are missing my point.

I agree that Vinny holds intangibles. I commended his hard work and his ability to work hard, improve and get where he is today. I also said that he will have an NHL career, maybe one of some length. I am a fan of his and hope he succeeds. My comparison to those small guys is to point out that to be more than a "niche player" at his size, you need exceptional skills, ones that he does not necessarily possess. Yes, he has "heart" and "motor" which you can't teach.

The point I was making was not to knock him, put him down, or discredit where he has gotten, it was to honestly evaluate where he is and where his ceiling is and to counter the point of those thinking the Hawks traded away a top 6 talent that will come back to haunt them.

I would love to see him continue to be motivated by those that underestimate him, and make the Hawks regret losing him. Time will tell.

I also wish success to all the other Chicago area kids who are now in the NHL or in the AHL with a chance to move up. Kids like Schmaltz, Hartman, Louis, Dvorak, Fischer, Sparks, Carrick, Compher, Broadhurst, Mermis, and many others
- TheTrob

Fair enough and well stated! And I wholeheartedly agree on the Chicago boys making it to the Big Show and not playing a back seat to Detroit, Boston, and the State of Hockey!

In the "positive developments for the coming year" category:

via Chris Kuc of The Athletic:

"To that end, look for Seabrook, holder of the albatross of a contract with a $6.875 million cap hit that could impact the team's roster moves through the 2023-2024 season, to regain his footing. A source said Seabrook has been diligently following strength and conditioning coach Paul Goodman's workout regimens this offseason and has lost a significant amount of weight. That should help Seabrook recapture the step or two he appeared to lose last season and again make him more than a No.5 or No.6 defenseman."

Lack of punctuation aside, it's good to hear!
- Chunk

I was told a few months ago that this would happen. And not because of attitude issues, but because his back was finally starting to feel better - and he could now train for a full summer, instead of rehabbing for only part of it.

While your kids may know him, I do not believe you do and thus not giving Vinny fair shake. First of all, he has proven all the naysayers wrong at every level, be it youth, juniors, collegiate, and so far so good at the Big Show. And when he did not make the NTDP it spurred and motivated him to who he is today. Not one poster compared Vinny to the little guys you mentioned, Gaudreau, St. Louis, and Marchand as those are elite possibly HOF players. And one thing Vinny possess better than those guys is his "motor", something you cannot teach like size. So you couple his motor, dead-head speed, bettter than average hands, and in your words hockey IQ then you have a player that will find a niche in the league, especially in today's game and not in the dead puck clutch and grab era.
- D2D

I really like Vinny but the truth is he's nothing special, I mean he has terrific work ethic and he certainly worked hard to get to where he is today, however he's a 50 point player at his best, he's more of a 3rd line two-way player that can score on occasion than he is a top 6 offensive dynamo....I agree with the poster that said Vinny has already reached his ceiling, and to be honest he is a dime a dozen player, what sets him apart from other dime a dozen players is his work ethic, he gives 100% every second of ever shift and that is a very attractive trait - however he's not going to be anything close to a ppg player.... I mean I hated to see him go and I know Bowman considered him part of the Hawks future, however the trade was a good one for the Hawks, they got valuable cap space, Marcus Kruger, AHL fodder and MacKenzie Entwistle who Bowman wanted to draft in 2017, so the Hawks got a prospect they really liked (and could be an absolute steal) and all the Hawks had to give up was Hinostroza and Oesterle ..... I mean it's not like the Hawks gave up another Teuvo Teräväinen - Bowman gave up a 40-50 point player at his very best, and Entwistle has a lot of potential, he's a big kid and he could turn out to be a Dustin Byfuglien-type power-forward - I mean the kid has a nose for the net, he goes to the paint and bangs home the junk, so down the road he could be an excellent add and to be honest Entwistle has way more potential than Vinny....

Of course the Hawks got Kruger back too, which is a lot bigger deal than many Hawks fans believe - I mean he's a shutdown defensive forward that is excellent on face-offs which are 2 areas the Hawks were lacking last season, so having him in that shutdown role and penalty kill is huge, and defensively he's just as good has Hossa... IMO, this trade improved the Hawks now and in the future.

I think people mix up the words Overrated and Overpaid.
- HawksHype

100% Agreed of which I will add that you can be good and still be over-rated at the same time, ala Toews and to lesser degree Seabs!

