I got Toews late in Round 10 of my Fantasy Hockey Draft last night

Yes the Hawks do need some offensive threat on the pivotal third line, but I find in ironic how many guys are wanting more skill on the team .... BUT ... wanted the Hawks to have some big guys on the team this offseason and were tired of the "smurf like" players Hawks have been acquiring. Ironic that speed actually starts from the backend ... DEFENSE. Move the puck quickly up to the forwards in the neutral zone. Just look at all the prospects the Hawks have on the backend ... puck movers ... even the stay at home defensemen can move the puck. Vegas was the fast team last year or more like they "play fast". Were the Caps faster than the Knights ??? They knew how to slow down that speed. If you want to play fast, it's not necessarily about forwards that skate fast

Keith is still worth his cap hit and there is still no viable replacement. Keith will play out his contract (and career) with the Blackhawks and that's the way it should be.

Keith is not the issue with the Hawks, the major issue is now time. The time it will take for the youngster (d-men in particular) to develop, I like the idea of giving Jokiharju a full season, then next season the likes of Boqvist and maybe one of Beaudin or more likely Mitchell will get a shot.
- DarthKane

Well said. Time is not the enemy on just defense (although it is most worrisome there with Keith at 35 and Seabrook at 33). Our best offensive players are not getting any younger either. Kane is likely to have the longest career of any of them as long as he is capable of avoiding getting hit. Toews looked like he had more energy and jump in the pre-season. Hopefully, that carries over.

Manning in the hawks top 4, wow

Stan has an even better option:

Placed on Waivers
Dale Weise (RW) | Philadelphia Flyers#LetsGoFlyershttps://t.co/XwdGs5DJK3

— CapFriendly Transactions (@CF_Transactions) October 1, 2018

- DarthKane

One last shift? Come home Dale!

Per TSN.ca, Connor Carrick just traded to the Stars

Manning in the hawks top 4, wow
- rinaldo

His TOI in the pre-season games suggest otherwise, both 5v5 and overall.

In 3 out of the 4 pre-season games Manning has played, he was 6th in TOI with 15:48, 13:37, and 16:04. The only game in-which he broke top 4 minutes was the second pre-season game in which he was the only guy on defense that had even played in the NHL before (the others were Boqvist, Beaudin, Raddysh, Tuulola, and Carlsson).

If the final pre-season game in which the defense is anything to go by, Gus-Davidson is more of the 2nd pairing than Manning-Seabrook.

Corey Crawford practicing with the rest of the team this morning.

Big step.

Still a while away from player, I'm sure, but very positive sign!
- Justin Lowe

Q apparently said that Crawford has been medically cleared to play and traveling with the team, though they're not going to rush anything.

Crawford was more cautious saying that he doesn't think he's 100% ready for games but that he's really close. Also said he didn't think he's need to go to Rockford for conditioning, which is something Q said last week might be possibility.

Still, being cleared medically is a big step. It makes it seem like it's more getting into game shape than anything else.

Q apparently said that Crawford has been medically cleared to play and traveling with the team, though they're not going to rush anything.

Crawford was more cautious saying that he doesn't think he's 100% ready for games but that he's really close. Also said he didn't think he's need to go to Rockford for conditioning, which is something Q said last week might be possibility.

Still, being cleared medically is a big step. It makes it seem like it's more getting into game shape than anything else.
- L_B_R

While Crawford may not be ready to play Oct 7th vs Toronto, I bet they get him in time for the home game Oct 13 vs St Louis.

Great write up, Justin. Worried but optimistic for this year. So excited for 2-4 years down the road.

Wasn´t there rumours out this summer that Stan was interested in Sam Gagner? He on waivers now so..

I don't think Gagner was all that bad, but it's hard to tell since the Canucks overall were terrible.

I think Gagner could have a place on the Hawks, but it comes down to cap space. This season would be fine, but I wouldn't claim Gagner if that impeded any plans for next season.
- DarthKane

The Hawks would be losing Rutta, Kruger and Kunitz, so they should be able to fit him in next year.
Don't think they should claim him, but it would be doable.

