Did the games matter then Colliton kept putting Kubilak with Kampf...and even healthy scratching him early in the year?

Colliton is a clown. As is Brookbank and that other "guy" they found Mitell as a coaching staff

They kept making Q fire assistant coaches he liked working with - and those guys all had long coaching resumes (like then, or not). And I have a longer coaching resume (and it isn't that impressive, so I'm not 'bragging') than the 3 guys coaching the NHL franchise

Toews, Kane and Keith get rewarded for the decade of winning to have to follow these 3 jamokes
- PatShart

Oh I'm 100% with you.

Not to mention when he was healthy scratching Kubalik(!)

I've seen enough of Coach JC. More on that in a future blog.

Hagel is of the same mold. Non stop motor who does all the little things.
- z1990z

Yep! We may see Hagel here this year and/or next season.

I've concluded Rocky and MC D know that Chicago for the next 3 to 4 years will be in this mess , simply due to the cores contracts the team is stuck with. Rockford lacks any serious talent that is up and coming to slot into the next generation of top 6 and their blue chip defensive prospects are unknown and at best 3 years out from being nhl ready or having enough slots open and available to compete for.

I know some fans will overly brag about the likes of strome, kubalick or even cat .

Strome has been very quiet all season long cat other than his shot his numbers are down and he doesn't really have any strong skating or play making ability.

Kubalick we have only seen a small sample of this guy , and for those who are quick to put him in Chicago's future I'd say let's wait and see.

I Also believe if Chicago's true goal was to not except anything less than making the playoffs and they allowed JC all those weeks of awful losing hockey , they would have fired him.

The off season will be interesting but IMO if some major changes are not made I don't see next year being any better with a core group a year older and another off season of tinkering due to a team cash strapped because of last summer's all out moves .

Crawford won a cup with LA. He's an experienced coach that knows what he's in for.

Chelios and Roenick have extremely high compete levels and are accomplished hockey players. IF Dennis Savard got a shot to coach so should these guys.

Savard was good player but not a good leader. Chelios and Roenick are born alpha leaders. Let's gooooooooo!
- catrisc

No he didn't. He was HC of the Kings in 06/07 and 07/08 and missed the playoffs both seasons.

He did win a Cup with the Avs in 95/96 as HC.

As far as I can tell this has been his only NHL assistant coaching job.

Did anyone watch that Blackhawks prospects game before the season ? Not sure of the date, but maybe mid-september ? Anyway, who was that guy who was very noticeable and flying all over the ice ? It was Brandon Hagel. While he isn't gonna be a top 6 player, it would be nice to see him play a few games.

Yes, theres is nothing to be impressed about in a top 6 when you have Toews and Kane, a 22yr old Debrincat with 85g in 227gms, a 24yr old Kubilak with 26g in his first 61gms in the NHL, 18yr old Dach, and Saad at 27 who was on pace for 30g (3.72 gpg) if not injured this year.

Add Strome, 22yrs old, playing out of position all year and had a bad injury for a hockey player (especially slow one like him)...still averaging .62ppg.

I think that's a little better than only 1.5 top players, but just my opinion
- PatShart

Dach maybe some day, Saad, one of my favorite players but everyone wanted to trade him, Kubalik nice pick up how does he compare to other team's #2 scorer? Probably meh? Strome and Dinky haven't done anything to get us to the playoffs this season injury or no injury. I stand behind what I said.

IF true, doesn’t the fact that the team has not announced this and Stan can’t or won’t discuss it tell us that they are aware about how the fan base generally views Stan? After this TDL, if they are monitoring social media (they should), it will be crystal clear. why would they hang onto him just because of a new contract. They fired Q in the middle of his. bet the cost of unrenewed season ticket packages will be more costly.
- pdx2ord

You mean if it is true that he has been extended? Then sure/maybe. I personally think that they simply haven't agreed to an extension yet.

Oh I'm 100% with you.

