Congrats on 100 Justin.

I will have to respectfully disagree on the right pick being made at # 8. Just what we need a very small D man who does not play D very well. And he won't be ready for NHL for 2 - 3 years. Bouchard and Dobson could play this year or next at the latest. So we have done nothing to help on offense, and nothing to help on defense for this coming year, or next,or maybe even the following year. Boqvist may be a fine player in the distant future, but he is of no help now and we need help now. I fear Stan was right about one thing, he doesn't see much change next year and so far that id coming true. Which could mean the same result at the end of next year. I hope the only change is in our GM. We need new directions from the top.
- [email protected]

Outside of Dahlin, Svechnikov, Kotkaniemi and Zadina, probably no one in the draft should be in The Show next season. They should all spend their initial NA pro season in the "A" and develop their bodies and their games. Too many players are being ruined by being up in the NHL too soon, without becoming rounded NHL players. Duclair may be a perfect example.

Hard pass on Jurco.. the experiment is over. I think Duclair is worth a qualifying offer unless they really think they have a shot at Tavares and they need every penny.

What does everyone think? What's the UFA D market like now that Carlson has re-signed?

Outside of Dahlin, Svechnikov, Kotkaniemi and Zadina, probably no one in the draft should be in The Show next season. They should all spend their initial NA pro season in the "A" and develop their bodies and their games. Too many players are being ruined by being up in the NHL too soon, without becoming rounded NHL players. Duclair may be a perfect example.
- StLBravesFan

Kotkaniemi is least one year away. Next season he will play center in FEL. He played wing last season.

A little timehop memory that came up on my Facebook today. All them feelz man. The greatest 17 seconds, and finish to a game in all of sports! To capture a second cup in 3 years, what a run! The city was so electric. Let's get splashy in UFA Bowman, and get the magic back!


https://www.facebook.com/...6MTAyMDEzODQ3MjAzNjI4MTQ/

Outside of Dahlin, Svechnikov, Kotkaniemi and Zadina, probably no one in the draft should be in The Show next season. They should all spend their initial NA pro season in the "A" and develop their bodies and their games. Too many players are being ruined by being up in the NHL too soon, without becoming rounded NHL players. Duclair may be a perfect example.
- StLBravesFan

The Oilers are a perfect example of that. Drafting as high as they have for 10 years, they were pushing these kids in as saviors. Other than McDavid for now, it was a disaster.

These kids who were used to dominating at all levels are thrown into a situation where they are in over their heads. They suffer confidence issues and their bodies are not mature enough to go up against fully developed men. Watching the kids walk up to the podium at the draft, it was quite evident that these are the bodies of kids -not men. All of the high Oiler picks (including McDavid) suffered through major injuries within 2 years.

Here are some of my thoughts for offseason moves/targets:

Hossa to Ottawa for rights to Nick Paul
Forsling, Seabs, and a 2nd in 2020 for Bjugstad
AA and Forsberg to Toronto for Dermott

sign:
Riley Nash
Chad Johnson
JVR
Wingels
Trouba to 7 x 7 offer sheet
Bozak
Mrazek to 1.5 - 1 year deal

just thoughts, probably far fetched, but trying to be creative

Here are some of my thoughts for offseason moves/targets:

Hossa to Ottawa for rights to Nick Paul
Forsling, Seabs, and a 2nd in 2020 for Bjugstad
AA and Forsberg to Toronto for Dermott

sign:
Riley Nash
Chad Johnson
JVR
Wingels
Trouba to 7 x 7 offer sheet
Bozak
Mrazek to 1.5 - 1 year deal

just thoughts, probably far fetched, but trying to be creative
- ikeane

Why would we take in Hossa for nothing?

From Powers:

• The Blackhawks won’t be a part of the John Tavares sweepstakes, multiple sources have said. The Blackhawks are out of the discussions due to cap constraints, a source said.

• The Blackhawks aren’t expected to place qualifying offers on Adam Clendening, Anthony Duclair, Tomas Jurco or Chaput before the deadline Monday afternoon, a source said. The Blackhawks were hoping to move Duclair to another team and had some interest, but nothing had materialized as of Monday morning.

• The Blackhawks are still hoping to move Marian Hossa’s contract but have yet to find a suitor. The Blackhawks hope there will be a team later this offseason in need of Hossa’s cap hit to get to the new cap floor of $58.8 million. The Blackhawks might have to be patient on that.