I’d like to see the Hawks give Jannik Hansen a chance. He’s a solid depth defensive forward that can play both wings. He’s not worth overpaying for but a decent one year deal would be worth it. Kruger and Hansen could be a solid PK duo (not a good as Kruger and Frolik, but close). If the Hawks are sellers at the deadline he could easily be flipped for a pick.

I think people mix up the words Overrated and Overpaid.
- HawksHype

Remember when everyone thought it was insane to give Kane the same money as Toews?

That is called plausible deniability. A game all first class weasels play. Always have someone in between you and the problem. Guarantee you anytime a decision on players goes well his scribe is off to Wikipedia to update his bio to ensure credit is due.

This is bad news folks. Two months before camp and the leadership has no plan, or consensus around its execution if there is one.
- Return of the Roar

Whether the issue is McD vs. Stan, Stan vs. Q, Stan vs. McIsaac and the scouts...

The buck stops at the top - and if Rockytop wants the bucks to keep rolling in - he’ll fix the problem immediately.

In the "positive developments for the coming year" category:

via Chris Kuc of The Athletic:

"To that end, look for Seabrook, holder of the albatross of a contract with a $6.875 million cap hit that could impact the team's roster moves through the 2023-2024 season, to regain his footing. A source said Seabrook has been diligently following strength and conditioning coach Paul Goodman's workout regimens this offseason and has lost a significant amount of weight. That should help Seabrook recapture the step or two he appeared to lose last season and again make him more than a No.5 or No.6 defenseman."

Lack of punctuation aside, it's good to hear!
- Chunk

Keith - Jokiharju
Murphy - Seabs

Is your top 4 opening night then. If we can just bring in another forward to play with Kane, I think next season has the potential to be somewhat fun, tbh.

In the "positive developments for the coming year" category:

via Chris Kuc of The Athletic:

"To that end, look for Seabrook, holder of the albatross of a contract with a $6.875 million cap hit that could impact the team's roster moves through the 2023-2024 season, to regain his footing. A source said Seabrook has been diligently following strength and conditioning coach Paul Goodman's workout regimens this offseason and has lost a significant amount of weight. That should help Seabrook recapture the step or two he appeared to lose last season and again make him more than a No.5 or No.6 defenseman."

Lack of punctuation aside, it's good to hear!
- Chunk

I actually have an idea for Seabrook.

We know he wants to stay with the Hawks, and there is no way he would waive his NMC, however perhaps the Hawks could send him to a team like Carolina or a team at or below the salary cap lower limit - that team in turn buys Seabrook out and the Hawks resign him to a more reasonable deal?

I mean it's possible, and it is a creative way to deal with Seabrook's contract - however I wonder what the cost would be for a team to do that? a first round pick? would a first round pick justify such a thing if the Hawks re-signed Seabrook to a 2.5 million dollar deal?

Either way Seabrook is an issue, I mean look at all the young defensive studs that will be coming up in the next few years - Boqvist, Beaudin, Jokiharju, Mitchell & Carlsson all have top-4 and/or top-2 potential, of course the Hawks will still have Keith, Seabrook, Murphy, Gustafsson, Forsling etc..... So that blue line is going to be very crowded in the next couple of years.... So Seabrook is going to have to be moved at some point just to make room for one of the kids.... I mean the Hawks can't justify paying $6.875 million for a #5-6 defenseman.... Seabrook's contract does drop to 5 million in 20-21 which would be about time these kids would be ready to jump into the NHL, and Seabrook may be an easier sell at that point with only 3 years on his contract...

Indeed, Seabrook's contract is albatross, but what was Bowman supposed to do? let Seabrook walk after he anchored a defense that won the Hawks 3 Cups? I mean not signing him just couldn't be justified.. He is/was worth the $6.875 salary at the time he signed the deal, however the term is just ridiculous - Bowman should have given him 4 years max (realistically 3 years) so I don't know what Bowman was thinking... To be honest I think Bowman is a little bit too liberal when it comes to handing out contracts. I understand Bowman wants to be as classy as possible and he wants the Blackhawks to be known as a player friendly organization that looks out for their players, but Bowman overdid it with Seabrook.... Now Bowman is going to have to figure out what to do with him because he's going to be redundant shortly.