Not to mention when he was healthy scratching Kubalik(!)

I've seen enough of Coach JC. More on that in a future blog.
- Tyler Cameron

TC - possible Stan didnt do much at the TDL because he already knows he is going to jettison JC at end of the season and with a more experienced/better/more qualified coach, such as Gallant, this team would fare much better. I mean look at the Pens - is their roster head and shoulders above the Hawks, or is our coach/system just pulling us that far down?

I've concluded Rocky and MC D know that Chicago for the next 3 to 4 years will be in this mess , simply due to the cores contracts the team is stuck with. Rockford lacks any serious talent that is up and coming to slot into the next generation of top 6 and their blue chip defensive prospects are unknown and at best 3 years out from being nhl ready or having enough slots open and available to compete for.

I know some fans will overly brag about the likes of strome, kubalick or even cat .

Strome has been very quiet all season long cat other than his shot his numbers are down and he doesn't really have any strong skating or play making ability.

Kubalick we have only seen a small sample of this guy , and for those who are quick to put him in Chicago's future I'd say let's wait and see.

I Also believe if Chicago's true goal was to not except anything less than making the playoffs and they allowed JC all those weeks of awful losing hockey , they would have fired him.

The off season will be interesting but IMO if some major changes are not made I don't see next year being any better with a core group a year older and another off season of tinkering due to a team cash strapped because of last summer's all out moves .
- Taylorst1

Taylor, you tend to make statements like this often. While you are well within your rights to do so, it isn't based on anything other than your own subjective view.

The Hawks are currently one of (if not the) youngest teams in the league. They have a slew of guys that are 18-22 playing notable minutes in the NHL. That is the NHL instead of the AHL. Yes it is out of necessity, but that does not mean that they don't have any young talent.

Also, you cannot say that the Hawks D-prospects are unknown and follow that up with "and are at least 3 years away". By definition, they are unknown.

TC - possible Stan didnt do much at the TDL because he already knows he is going to jettison JC at end of the season and with a more experienced/better/more qualified coach, such as Gallant, this team would fare much better. I mean look at the Pens - is their roster head and shoulders above the Hawks, or is our coach/system just pulling us that far down?
- glennjpawlak22

Glenn I think you hit the nail on the head. JC IMO has proven why he should not be the head coach . Would bringing in a experienced and proven head coach benefit this team and produce better results, I strongly believe that.

Kubalik. Is he a keeper ? Yes, absolutely. Hard to say, as a RFA, what kind of contract he will get from someone. But I sure hope he stays. He has that 'burst', of getting to the puck, and he is very quick to shoot. His accuracy is obviously very good. He has had his share of problems in our own end, especially getting the puck out of the zone when needed. But dang, this is his 1st year here, and he is a quality player. Now, looking at the standings, we need a win from Devils tonite and a Hawks loss. Not good to get in a habit of losing ? High picks like Seabrook, Toews, and Kane, is how you stop the losing, not by winning some meaningless games at the end of the season. And another benefit is speeding up the ousting of Colliton. That's just the facts, IMO

Ugh. Well at least Carlsson is back in:

Crawford starts tonight for Blackhawks at Lightning (6pm CT).

Carlsson in, Seeler out. Rest of lineup the same.

Also Stamkos is out.
- Chunk

Good Carlsson is back in. He should play most of the rest of the year.

Are they mad at Crow? Are they trying to use him a sacrificial lamb to a p!$$ed off Tampa team after having their winning streak? Hawks give up 50 shots tonight. Book it!

In all seriousness, maybe they really see something in Subban and don't wanna throw him in the deep end against Tampa tonight. Florida or maybe more likely Anaheim seem like better spots to put him in at.

more experienced coach, better teacher for the kids ?
- squishy24

Lavy and Gallant are developmental coaches? Those guys are like Q.

Anyway, I realize JC can't do one thing right, but how's the development of the kids gone so far this year?