Why would we take in Hossa for nothing?
- DutchSenators

To get to the cap floor

Why would we take in Hossa for nothing?
- DutchSenators

cap floor or something. Salary to cap hit ratio seems to be a coveted item according to posters here. I don't see it though.

I loved your draft, especially the first three picks.

To get to the cap floor
- ikeane

The Sens are not nearly as desperate rn to reach the floor as some seem to think. Technically, they're already $2m above it. Yeah, they'll move Karlsson, Anderson, and maybe Ryan but they also have to sign Stone, Ceci, and Claesson and others (they will need a goalie).

On top of that, even when trading to a team that needs to get to the floor like Arizona, teams have always had to give something up to offload a contract. Ottawa is going to want salary going back or an asset (doesn't need to be a top one, but something).

I think if they do go with a veteran backstop, it will be a 1 or 2 year deal.

Also, it may not make sense at the time but I've heard they are not going to get caught in that shaky goalie situation again.

In saying that, they also don't put everything on their netminders. They know it was the team defence as well in front of them.

I think it's an insurance policy though in case they can't drastically improve the entire team, they are goimg to need some goalie wins.
- Justin Lowe

Any word on whether Nalimov will be in camp? I know the agent is trying to force the Hawks hand a bit but hopefully he's in camp competing for a spot.

From Powers:

• The Blackhawks won’t be a part of the John Tavares sweepstakes, multiple sources have said. The Blackhawks are out of the discussions due to cap constraints, a source said.

• The Blackhawks aren’t expected to place qualifying offers on Adam Clendening, Anthony Duclair, Tomas Jurco or Chaput before the deadline Monday afternoon, a source said. The Blackhawks were hoping to move Duclair to another team and had some interest, but nothing had materialized as of Monday morning.

• The Blackhawks are still hoping to move Marian Hossa’s contract but have yet to find a suitor. The Blackhawks hope there will be a team later this offseason in need of Hossa’s cap hit to get to the new cap floor of $58.8 million. The Blackhawks might have to be patient on that.
- L_B_R

And unfortunately that last point is the sticking point. The team will not be able to be as creative as they’d like to be this offseason without that contract being moved. They’ll have to prioritize accordingly. I’d emphasize a top-four d-man before top six forward or backup goalie. Will be interesting to see how they attack their offseason plan.

From Powers:

• The Blackhawks won’t be a part of the John Tavares sweepstakes, multiple sources have said. The Blackhawks are out of the discussions due to cap constraints, a source said.

• The Blackhawks aren’t expected to place qualifying offers on Adam Clendening, Anthony Duclair, Tomas Jurco or Chaput before the deadline Monday afternoon, a source said. The Blackhawks were hoping to move Duclair to another team and had some interest, but nothing had materialized as of Monday morning.

• The Blackhawks are still hoping to move Marian Hossa’s contract but have yet to find a suitor. The Blackhawks hope there will be a team later this offseason in need of Hossa’s cap hit to get to the new cap floor of $58.8 million. The Blackhawks might have to be patient on that.
- L_B_R

Lammeeeeee.

God dammit theyre going to be boring as hell to watch again this season arent they? Of course Inhate the loosing like eyeryone else but they were such a painful watch last season.

Oh well. Back in 09 if you made the trade off of 3 cups and a ton of fun hockey from 10-16 all of us would have said yes to that. Happy to hve lived through the Golden Era of Blackhawks hockey.

Here are some of my thoughts for offseason moves/targets:

Hossa to Ottawa for rights to Nick Paul
Forsling, Seabs, and a 2nd in 2020 for Bjugstad
AA and Forsberg to Toronto for Dermott

sign:
Riley Nash
Chad Johnson
JVR
Wingels
Trouba to 7 x 7 offer sheet
Bozak
Mrazek to 1.5 - 1 year deal

just thoughts, probably far fetched, but trying to be creative
- ikeane

Dermott not going anywhere leafs high on him
Like everything else but I think the jets would match plus hawks would have give up a 1st 2nd and 3rd I believe.

And unfortunately that last point is the sticking point. The team will not be able to be as creative as they’d like to be this offseason without that contract being moved. They’ll have to prioritize accordingly. I’d emphasize a top-four d-man before top six forward or backup goalie. Will be interesting to see how they attack their offseason plan.
- TommyHawk

Simple -- as I posted earlier, from Crain's Chicago Business today:
"As the Chicago Blackhawks try to reinvent themselves on the ice after their worst season in more than a decade, the team has hired a new agency, backed by two guys who built the Pitchfork music brand, to give it a fresh voice in its advertising.

