A good UFA addition would help. Key thing that stands out to me in what you wrote...consistency. One of the biggest areas of concern for the Hawks. I think the best thing they can do for this is solidify the top of the lineup and slot guys where they belong. I look at it this way, when guys are playing too high up the pecking order, they are not focusing on their strengths because they are not comfortable trying to do "too much". Using Kampf as an example, if he is being deployed to generate some offense and he is putting in his typical effort, that is giving him one more thing to worry about. He is out there thinking "I've got to make a big play to help the team score, because I'm playing with Kane tonight, so I need to change my game." That attention to detail in other areas can suffer.

The good players, the elite players can make it look effortless offensively and still focus on defensive positioning and play. They have the skill, hockey IQ and ability to make it look natural. The role players...not as much. Maybe some of it will come with experience, but right now it feels like Chicago has a lot of guys lacking identity in their role, on top of the vets that sometimes fail to live up to their previous roles.

This consistency might be better if some guys can actually simplify and take some pressure off themselves. I'm thinking about Saad, Gustafsson, Forsling, Hayden, Perlini as examples.

Saad can drive the net and play good D, but I think he gets a bit over his head if he is trying to be too "dynamic" in east-west play. It isn't his strength.

Gustafsson is progressing IMO, but needs to continue to pump the breaks a bit and try to do less individually. I think if he feels like pressure to be "the guy" he might not play like such a riverboat gambler.

Forsling, I'm not so sure, but it isn't helping his development when he is hurt as often as he seems to be. Does anyone know much about his conditioning? Maybe he just needs to get to that next level physically. Consistency has always been the knock against him, but he is getting older and should be starting to ramp up his game.

Hayden, I just don't know. Some nights he is invisible (partially because he can't get ice-time) but at times he has had great shifts and physicality. They could use a player of his physical caliber on the ice sometimes. I just don't know if he has it at the NHL level. I really want him to succeed, because he can protect the puck and screen the goalie pretty well.

Perlini looks lost at times. Defensive awareness seems to be a struggle for him. I think he has potential but I think he needs a simple role out there.

Overall, if we can get a bit more top end talent, maybe some of the other players can focus on being who they are and not try to be more. I don't think we have so many bad players, just too many guys trying to fill in the holes above them.
- breadbag

Very good post. Definitely agree that consistency and proper slotting of every player whether forwards or defense are critical. Your examples of Saad and Kampf to illustrate your points are spot on.

Playing above your water level means you're trying to do too much with limited skill. Then playing below your water level means your assets are being wasted or at least under valued, which for better or worse, can lead to disenchantment and restlessness.

This ought to explode some heads in here:

Mark Lazerus
@MarkLazerus

Patrick Kane on Brent Seabrook: "People want to get on Seabs about his contract. To us, he's underpaid, what he brings to this locker room, the way he's such a great leader. ... He's an unbelievable teammate. Even that game he missed, it's like you lose your heart and soul."
- pdx2ord

And this is why listening/reading anything a pro athlete says is a waste 95% of the time. Intangibles matter but not at 7 mil per for 7 yrs.

Regarding Hughes. Kakko and Podkolzin, if the Hawks keep playing like yesterday, they can kiss away a top 3 pick. But then on any given night they can play like they did against NJ last week.

I wonder if the good teams just think they don't have to put forth their best effort against this Hawks team. Recent examples the past few weeks include the Caps, Jets and Preds all Hawks wins.

Edit. Should be Pens (twice) instead of Jets.
- boilermaker100

Playing like yesterday:

They won't score 8 (7 with an opposing goalie in net) very often.

They WILL allow 5+ much more often.

Bingo, What's your take on the Rask deal. If I remember correctly, last year some posters wanted him traded to Chicago. Don't know what the trade proposals were, but you were holding out for more? Maybe I'm misremembering?
- boilermaker100

I think Carolina wins that trade

I'd bet he's selling at the deadline (my spidey senses tell me) and despite what he says, we're getting late first round pick (s) like the Hartman trade.

I think he learned his lesson of having a crappy summer, he's going to do something (s) big. Good or bad ... time will tell.
- I Am The Breadman

I'm all for Hartman/Brouwer like trades where any 1st rounder comes back to the Hawks. Don't care if they're late rounders, too. Beaudin was late 20's and he could be a good one. Danault was a late rounder as well after McNeill was taken first.

For those of you into math, here is something for the sky is falling crowd.

The Hawks, the worst team in hockey according to the entitled, are 2 points a month (Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan) from being a playoff team.

That is 1 win a month or 2 overtime losses away from being a playoff team, 1 point back, as of right now.

9 overtime losses, flip 3 of those and you only need 3 wins. Remember Montreal loss?

Anyway, water under the bridge.

However, it is some desperately needed perspective for many here to understand and develop some context. Razor thin margins.