Taylor, you tend to make statements like this often. While you are well within your rights to do so, it isn't based on anything other than your own subjective view.

The Hawks are currently one of (if not the) youngest teams in the league. They have a slew of guys that are 18-22 playing notable minutes in the NHL. That is the NHL instead of the AHL. Yes it is out of necessity, but that does not mean that they don't have any young talent.

Also, you cannot say that the Hawks D-prospects are unknown and follow that up with "and are at least 3 years away". By definition, they are unknown.
- Chunk

Chunk im sorry but Chicago isn't fielding the youngest team in the league . Chemistry is also a huge factor. Who in Rockford is projected to be Chicago's next top 6 prospects? Nobody. That's a well reported fact .


Regarding Chicago's defensive prospects they are all unknown and looking at the amount of available slots Chicago will have open maybe 1 . Nothing will happen until maatta , murphy, de haan ,Keith and Seabrook are off the books in 3 to 4 years

I'm thankful for the 3 cups and exciting hockey , but I'm over the toews , Kane, Keith era and the decline and the lack of a FO willing to tear it down and rebuild it the right way.

3 years of missing the playoffs and I don't see next year being any better with a core that is another year older and not much cap space to work with.

The line choices aren't that hard.

Caggulia-Toews-Kubilak (look to upgrade Caggulia next season, maybe Shaw)

Saad-Dach-Kane - (and leave them alone)

Debrincat-Strome-Nylander - let them figure out their slumps as young players (specifically Strome and ABD). Let Nylander play there and make mistakes. If he fails...then you bring up Sikura, Hagel, or another SCORING WING to fill the role. But the RW on their line needs to be addressed. I wouldnt mind seeing if they could get that Puljujarvi (size and speed), but he'd be am experiment as well.

Kampf, Highmore, Carpenter, Smith, Wedin, Quennville, etc - are all 4th liners (some, not even NHLers) and have zero business playing top 9 (let alone top minutes on any team)

Tyler - You did not mention Colliton. The dscicion on him may be the most important. His use or misuse of personnel like Nylander, Carpenter, Strome, Boqvist, Carlsson, etc is very important to their value to the team.

Nylander - I have noticed modest improvements. He has very little trade value. I am not sure if he is a top 6 forward or not. But you have to keep him another year to find out (and play him with decent linemates).

Your top 4 centers are Toews, Dach, Strome, Carpenter. Play them as centers, with Carpenter centering the 4th line. Kampf can be your 13th forward that can play center or wing as needed. But my preference would be not so see him on the roster or in the lineup too much next season.

Instead of top 6 you could look at top 9. Toews, Kane, Kubailik are definitely top 6. But preferably not on the same line except in certain situations. Saad, ADB, Strome, Dach are in your top 9. Nylander should be there too. Cagiulla could easily play up and down the lineup. (But let's hope we get lottery luck and land in the top 3 to draft a forward that is NHL ready ala Dach.) Shaw is a wild card depending on his long term health. Smith is either traded, bought out, or clears waivers and goes to the Rock.

I would like them to re-sign Cagiulla. A 4th line of Carpenter, Caggiula and Highmore/Kampf would give the new coach (optimistic) options.

Defense / Ian Mitchell / Carlsson - It would be great to see more of Carlsson and Mitchell the rest of this year. For cap reasons it would be great to move Maatta. Then if deHaan and Seabs are healthy you have some options. Keith, deHaan, Murphy, Boqvist, Seabs, Mitchell, K4, Seeler and Icehog alumni can fight for a spot in camp.

Goaltending - It would be great to sign Crow for $3 to $4 mil with some incentives to max out at $7 mil for 1 year. After that it would be great to see Subban, Lankinen and Delia get a few games this year then fight for a job in camp. My money is on Lankinen. If Crow plays great and the rest of the young guys on the team progress this could be a border line playoff team next year trending up. If Crow goes down with an injury it is another trip to the lottery. Either case could be good.