The NHL team is taking a flier with an upstart Chicago creative firm called Varyer, launched this year by former Pitchfork President Chris Kaskie and former Pitchfork Creative Director Mike Renaud. They're still in the process of building out a West Loop studio for their eight employees, but expect to deliver new advertising ideas for the team later this year, the co-CEOs said in an interview.

Bringing on Varyer appears to mark an end to the Blackhawks' long-standing relationship with Ogilvy Chicago, the ad firm behind the Blackhawks' "One Goal" campaign.

Hawks Executive Vice President Jay Blunk said in a statement that the team has "drawn from many sources successfully in the past"—including Ogilvy—for its advertising and content creation efforts, but that Varyer "will consolidate our efforts moving forward as our agency of record."

Blackhawks spokesman Adam Rogowin did not respond to questions about whether Ogilvy will continue to play a role in crafting the team's messaging. An Ogilvy spokeswoman could not be reached for comment.

The move is another example of Blackhawks owner Rocky Wirtz keeping the team's business extensions in the family. His son, Danny Wirtz, is a partner in the Varyer venture."

What's that well-worn line about fooling all of the people some of the time?
No more ONE GOAL.
Who knows, maybe this is why it was reported by 6628 that McDonut secretly reached out to an executive recruiting agency.
Cannot wait to hear what the new agency comes up with. And if Rocky thinks he can fool the fanbase.

From Powers:

• The Blackhawks won’t be a part of the John Tavares sweepstakes, multiple sources have said. The Blackhawks are out of the discussions due to cap constraints, a source said.

• The Blackhawks aren’t expected to place qualifying offers on Adam Clendening, Anthony Duclair, Tomas Jurco or Chaput before the deadline Monday afternoon, a source said. The Blackhawks were hoping to move Duclair to another team and had some interest, but nothing had materialized as of Monday morning.

• The Blackhawks are still hoping to move Marian Hossa’s contract but have yet to find a suitor. The Blackhawks hope there will be a team later this offseason in need of Hossa’s cap hit to get to the new cap floor of $58.8 million. The Blackhawks might have to be patient on that.
- L_B_R

So in other words, StanBo isn't doing much of anything until he can move Hossa's contract. This is not good.

Duclair should be qualified as it would not cost that much ($1.3M?). He is too young to let go at that price which can mostly be buried.
Jurco, on the other hand, has had enough time to prove himself -don't waste a contract spot on him.
- 67hawks

Decent size with a ++burst that makes this kid dynamic, flashes great hands at times, had 44 points in what was really his rookie season (18 games the yr before), is 22 yrs old with 200 NHL games. If this kid hits his ceiling it would likely start to show real soon and will come in as you mention with a low cap hit.

You don't give up on these types yet. Coming over midseason the kid didn't have the benefit of a full camp and preseason with Q's systems it's reported being difficult to grasp in season even for vets at the TDL.

To me all this means is NO MORE advertising agency that gave them ONE GOAL, no more no less.

The idea a team can retool on the fly and be Cup competitive is not BS...but a new ad relationship to me has nothing to do changes in personnel.

Dobson is as skinny as my arm inhis legs and will not play for some time...he is on the right track but he's a skinny kid that will need strength/girth to compete later.

Bouchard, well I never doubted his innate talent as a terrific vision and long passer and PP Q /shot, but honestly if he was in this league NEXT year, he would be a bigger fines defender than Carolina's Hamilton.

I put this profiles up very early in the morning, in the last blog with added comments, so I am gonna repeat them here:

Adam Boqvist
This draft will be marked with an unprecedented number of highly sought after skilled attacking defensemen who are average or under-sized with little physicality. This player compensates for it with terrific hands and ability to push the pace, doing a decent job in his own end using his skill set. In the Swedish junior league, Boqvist showcased a nice shot, high end speed, and agility. He may very well be the top finesse and fine-edge-skating defenseman in the draft, displaying great balance and lateral mobility. He is lightning fast and has great vision. He distributes the puck unselfishly and he jumps in on the attack -- sometimes leading it. He opens up and delivers a very accurate one timer. As a slight, smaller player, he gets overtaken, losing puck battles to the bigger players. Does show good vision in both ends but it is a bigger challenge in his own end. His fast feet help negate some of his problems in the defensive zone, but it is difficult to ignore his defensive zone positioning issues. As a lightweight anchor, he needs to fill out, get stronger, and build his defensive game. Another right handed shooting mobile defenseman.
I think we are overlooking the fact that this youngster equals most forward in terms of his skating, balance, agility, ability to back defender in, and accelerates and and shoot or pass the puck. The Erik Karlsson comparison is lofty for now, but the future may end up with him as a first pair offense-man.

