Gotta think Strome on the wing has more to do with the following...

- Needing a second Center on a line with AA (for winning important FOs)
- Showcasing AA and Kruger at their natural positions for deadline (or sooner) deals
- Wanting to continue to develop Kampf at Center to take over as the 3rd/4th line Center moving forward
- Giving Kaner another skilled forward to play with who can score
- Seeing how Strome can play on the wing if needed in a pinch

Gotta think something is gonna give in the next week here before Joki comes back from Juniors with the roster. Idk if it'll be big or small but they gotta make some move soon here. I'd be shocked if any big deal goes down before the Winter Classic cuz McD & Co. are gonna wanna get as much pub outta that sucker as they can to bring up the revenue before evening considering pulling the trigger on a Keith deal or something like that
- Savetheembers33

General managers have until 11:59 p.m. local time on Wednesday, December 19 to make their moves. After that, they’ll have to wait until at least Friday, December 28 before they can start wheeling and dealing again.

2 of 3 of Stan's off season FA signings, Kuniitz and Manning, sitting out again.
- boilermaker100

Its necessary if you are going to make points like this that you point out that these are players that Q wanted also.

An article that's a month old, but it tells the story
of why we are where we are as a terrible hockey
team.......discloser it mentions Stan quite a bit

This article makes Chia look great!

https://www.barstoolsport...performance-review-blog-2
- gazza53

Thanks for sharing this article. It is hard to relive most of the decisions Stan has made since the 2015 Cup win.

Its necessary if you are going to make points like this that you point out that these are players that Q wanted also.
- vabeachbear

People keep saying this like it is a fact. Do you have a source? Or has it just been repeated in blogworld so many times it feels true?

GM's and coaches talk about systems that will be run and types of players to fill certain roles. GM's make trades for specific players to fill those needs. GM's trade for players, coaches don't. Especially in the Hawks system where everyone in the front office has to sign off on every move.

Entwhistle isnt 100%. Canada is waiting to see about a couple injured forwards and still have to make a cut.

Here's hoping he makes it!
- Justin Lowe

Yeah read somewhere that Entwistle is a maybe as a tentative replacement for Formenton from the Senators who is injured.

People keep saying this like it is a fact. Do you have a source? Or has it just been repeated in blogworld so many times it feels true?

GM's and coaches talk about systems that will be run and types of players to fill certain roles. GM's make trades for specific players to fill those needs. GM's trade for players, coaches don't. Especially in the Hawks system where everyone in the front office has to sign off on every move.
- hereismike1

I have to think Q was involved in the daley for Suds. would be nice to make a move before WED. I'm not a big fan of teams waiting till the deadline especially on D. it takes more then 20 games to get to know the system and your teammates. IMO. that is why its rare for D to make a diff in the playoffs if they are acquired at the TDL. IMO.

That play he made on the goal eventually scored by Perlini was the first thing I’ve seen from him that showed the flash everyone was talking about. That was an impressive play.
- Spec41971

Sikura will likely never drive a line but he can be dangerous if he has offensively talented linemates to finish whatever he creates as a playmaker.

Might be good to see how he and DeBrincat play tonight with Colliton splitting the Cat from Strome and Kane.

People keep saying this like it is a fact. Do you have a source? Or has it just been repeated in blogworld so many times it feels true?

GM's and coaches talk about systems that will be run and types of players to fill certain roles. GM's make trades for specific players to fill those needs. GM's trade for players, coaches don't. Especially in the Hawks system where everyone in the front office has to sign off on every move.
- hereismike1

Stan alluded to it in an interview after Q was fired. It wasn't "Q said sign these guys", but Stan stated that they were the type of players that Q wanted.

Edit, from the Athletic: "Bowman said he targeted Kunitz and Manning because they appeared to fit Quenneville's type of game.

"Part of your job as a manager is to try to work with your coach to try to give them players that can implement the way they want to play, Bowman said. So I think we did a good job of that over the years with Joel. When it was obvious players didn't fit the way even thought they were quote-unquote good players, if they weren't going to work for us, we didn't just sit on them. We would move them and try to find somebody.

"It's sort of the same thing. We didn't have a lot of money to spend, but they were players that had attributes that Joel thought was important for our team and was lacking."

Thanks for sharing this article. It is hard to relive most of the decisions Stan has made since the 2015 Cup win.
- hereismike1

What coulda been had we had a competent GM

Most of that was before my time, which is why I don't remember them... and I don't know anything about soccer...