Ideally Seabrook should just retire in 2 years when he's 35 however there is no way he's just going to retire when there's $15.5 million on the table, and like I said previously - it's a long-shot that he'll waive his NMC, (however his NMC becomes a limited NTC in 2022-23) However perhaps he would waive his NMC to be bought out by another team if Bowman agreed to re-sign him for something like $2.5 million... The real question is would the NHL allow such shenanigans? lol... You can bet in that scenario there will be a lot of people crying "cap circumvention"...

So yea, Bowman is going to have to figure out what to do with Seabrook, preferably sooner rather than later, and if he's traded the Hawks are going to have to toss in a sweetener..... To be honest Seabrook would be an excellent fit in Edmonton, Seabrook is everything the Oilers need... Maybe Seabrook for Lucic? perhaps the Hawks toss in a little something to get the Oilers to retain a bit of that salary, perhaps 2 million?

I’d like to see the Hawks give Jannik Hansen a chance. He’s a solid depth defensive forward that can play both wings. He’s not worth overpaying for but a decent one year deal would be worth it. Kruger and Hansen could be a solid PK duo (not a good as Kruger and Frolik, but close). If the Hawks are sellers at the deadline he could easily be flipped for a pick.
- DarthKane

I'm not knocking the idea, but in all honesty, don't we have that guy already? Kampf, Hayden, Kunitz are all about the same thing aren't they? Concentrates on D, and being tough to play against, scores in the 15-20 pt range?

...the trade was a good one for the Hawks, they got valuable cap space, Marcus Kruger, AHL fodder and MacKenzie Entwistle who Bowman wanted to draft in 2017, so the Hawks got a prospect they really liked (and could be an absolute steal) and all the Hawks had to give up was Hinostroza and Oesterle ..... I mean it's not like the Hawks gave up another Teuvo Teräväinen - Bowman gave up a 40-50 point player at his very best, and Entwistle has a lot of potential, he's a big kid and he could turn out to be a Dustin Byfuglien-type power-forward - I mean the kid has a nose for the net, he goes to the paint and bangs home the junk, so down the road he could be an excellent add and to be honest Entwistle has way more potential than Vinny.
- Savard2Secord

If he lives up to his potential, Entwistle will be a much needed player in many regards and I'd venture to say a fan favorite. As many have pointed out and is easy to see visually, he has great size that is lacking in our forwards outside of Hayden.

Also, scouting reports on Entwistle describe him as a team-first player who will do all of the little things to help the team win and make his linemates better while not caring about his personal stats (i.e. goals, assists, points).

Plus he can play all 3 forward positions yet his strongest position is center. A center with big size and big compete level? Sign me up.

Remember when everyone thought it was insane to give Kane the same money as Toews?
- walleyeb1

What was Bowman supposed to do? both are the faces of the franchise, how could Bowman offer 10.5 to Kane and then 7.5 to Toews? what type of message does that send to Toews? that he means less to the organization despite being "Captain Serious"?... Is Toews overpaid? yes, a little but offering Toews & Kane twin contracts was the fair and right thing to do. If I was Toews and the Hawks offered Kane 10.5 and me 7.5 I would feel slighted.. Also remember that Toews & Kane share the same agent...

Remember, hockey is a team sport and points aren't the only thing that matters. Toews is still a defensive beast and one of the better defensive forwards in the game, so what he does maybe doesn't show up on the score sheet like Kane, however he contributes in ways that can't be statistically measured... Intangibles matter.

I mean even at 10.5 you can bet many teams would love to have him, because he's 3x Cup champion, a proven winner and a proven leader... A guy like Toews only comes around once in 5 or 10 years..

That's not necessarily it. While McDonough wants to be kept in the loop, he is the first one to admit when it comes to player personnel decisions, that's not his bag.

The indecision comes more from McIsaac vs. Bowman, and Bowman vs. the scouting department. There are varying ideas about how each wants this team constructed - and who will actually fit in the coaching scheme.

And before any of you start about this being a Quenneville issue, just stop. He coached them to three Cups, and it wasn't just the talent on the ice. He is considered to be one of the best in game adjusting coaches in the league - he sees trends in a game - both from his team and the other - and tries to shake things up when needed.