Meanwhile, not totally vertical or linear, there is no doubt the recent trajectory of this team is upward.

They will continue to improve and add where they can, but lets not get all caught up with the idea that somehow they are 20 games out at the all star break. Yes they are 10 back and playoffs unlikely, but you get my point...

Unless you are bad at math....
- TrueGrit

But if God were going to flip some games for the Hawks to get them into the tournament - because man can't do it any more - why wouldn't he also do it for Minnesota, Anaheim, Edmonton, Arizona, and St. Louis?

Or - to take it out of the metaphysical - you could say the same thing about all of those other teams. It IS a parity league - can't have 2 eight-game losing streaks, then another of five, and hope to get it back in a league that has the bogus 3rd point in so many games.

I'm all for Hartman/Brouwer like trades where any 1st rounder comes back to the Hawks. Don't care if they're late rounders, too. Beaudin was late 20's and he could be a good one. Danault was a late rounder as well after McNeill was taken first.
- AEL_Fox

It's good with a deep draft.

This ought to explode some heads in here:

Mark Lazerus
@MarkLazerus

Patrick Kane on Brent Seabrook: "People want to get on Seabs about his contract. To us, he's underpaid, what he brings to this locker room, the way he's such a great leader. ... He's an unbelievable teammate. Even that game he missed, it's like you lose your heart and soul."
- pdx2ord

Isn't it the TERM, not the CAP HIT that's the problem?

That argument makes zero sense.

It would be harder to get guys to go there. And They should have to overpay to get them to come/stay if that's what's being taken into account.

Nobody is taking a discount to come to/stick with a losing team.
- BINGO!

I think there are multiple ways to look at it. Being on a winning team increases your value when it comes time to signing a new contract. Being part of a struggling team can definitely limit the leverage for the player's agent. I mean the team is a business. If you are TT in a big market and on a winning team, you are probably driving more merchandise sales $, bigger partnerships, etc..

If you are in Carolina, you are still a big part of the team, but the market is smaller and you aren't in the same spotlight. Can you justify asking as much? Maybe if you are one of the elite guys in the NHL.

As weak as the D is there is a glut and you posted the advantages of signing Stralman this summer which would make that glut worse.

Guess we'll know better after the TDL and who gets moved, if anyone. But I would wonder if adding a 33 yr old Stralman to Seabs and Keith would be the proper way to allocate NHL ice time making for three 33 yr old plus Dmen for a rebuilding squad?

If Gus is here add, Murphy, Dahlstrom, Joki, Forsling and maybe even KooKoo to that list and you have a glut. And we haven't mentioned one Hog or prospect.

Again the TDL will force the Hawks to show some of their cards moving forward. But unless 2-3-4 Dmen are moved adding a Stralman exacerbates the D man numbers issue.
- Mr Ricochet

Get what you're saying. There is a glut that needs to be resolved to make room.

Let's say Davidson, Koekkoek, and Forsling are gone (or at least in the AHL in Forling's case) and a UFA like Stralman is signed:

Keith - Jokiharju
Stralman/UFA - Murphy
Gustafsson - Seabrook
Dahlstrom

But if Stralman or another UFA is not signed and none of the prospects graduate to the NHL level, then it's either the same defense coming back or a trade or two to acquire a new D man and maybe shipping out Gustafsson or even Keith if any of those rumors come to fruition. Or a combination of a UFA signing and a trade(s).

Just asking a question here Justin and the rest of you guys, I’ve mentioned it before, looks like Bob Murray is open for business. Would Josh Manson be “that guy “you are talking about as far as a top for lockdown defense men? That definitely would be a phone call hopefully Bowman would make,
Agree on Mark Stone, , Does Carolina all want to unload Darlings contract? Would Bowman be in a position and go to them and ask if they would like to get out from under it but they have to attach Teräväinen to that deal. Possibly we may have to give them something back. Just spit balling,
That is only if Cory cannot play anymore. Otherwise I agree him in Delia going forward. But if Crawford cannot play anymore, with Delia being the number one guy and bring in a guy in there is familiar like Scott Darling with the mindset that he knows he’s going to get 35 games a year and that’s about it. Wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. I do not think he has the mindset of being a number one goal tender In the National Hockey League. The role he played here for this team was perfect. And he can go back to that again.

Noticed this yesterday.

The points spread for the playoffs in the East is crazy right now. Here are the teams currently in a playoff spot and their point total.

Tampa 76
NYI 62
Toronto 60
Columbus 59
Washington 59
Boston 59
Montreal 59
Pittsburgh 58

Tampa is way ahead, but the rest is just insanely close. Yesterday before NYI won, it was two points separating 7 teams. I don't know that I've ever seen a conference of playoff bound teams so tight in the standings.

For those of you into math, here is something for the sky is falling crowd.