I only could think of Ditka!! I forgot Phil Jackson was even a player, was he a star though?
- ToewsdNKanefusd

Role player. Kind of a thug. I think he had a decent rookie year and won a championship or two as a player.

Just some interesting tidbits:

Dubas on the trade deadline and pending UFA Jake Gardiner

Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun: Toronto Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas, when asked if they’ll be looking to improve their blueline by the trade deadline, said that they’ll always look to improve their team. They’d like to move the puck better out of their zone, with some of it falling on the forwards.

“If that isn’t something that is happening as we get closer to the end of February, I think I will certainly look to improve.”
Dubas on pending UFA defenseman Jake Gardiner.


“We’re having discussions with Jake, he is a key part,” Dubas said. “We have some other matters we have to tend to, and that has been communicated to Jake. We would like him to be here, it’s not as simple as it sounds. You only have a certain amount you can divvy up, and it’s trying to make that all work and keep our team on the right path moving forward.”


Dubas explains that Toronto doesn’t really believe that there are many options on the rental market that could “really change the dynamic” of the team and instead would be looking for trade options that come under contract beyond this season.

An article that's a month old, but it tells the story
of why we are where we are as a terrible hockey
team.......discloser it mentions Stan quite a bit

This article makes Chia look great!

https://www.barstoolsport...performance-review-blog-2
- gazza53

I'm heading to the game tonight and actually am going to be wearing this shirt. With that said, I am actually a backer of Bowman (historically). I don't believe he is a clown, but at the same time, it's a pretty funny shirt.

I listened to his Spittin Chicklets interview and thought he did well in handling his questions. He continues to stand by his moves, which I prefer he does rather than backtrack on what he's done. Also, he never used his past successes to reason his recent failures. He spoke well about how he sees the future planning out, and he's not making moves for a single season.

For those who haven't listened to it, I'd recommend it. Biz/Whitney kind of get old, with their frat boy tendencies (I mean c'mon, you're talking to the Blackhawks GM and you're asking about locker room wrench sizes?), but it's actually really great insight from the man himself.

What coulda been had we had a competent GM
- gazza53

He had to sell off major contributors after 2010 and then won 2 more, with 3 long playoffs in between. You really don't think he's competent?

Its necessary if you are going to make points like this that you point out that these are players that Q wanted also.
- vabeachbear

I did sarcastically in a later post.

General managers have until 11:59 p.m. local time on Wednesday, December 19 to make their moves. After that, they’ll have to wait until at least Friday, December 28 before they can start wheeling and dealing again.
- walleyeb1

Ohh I know, it would be ideal to get something done before Wednesday, but they could still discuss something that could be completed after Dec. 28th when the roster freeze is up. Just meant that they need to have it figured out before Joki returns from Juniors first week of January.

I'm heading to the game tonight and actually am going to be wearing this shirt. With that said, I am actually a backer of Bowman (historically). I don't believe he is a clown, but at the same time, it's a pretty funny shirt.

I listened to his Spittin Chicklets interview and thought he did well in handling his questions. He continues to stand by his moves, which I prefer he does rather than backtrack on what he's done. Also, he never used his past successes to reason his recent failures. He spoke well about how he sees the future planning out, and he's not making moves for a single season.

For those who haven't listened to it, I'd recommend it. Biz/Whitney kind of get old, with their frat boy tendencies (I mean c'mon, you're talking to the Blackhawks GM and you're asking about locker room wrench sizes?), but it's actually really great insight from the man himself.
- HawksHype

Enjoy, hopefully it isn't the norm as to how they play.

Stan might be a stand up guy considering he's never been
made accountable for this pile, and although not a fan of his
and never will be, it's not as if the cap came from outta the
blue and said Stan we gotchya again.

With all that said having an anchor like mcd doesn't help, I'm
sure the Seabs contract was all mcd, what Rocky didn't
understand imo is that his dad sold off popular assets cuz of his
cheapness whereas if Stan traded for value the populous woulda
understood this, afterall there is a cap. My $.02

Enjoy, hopefully it isn't the norm as to how they play.

Stan might be a stand up guy considering he's never been
made accountable for this pile, and although not a fan of his
and never will be, it's not as if the cap came from outta the
blue and said Stan we gotchya again.