Dach maybe some day, Saad, one of my favorite players but everyone wanted to trade him, Kubalik nice pick up how does he compare to other team's #2 scorer? Probably meh? Strome and Dinky haven't done anything to get us to the playoffs this season injury or no injury. I stand behind what I said.
- rpeters01

Kubilak 26g would be 8 more than anyone on DAL and hed be 2nd in scoring there

Hed be 2nd in goals in COL

He'd be leading in goals in STL

And he played with Kampf the first quarter of the year while being healthy scratched

Still "meh" though, I'm sure

IF true, doesn’t the fact that the team has not announced this and Stan can’t or won’t discuss it tell us that they are aware about how the fan base generally views Stan? After this TDL, if they are monitoring social media (they should), it will be crystal clear. why would they hang onto him just because of a new contract. They fired Q in the middle of his. bet the cost of unrenewed season ticket packages will be more costly.
- pdx2ord

Stan's contract status is no big issue - it will not get in the way of canning Stan if they decide to do that.

I'll say again, though.....when they fired Q they started a rebuild, decided to let Stan implement it, and hired a young guy who they believe will help develop the utes.

Oh I'm 100% with you.

Not to mention when he was healthy scratching Kubalik(!)

I've seen enough of Coach JC. More on that in a future blog.
- Tyler Cameron

Ty, do you believe JC sat Seabs, Kubalik, Nylander, etc., completely on his own? Or did he do so with the input/approval of the front office?

I see 1.5 stars in those top 6, no wonder we missed the playoffs.
- rpeters01

Dach, Cat, Strome and Kubalik are all young players on the come - they will look more like top-6 stars next season at this time.

So now we want Nylander to play to six...after months of roasting the coach for trying to play him in the......top six.

Shoulda been playing the kids all season.
- mohel

The 1st paragraph, not exactly true. Putting the potentially bad trade behind us, the question becomes, what to do with Nylander?

The options are, play him in the top 9 until he figures it out, or, send him to Rockford and let him figure it out there, playing high minutes on a top line.

JC eschewed either of those options, and stuck him on the 4th line, where his skill set is mismatched.

The line choices aren't that hard.

Caggulia-Toews-Kubilak (look to upgrade Caggulia next season, maybe Shaw)

Saad-Dach-Kane - (and leave them alone)

Debrincat-Strome-Nylander - let them figure out their slumps as young players (specifically Strome and ABD). Let Nylander play there and make mistakes. If he fails...then you bring up Sikura, Hagel, or another SCORING WING to fill the role. But the RW on their line needs to be addressed. I wouldnt mind seeing if they could get that Puljujarvi (size and speed), but he'd be am experiment as well.

Kampf, Highmore, Carpenter, Smith, Wedin, Quennville, etc - are all 4th liners (some, not even NHLers) and have zero business playing top 9 (let alone top minutes on any team)
- PatShart

If line choices aren't that hard, why did Q have a "blender"? He was/is a good coach, no?

You mean if it is true that he has been extended? Then sure/maybe. I personally think that they simply haven't agreed to an extension yet.
- Chunk

Yes, if the extension is true. I’m hoping you’re right.

Stan's contract status is no big issue - it will not get in the way of canning Stan if they decide to do that.

I'll say again, though.....when they fired Q they started a rebuild, decided to let Stan implement it, and hired a young guy who they believe will help develop the utes.
- mohel

If they fired Q to rebuild, you trade Kane

You dont trade draft assets for Shaw, acquire DeHaan, Lehner and Maata.

The 1st paragraph, not exactly true. Putting the potentially bad trade behind us, the question becomes, what to do with Nylander?

The options are, play him in the top 9 until he figures it out, or, send him to Rockford and let him figure it out there, playing high minutes on a top line.

JC eschewed either of those options, and stuck him on the 4th line, where his skill set is mismatched.
- scottak

Not exactly true? JC didn't get roasted for playing Nylander? Please. He got roasted for even having him in the lineup.