Thanks for the info on Mcdonough, so who has last say in the matters McIsaac or Bowman? IMO it should be Bowman. As for Quennville he not the best coach at teaching young players or working with them but I agree one the in game adjuster and finger on the pulse of the team and when to push the right buttons at the right time. We as fans do not always understand why but his methods got the blackhawks and Chicago 3 cups. Would I be wrong to say if the season does not get out good start and the hawks by Thanksgiving are not in playoff spot that Coach Q would let go? Then if that would to happen who replaces him?

When they were winning the Cups with him doing this, most of you weren't complaining. Now that they are not winning, you complain about him.

You can't have it both ways.
- dahawks8819

I actually have an idea for Seabrook.

We know he wants to stay with the Hawks, and there is no way he would waive his NMC, however perhaps the Hawks could send him to a team like Carolina or a team at or below the salary cap lower limit - that team in turn buys Seabrook out and the Hawks resign him to a more reasonable deal?

I mean it's possible, and it is a creative way to deal with Seabrook's contract - however I wonder what the cost would be for a team to do that? a first round pick? would a first round pick justify such a thing if the Hawks re-signed Seabrook to a 2.5 million dollar deal?

Either way Seabrook is an issue, I mean look at all the young defensive studs that will be coming up in the next few years - Boqvist, Beaudin, Jokiharju, Mitchell & Carlsson all have top-4 and/or top-2 potential, of course the Hawks will still have Keith, Seabrook, Murphy, Gustafsson, Forsling etc..... So that blue line is going to be very crowded in the next couple of years.... So Seabrook is going to have to be moved at some point just to make room for one of the kids.... I mean the Hawks can't justify paying $6.875 million for a #5-6 defenseman.... Seabrook's contract does drop to 5 million in 20-21 which would be about time these kids would be ready to jump into the NHL, and Seabrook may be an easier sell at that point with only 3 years on his contract...

Indeed, Seabrook's contract is albatross, but what was Bowman supposed to do? let Seabrook walk after he anchored a defense that won the Hawks 3 Cups? I mean not signing him just couldn't be justified.. He is/was worth the $6.875 salary at the time he signed the deal, however the term is just ridiculous - Bowman should have given him 4 years max (realistically 3 years) so I don't know what Bowman was thinking... To be honest I think Bowman is a little bit too liberal when it comes to handing out contracts. I understand Bowman wants to be as classy as possible and he wants the Blackhawks to be known as a player friendly organization that looks out for their players, but Bowman overdid it with Seabrook.... Now Bowman is going to have to figure out what to do with him because he's going to be redundant shortly.

Ideally Seabrook should just retire in 2 years when he's 35 however there is no way he's just going to retire when there's $15.5 million on the table, and like I said previously - it's a long-shot that he'll waive his NMC, (however his NMC becomes a limited NTC in 2022-23) However perhaps he would waive his NMC to be bought out by another team if Bowman agreed to re-sign him for something like $2.5 million... The real question is would the NHL allow such shenanigans? lol... You can bet in that scenario there will be a lot of people crying "cap circumvention"...

So yea, Bowman is going to have to figure out what to do with Seabrook, preferably sooner rather than later, and if he's traded the Hawks are going to have to toss in a sweetener..... To be honest Seabrook would be an excellent fit in Edmonton, Seabrook is everything the Oilers need... Maybe Seabrook for Lucic? perhaps the Hawks toss in a little something to get the Oilers to retain a bit of that salary, perhaps 2 million?
- Savard2Secord

If the Hawks did this, there would be some sort of retroactive recapture penalty applied, just like the Hossa contract (ex post facto Constitution scholars and Hawks fans!!!!). The Caps doing it is apparently OK even though it is a blatant circumvention of the cap.

I was told a few months ago that this would happen. And not because of attitude issues, but because his back was finally starting to feel better - and he could now train for a full summer, instead of rehabbing for only part of it.
- dahawks8819

He certainly hasn't looked right since these back issues started and I think it still goes back to the St Louis 7 game series in 2016.

How is North Melborne looking in the Footy league? Got to see them on a few business trips in the past...
- riozzo

Late reply, but going OK considering. Were tipped to be finishing towards the bottom, but currently just out of a finals spot with 5 games to play. Conveniently they are also the team I follow haha