With all that said having an anchor like mcd doesn't help, I'm
sure the Seabs contract was all mcd, what Rocky didn't
understand imo is that his dad sold off popular assets cuz of his
cheapness whereas if Stan traded for value the populous woulda
understood this, afterall there is a cap. My $.02
- gazza53

I agree that Seabs may have the worst contract in the NHL, but at the same time, what if he wasn't going to sign with the Hawks for less? Do you let Seabs walk from the Hawks then? I'm not defending Stan, honestly, but I like to play devils advocate. Looking at contracts, its probably not as simple as we make it sound here on the boards. Same with Toews, thats a monster contract for him. But whats the alternative? When you're stuck in a win-now mode with a core of guys (which is a blessing as a fan), you have to pay the price to keep it. The result of that is the later years are a disaster. Future pains are paid for with current success. A lot of teams do that, and most do not have the success. You can't change the past, the contracts that were handed out. It's now time to see what he can do for the future. It starts with all the D prospects, maintaining F talent going forward. Not making a trade/signing a top FA just because you have the cap room. It needs to make sense. I'm ok with Stan holding onto the $5M he has now, because what is a $5M player going to do for us now? Unfortunately, theres going to be a deep lull in between our cups and our next. The question is for how long. If we can land a top 3 player in the draft this year, maybe a top 10 next, sign a top FA in the next 2 years, and have 2 of the 6 top d prospects hit, we'll be back to being competitive. And this is what happens when you are waiting to leave work, you just ramble....

Are there any guesstimates out there for the 2019 draft class as to how many 1st Rounders will be immediate NHL impact players?
On current trajectory, I do not see the 'Hawks drafting lower than the #7 slot.

Are there any guesstimates out there for the 2019 draft class as to how many 1st Rounders will be immediate NHL impact players?
On current trajectory, I do not see the 'Hawks drafting lower than the #7 slot.
- 35Tony0

i was thinking no lower than 4 or 5.....your an optimist!!! especially with CC out

I agree that Seabs may have the worst contract in the NHL, but at the same time, what if he wasn't going to sign with the Hawks for less? Do you let Seabs walk from the Hawks then? I'm not defending Stan, honestly, but I like to play devils advocate. Looking at contracts, its probably not as simple as we make it sound here on the boards. Same with Toews, thats a monster contract for him. But whats the alternative? When you're stuck in a win-now mode with a core of guys (which is a blessing as a fan), you have to pay the price to keep it. The result of that is the later years are a disaster. Future pains are paid for with current success. A lot of teams do that, and most do not have the success. You can't change the past, the contracts that were handed out. It's now time to see what he can do for the future. It starts with all the D prospects, maintaining F talent going forward. Not making a trade/signing a top FA just because you have the cap room. It needs to make sense. I'm ok with Stan holding onto the $5M he has now, because what is a $5M player going to do for us now? Unfortunately, theres going to be a deep lull in between our cups and our next. The question is for how long. If we can land a top 3 player in the draft this year, maybe a top 10 next, sign a top FA in the next 2 years, and have 2 of the 6 top d prospects hit, we'll be back to being competitive. And this is what happens when you are waiting to leave work, you just ramble....
- HawksHype

Yep, gotchya and for the most part I agree, I think the cap per se is
being used by the organization as an excuse for most of the trades
albeit mostly poor to bad done by Stan. If they couldn't play hardball
w/Seabs they deserve what that seed has sown, again none of us know
how it went down but most everyone knew it was terrible before the
ink dried.
The Sharp deal is another that raised the salary rather than lower the
cap for further signings, I'm just saying Stan is no cap master as the
Hawks love to tell us.
And for the last time he couldn't be alone in making all of those deals
he had help from up above, which makes it much sadder we are going
to be hockey purgatory until changes from the top down occur.

Enjoy the soft serve

I agree that Seabs may have the worst contract in the NHL, but at the same time, what if he wasn't going to sign with the Hawks for less? Do you let Seabs walk from the Hawks then? I'm not defending Stan, honestly, but I like to play devils advocate. Looking at contracts, its probably not as simple as we make it sound here on the boards. Same with Toews, thats a monster contract for him. But whats the alternative? When you're stuck in a win-now mode with a core of guys (which is a blessing as a fan), you have to pay the price to keep it. The result of that is the later years are a disaster. Future pains are paid for with current success. A lot of teams do that, and most do not have the success. You can't change the past, the contracts that were handed out. It's now time to see what he can do for the future. It starts with all the D prospects, maintaining F talent going forward. Not making a trade/signing a top FA just because you have the cap room. It needs to make sense. I'm ok with Stan holding onto the $5M he has now, because what is a $5M player going to do for us now? Unfortunately, theres going to be a deep lull in between our cups and our next. The question is for how long. If we can land a top 3 player in the draft this year, maybe a top 10 next, sign a top FA in the next 2 years, and have 2 of the 6 top d prospects hit, we'll be back to being competitive. And this is what happens when you are waiting to leave work, you just ramble....
- HawksHype