Nicolas Beaudin
New age defender with good puck movement skills, nice foot speed, good hands and a good stick. Funnels attackers to the side boards, can make the secure outlet pass in transition. Very smart in all three zones. Has a soft touch, and excellent puck skills. Defensively and offensively aware and stays on the right side of the puck. His foot speed lets him control the speed of the game making nice touch passes. He walks the blue line and uses his deceptive snap passes to provide scoring looks. Sneaks downs and makes things happen. Will need to add strength as he develops.
He has gone through three QMJHL seasons and has rounded into really into an all around there zone player that stays on the right side of the puck with the skill and feet to control play, and rates as one of the better power play QBs in the class. With work he could end up a second part #4 ala Victor Mete.

Jake Wise
Under the radar performer who is a terrific skater with strong skill set. His year was marred by various nagging injuries, including his collarbone. An average skater who is a good two-way player whether lined up at centre or either wing. He is smart on the ice, good in the dot, supports the puck, shows creativity in the attack. Committed to Boston University where he will hone his skills hopefully ascending to a strong third line NHL centre.
Sure, he needs to get stronger and that will add quickness, but already displays good edge work and has jump, and a willingness to get in the dirty areas and exploit coverage weaknesses and getting the puck through to open seam. Has good vision, competitiveness, and might project above the third line tag I put on him.


Niklas Nordgren rhRW
Finnish full speed attacker and set up man who is under 5’ 10 and 170. Plays hard and fast with good smarts for seeing openings and capitalizing. Scored eight goals in the Under-18 World Junior Tournament, more than any other player. Displays really good hands and has the toolbox of a scorer. Has good on-ice vision and drives to the right areas to win pucks. Surprises the opposition with set ups and goals they are unprepared for. Needs to continue to improve his feet, strength and his size. Has played some centre too.
When he said Patrick Kane was his favorite player it is because he likes to score. In the Under-17 he started out really strong and ended really strong…in the middle of the tourney he seemed to go ineffective for the most part and I thought it was because in tight spaces, he doesn’t have that strong skating burst that most smaller players have to show in battle areas…don’t get me wrong, he plays fearless and feisty competing hard for pucks, rarely ruffled or panicked under pressure and he plays strong on the puck and strong on his pins, because his balance and low skating stride. He strong in the neutral zone, real smart I recognizing opportunities, always ready to drive the forward as set-up man or triggerman.If he commits to working on his lower body strength, he gets faster, even more powerful in his strides, I think he could be an NHL sniper. He’s very similar to Mat Zuccarello.

Philipp Kurashev
Smart slick puck-handling centre with decent speed and East-West lateral agility. High hockey IQ and creative instincts as a passer. Sees and anticipates developing plays. Far from ready to be considered NHL worthy, as he has zero interest in getting dirty in physical games. But you cannot argue that he isn't a fine playmaker despite his lack of any grittiness or edge at this juncture. Needs plenty of work in the face-off circle, but I can see him as winger in his present playing style.
Personally if my first name and it’s last letters ended two p’s, I would be concerned I would be called full of peepee would quickly catch on in rival areas. He is an instinctive attacker who is hockey smart, hockey head quick, and high end stickhandler holds the puck, waiting for movement to get it to his line mates for a scoring look, saucing it over. He also displays good edge work, shiftiness and is more of centre looking to score than one who is gun shy. There are areas he needs to build on to help remove the perimeter player tag. He does think the game fast, and can execute at high speed, and will compete in his end, but only to a degree.

Mikail Hakkarainen
Finnish import who is committed to Providence College. Plays both wing and centre.
I went back and tried to pull him out of the Five Nations footage and saw he took some shots, plays two way wing, but again, you wait and see, and maybe you get a NHL winger/centrte sometime later as he grows all around.