The Hawks, the worst team in hockey according to the entitled, are 2 points a month (Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan) from being a playoff team.

That is 1 win a month or 2 overtime losses away from being a playoff team, 1 point back, as of right now.

9 overtime losses, flip 3 of those and you only need 3 wins. Remember Montreal loss?

Anyway, water under the bridge.

However, it is some desperately needed perspective for many here to understand and develop some context. Razor thin margins.

Meanwhile, not totally vertical or linear, there is no doubt the recent trajectory of this team is upward.

They will continue to improve and add where they can, but lets not get all caught up with the idea that somehow they are 20 games out at the all star break. Yes they are 10 back and playoffs unlikely, but you get my point...

Unless you are bad at math....
- TrueGrit

Maybe not the worse team in the league but currently sitting in last place overall. Spin it how you want and my math aint great but 31 still equates to 31.
Upward is debatable. One step forward, two steps back.
Some of the core are making too much money for what they are contributing and is in large part part of the main problem. Resolve that and better spend your money and then maybe well have a different conversation.
Otherwise, rinse, wash, repeat.

But if God were going to flip some games for the Hawks to get them into the tournament - because man can't do it any more - why wouldn't he also do it for Minnesota, Anaheim, Edmonton, Arizona, and St. Louis?

Or - to take it out of the metaphysical - you could say the same thing about all of those other teams. It IS a parity league - can't have 2 eight-game losing streaks, then another of five, and hope to get it back in a league that has the bogus 3rd point in so many games.
- StLBravesFan

Totally agree, makes my broader point about parity. My point was not about sneaking them in, it is pointing out that as good or bad as people may think they are, they are in a larger group of teams. Not miles behind the next worse team.

When the pens retooled they where alot younger . If you look at Pittsburgh now they are exactly where Chicago is in regards to age when they won the cup a couple of years ago they would be equivalent to the hawks 2012-2013 thru 2014-2015 runs.


Keith and Seabrook are both well past their prime and neither of these 2 guys will help this team win another cup.

Their age , cap , terms and position are keeping this team from having roster spots open , cap space to use to sign any free agents agent He mere fact their age .


It's time for everyone to realize that moving both players is a priority and positive .

If Chicago was playing 500 and a couple of players away from contending then yeah maybe we hang onto them. Chicago is in dead last place and their defense is atrocious, that should tell everyone neither player is making this team any better.
- Taylorst1

Actually Penguins cup winning roster 2015/2016 included Cullen 39, Scuderi 37, Dupuis 36, Kunitz 36, Daley 32, Lovejoy 31, Fehr 30.

This ought to explode some heads in here:

Mark Lazerus
@MarkLazerus

Patrick Kane on Brent Seabrook: "People want to get on Seabs about his contract. To us, he's underpaid, what he brings to this locker room, the way he's such a great leader. ... He's an unbelievable teammate. Even that game he missed, it's like you lose your heart and soul."
- pdx2ord

Why? Nobody is questioning Seabrook is a great guy from everything that's ever been said. He's a great guy and a great teammate, but it's a business. You don't give out huge long term contracts for retroactive performance only and to be a likable teammate. You also expect a certain level of future on-ice performance. The rangers bought out and ended the career of their captain in Chris Drury. Dean Lombardi refused to compliance buyout Mike Richards when he was underperforming then sleazed out from under his contract with a minor legal incident when his play got worse. It's a business and we need to tell him no hard feeling and thanks for the memories but being forced to play him because of his contract and having his contract, relative to his performance, taking up valuable space to prevent this team from getting better, is really just not debatable at this point.

I'm sure if all the players were given the choice of competing for a cup again or having Seabrook still be on the team to be a locker room/bench cheerleader, they would prefer to get back to the cup. There's 21 other guys on the roster that they owe it to and compete for, not just Seabrook

And if they want to bring him back to be a team consultant, coach, whatever, I'm all for it

For those of you into math, here is something for the sky is falling crowd.

The Hawks, the worst team in hockey according to the entitled, are 2 points a month (Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan) from being a playoff team.

That is 1 win a month or 2 overtime losses away from being a playoff team, 1 point back, as of right now.

9 overtime losses, flip 3 of those and you only need 3 wins. Remember Montreal loss?

Anyway, water under the bridge.

However, it is some desperately needed perspective for many here to understand and develop some context. Razor thin margins.

Meanwhile, not totally vertical or linear, there is no doubt the recent trajectory of this team is upward.

They will continue to improve and add where they can, but lets not get all caught up with the idea that somehow they are 20 games out at the all star break. Yes they are 10 back and playoffs unlikely, but you get my point...