I would have shipped Seabrook a year before the contract, he was deteriorating already. Heck, hold to Nick Leddy and you would be better off then and better off now. Part of the problem is that they are very reactive and hold to people for too long and make decisions/trades when ship is already sailed.
And definitely you let him walk unless he accepts 3.5 mln * 4 years. You need to set up the rules that if you want to stay on championship organization you all need to be reasonable with contract demands. But if Bickell can get 4 mln from this organization just after a few good games played in several seasons right before contract extension kicks in it, it sets bad predecent for everyone else, so Toews/Kane/Saad/Seabrook/Kruger went after Bickell and all probably got more money than would have been possible if this prededent have not been set earlier.
Oshie accepted 5 mln because he liked Caps as UFA, Stamkos and Hedman accepted 8 mln, etc since their clubs/GMs do not hand over rish contracts with NMCs to everyone, so if you want to stay and content please be reasonable. No Seabrook contact was an abomination either way and should not have been inked, but so is Bickell and some others.

AEL_Fox, What is your take on why Ejdsell is not finding the back of the net more? I'm curious to know what you think.
- breadbag

Another thing to consider with the Hartman trade is that even if Ejdsell is a bust or at least becomes a Hawks regular in a lesser role than expected, the team could still benefit from that trade as they gained 2 draft picks which were used to select Beaudin and Kurashev.

For all we know, all 3 could be busts or all 3 could be hits. Here's hoping at least one realizes his potential. Beaudin may end up being the best player out of all 3 with Kurashev possibly being poised to 2nd best.

Watching Columbus last night, sign me up for Josh Anderson. I know he has had some issues with Torts earlier this year. Adding him and Jake Gardiner would be very good as far as NHL players to compliment talent that is there and the youngsters.

Yep, gotchya and for the most part I agree, I think the cap per se is
being used by the organization as an excuse for most of the trades
albeit mostly poor to bad done by Stan. If they couldn't play hardball
w/Seabs they deserve what that seed has sown, again none of us know
how it went down but most everyone knew it was terrible before the
ink dried.
The Sharp deal is another that raised the salary rather than lower the
cap for further signings, I'm just saying Stan is no cap master as the
Hawks love to tell us.
And for the last time he couldn't be alone in making all of those deals
he had help from up above, which makes it much sadder we are going
to be hockey purgatory until changes from the top down occur.

Enjoy the soft serve

- gazza53

I follow you and agree as well, like I said, I honestly love playing devils advocate. You could have said exactly what I said previously, and I'll call you out on it lol. It's not meant to be annoying or to piss you off, it's more or less being inquisitive as to how people think. With that said, Bowman, imo, is out of scapegoats. Can't keep using old trades, can't keep using cap space, can't use Q. The chickens are coming home to roost, Bobby Boucher.

I would have shipped Seabrook a year before the contract, he was deteriorating already. Heck, hold to Nick Leddy and you would be better off then and better off now. Part of the problem is that they are very reactive and hold to people for too long and make decisions/trades when ship is already sailed.
And definitely you let him walk unless he accepts 3.5 mln * 4 years. You need to set up the rules that if you want to stay on championship organization you all need to be reasonable with contract demands. But if Bickell can get 4 mln from this organization just after a few good games played in several seasons right before contract extension kicks in it, it sets bad predecent for everyone else, so Toews/Kane/Saad/Seabrook/Kruger went after Bickell and all probably got more money than would have been possible if this prededent have not been set earlier.
Oshie accepted 5 mln because he liked Caps as UFA, Stamkos and Hedman accepted 8 mln, etc since their clubs/GMs do not hand over rish contracts with NMCs to everyone, so if you want to stay and content please be reasonable. No Seabrook contact was an abomination either way and should not have been inked, but so is Bickell and some others.
- vshun

You ship your #2 defenseman, after 2 cups, when the core is still dominant?
Bickell at $4M was not a bad deal. He was a 1LW, power F that the hawks needed. Hell, Frolik got a deal for $4M!! It was the market.

I disagree with what you're saying, but that's what causes the discussion. I think if Stan tries setting a precedent, he doesn't get 3 cups.