Alexis Gravel
He was viewed as the top Q goalie based on is height and long range projection. He olked too heavy and slow at the CHL prospects game. So far he is pegged as an even longer developmental prospect as his game has not progressed as quickly as hoped. That is not to say he can’t progress into a NHL candidate. It is not that he isn't athletic or quick, be cause he is. He is very active on his feet, and when he gives up a rebound, he goes to scramble mode with his movements. When he settles in, improves his glove and his ability to direct shots into the corners with his pads, he will gain confidence. Handles the puck well when goes behind the net to help out...

Josiah Slavin
Brother of Jaccob, he is committed to Colorado College. You let him work on his game, you have his brother as an example of what the process is and the commitment involved...seems like a win / win even if he flops...If he doesn't the parent club got better.

I an not trying to angry.
I do this all year, try and make evaluations see stuff, and it is not my first rodeo.

The one thing I do know is to start burying the Chicago selections before they have a chance to go from 17-19 year olds into accomplished competitive players at higher tiers, without letting them grow their game, seems like foolish impulsive comments

Simple -- as I posted earlier, from Crain's Chicago Business today:
"As the Chicago Blackhawks try to reinvent themselves on the ice after their worst season in more than a decade, the team has hired a new agency, backed by two guys who built the Pitchfork music brand, to give it a fresh voice in its advertising.

The NHL team is taking a flier with an upstart Chicago creative firm called Varyer, launched this year by former Pitchfork President Chris Kaskie and former Pitchfork Creative Director Mike Renaud. They're still in the process of building out a West Loop studio for their eight employees, but expect to deliver new advertising ideas for the team later this year, the co-CEOs said in an interview.

Bringing on Varyer appears to mark an end to the Blackhawks' long-standing relationship with Ogilvy Chicago, the ad firm behind the Blackhawks' "One Goal" campaign.

Hawks Executive Vice President Jay Blunk said in a statement that the team has "drawn from many sources successfully in the past"—including Ogilvy—for its advertising and content creation efforts, but that Varyer "will consolidate our efforts moving forward as our agency of record."

Blackhawks spokesman Adam Rogowin did not respond to questions about whether Ogilvy will continue to play a role in crafting the team's messaging. An Ogilvy spokeswoman could not be reached for comment.

The move is another example of Blackhawks owner Rocky Wirtz keeping the team's business extensions in the family. His son, Danny Wirtz, is a partner in the Varyer venture."

What's that well-worn line about fooling all of the people some of the time?
No more ONE GOAL.
Who knows, maybe this is why it was reported by 6628 that McDonut secretly reached out to an executive recruiting agency.
Cannot wait to hear what the new agency comes up with. And if Rocky thinks he can fool the fanbase.
- savvyone-1

Actually I see this as a positive development, it’s going to take a few years for this team to truly be competitive again. Better to get out in front of it and shoot straight with the fan base.

So in other words, StanBo isn't doing much of anything until he can move Hossa's contract. This is not good.
- purepone

Only so many teams who want to get to the CAP floor and the Karlsson / Tavares availability means until many of those teams know they are out of the running for the bigger price tagged guys available, they are taking Hossa's contract, or talking about signing guys who are mid-level price tags in UFA until they are CERTAIN, they are out.


It is pretty generic, and July 1st is around the corner...you all just have to wait for StanBo to hear your displeasure until closer to July....

Finally, this is my 101st blog here on Hockeybuzz (#centuryclub). My goal was to come in here and provide a consistent number of blogs (I've been averaging 3 per week) as well as a consistent voice in the way I cover the Blackhawks.

It was also very important that I kept it fun and positive for everyone and give us all a place to kill some time when we should be working. There is so much negativity in the world today, I feel that we are all lucky that our biggest "issues" in the world is who will be the Blackhawks 2nd pairing defence or backup goalie next year. I hope you all feel the same. Let's keep this journey going.

Justin, congrats on your 100th blog! IMO your stated goals have all been met. Find you to have a solid hockey mind, researched, connected, a glass half full approach while being objective and in an atmosphere where fans (fan-atics) can be "skewed" in their opinions you seem to be able to keep things lite and interesting.

Well done sir and look forward to the next 100 blogs. With some light at the end of the tunnel being out of cap hell, the parts of the core 2.0 up and playing well and the system seemingly replenished to a degree you'll have better things to blog about than you've had since you arrived.