Unless you are bad at math....
- TrueGrit

Well said. Would Hughes/Kakko, a stud dman, a healthy Crow/Delia combination, and further development of a few (not necessarily all) of the younger players ( Kampf, Strome, Kahun, Sikura, Murphy, Dahlstrom, Gus, Caggiula, Perlini, and Joki), get us that two points per month. Maybe add in a surprise like Entwistle, Barrat, Probably.

This ought to explode some heads in here:

Mark Lazerus
@MarkLazerus

Patrick Kane on Brent Seabrook: "People want to get on Seabs about his contract. To us, he's underpaid, what he brings to this locker room, the way he's such a great leader. ... He's an unbelievable teammate. Even that game he missed, it's like you lose your heart and soul."
- pdx2ord

This team gets on the ice and routinely gets pummeled in the first period. If Seabs is this great locker room guy and leader along with Toews then that shouldn't happen.

Kane is living in the past. He is making comments about a guy who is clearly close personal friend and teammate.

Seabs is a liability on the ice. His skating and balance is so bad it has brought down the rest of his game. He can't make clean passes and has zero poise when the puck is on his stick.

Noticed this yesterday.

The points spread for the playoffs in the East is crazy right now. Here are the teams currently in a playoff spot and their point total.

Tampa 76
NYI 62
Toronto 60
Columbus 59
Washington 59
Boston 59
Montreal 59
Pittsburgh 58

Tampa is way ahead, but the rest is just insanely close. Yesterday before NYI won, it was two points separating 7 teams. I don't know that I've ever seen a conference of playoff bound teams so tight in the standings.
- breadbag

Whats amazing is the turnaround by the Isle - they lost their top C to the Leafs and last 2-3 years couldnt keep the puck out of their net (sound familiar?) and they brought in Trots and wow, they are in first place and are one of the top D-fensive teams in the NHL. Begs the question, players or system?

The Kings need a top 6 forward, I really like Matt Luft, I think he could fit in top 6 as a RW for Towes

Saad and Gustaffson for Derek Forbort, Matt Luft, and a second rounder

I think Carolina wins that trade
- RaleighHawk

Big time. I like Nino.

If the Hawks don't pick 1st or 2nd, forget the Russian. The Hawks have had no success drafting them for whatever reason. Take one of the centers. Dachs, Cozen, Turcotte or Boldy.
- Elbows15

I agree. I do not want to pin hopes on a (mercurial) Russian that isn't already playing in N.A.

Too many dollars chasing too few players at varying stages of value/effectiveness for the money (many on NMCs to boot) doesn't leave enough left to build a deep enough roster.

The rest is all a mash of guys way over-slotted in relation to their abilities, whether because they are on the other side of the hill, or just don't have the chops.

Most deals have been salary dumps and/or swap of failed potential in the hope that scenery change would help.

Most draft picks in the last eight years that did make it, have at best become bottom six/bottom pair players. TT and Danault notable exceptions., but TWO GUYS in eight years.....

The best of what was/is in Rockford is already playing NHL hockey, which means there is nothing better anywhere else in the system.

Shouldn't rush the latest group of players so as to ruin them (Corey Patterson syndrome). But I think they will anyway.

ANY above average FA top six forward/center - contracts START at $7MM/yr = no room to add without launching pariahs under contract now.

ANY above average FA top four D guy - contracts START at $6MM/yr = no room to add without launching pariahs under contract now.

A new issue though now is this - oil prices have collapsed again since the same time last year. Canadian Dollar is way down again, and continuing down. We know what that meant for the cap the last time - stagnation.

The team must adhere to a tank for two more years approach in order to grab some first round talent with some hope of playing right away and on ELC's. It would be a waste to even try to make the playoffs for a while. Simply takes them out of contention for meaningful marquis young talent. HAVE to be in the top four picks to get those guys.

Finish 28-31 the next two years and the flexibility is much greater to truly rebuild the team.

Hjalmarsson - $20MM over 5 years.

Keith - $72MM over 13 years, signed when he was 26, effective when he was 27.

Crawford - $36MM over 6 years, signed just after his first Cup.

I think those are three fairly team-friendly deals.
- StLBravesFan

hammer I agree that is because he felt bad about signing the offer sheet. when Keith signed it that was the most ever guaranteed to a d player ever if memory serves. Craw was making him at #8 of all goalies at the time he signed it. I think that was fair if you look at his numbers.

Hjalmarsson - $20MM over 5 years.

Keith - $72MM over 13 years, signed when he was 26, effective when he was 27.

Crawford - $36MM over 6 years, signed just after his first Cup.

I think those are three fairly team-friendly deals.
- StLBravesFan

Great breakdown Keith's contract wouldn't be so bad if bowman used his God given brain and either let Seabrook walk or signed him for for a 3 or 4 year deal. Because even Seabrook would have known if he walked at his age he would have never ever received a contract for that long.

Stan screwed this team by giving Seabrook that contract especially adding a NMC