Not optimistic at all, I am thinking lottery level again, but lets play and see what happens.

Now the the cuts are made, does anyone know what the roster in Rockford is looking like? I think they start their season Friday?

Now the the cuts are made, does anyone know what the roster in Rockford is looking like? I think they start their season Friday?
- breadbag

Posted this in the blog:


Saad-Schmaltz-Kane
Debrincat-Toews-Kahun
Kunitz-Anisimov-Kampf
Martinsen-Kruger-Hayden
Johnson

Keith-Jokiharju
Manning-Seabrook
Gustafsson-Rutta
Davidson

Ward
Forsberg

IR: Crawford, Murphy, Forsling

Iron Mike Keenan would fix all of these insubordination problems very quickly. And then he could turn over the coaching to True Grit`s hero Disco Dan Bylsma.
- RickJ

Ha...too funny.

Its not a matter of insubordination...its a matter of common sense.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.

Q is the best coach in the world when he had the most talent in the league. There is no arguing that. You can never prove a negative, but there are likely a handful of other coaches who could have won cups with Hawks.

I imagine this is what it was like when it was time for the Bears to part ways with Coach Ditka.

Coaches do not take draws, make passes, score goals, or make saves....

Posted this in the blog:


Saad-Schmaltz-Kane
Debrincat-Toews-Kahun
Kunitz-Anisimov-Kampf
Martinsen-Kruger-Hayden
Johnson

Keith-Jokiharju
Manning-Seabrook
Gustafsson-Rutta
Davidson

Ward
Forsberg

IR: Crawford, Murphy, Forsling
- Justin Lowe

He asked about Rockford

Now the the cuts are made, does anyone know what the roster in Rockford is looking like? I think they start their season Friday?
- breadbag

The Hogs website is junk. Click on roster and it doesn't show you anything. Even the AHL website doesn't list rosters (has placeholders but no player data). The only thing I was able to find was the training camp roster and news on who they've released, cut, etc.

I wonder if 88 is thinking about how continuing to play here should really boost his career. The Panarin trade is still working it's magic on Kane. Those who embrace the tank should love this.

The Hogs website is junk. Click on roster and it doesn't show you anything. Even the AHL website doesn't list rosters (has placeholders but no player data). The only thing I was able to find was the training camp roster and news on who they've released, cut, etc.
- AEL_Fox

It really is, even when they were advancing in the Calder Cup it was hard to get news about them. Whoever runs that website should wake up before noon.

Trade Schmaltz & A.A. The return would be fantastic!

Trade Schmaltz & A.A. The return would be fantastic!
- Power29

For the Breadman!!!!

It really is, even when they were advancing in the Calder Cup it was hard to get news about them. Whoever runs that website should wake up before noon.
- ObeseOprah

Over the weekend I started to try and piece together a Hogs roster (not a lineup but just a roster of who is on the team) but it was too much work. I'll try again later if I have time but hopefully the web person can do it before I do, haha.

Trade Schmaltz & A.A. The return would be fantastic!
- Power29

Where and who do you think we get in return

Anisimov is one of the least effective players on the team, from the Athletic:

'In the middle is Artem Anisimov, a player whose 0.97 points-per-60 ranked ahead of only Lance Bouma and Tommy Wingels among forwards last season and whose play-driving ability was second-worst on the team — and equally bad at both ends of the rink. He’s not very effective on the power-play, either.

He could be one of the Blackhawks’ most inefficient forwards, and that’s probably not news, either — it’s just something that became increasingly clear last season without the luxury of being constantly tethered to Patrick Kane. Since Anisimov arrived in Chicago in 2015, he has 57 points in 2,058 minutes spent with Kane, which translates to a respectable 1.66 points-per-60, a second-line rate. In 765 minutes without Kane, he has just 12 points, good for a points-per-60 of 0.94, worse than many fourth-liners. Anisimov’s on-ice shot rates always go down without Kane, too.
... Whoever it is on his wings, it’s likely a marginal player. Anisimov does not have the talent to drive his own line, and it means Chicago is in big trouble after its top six.'

For $4.5 Million a year... no thanks. There's two more years AFTER this year of his pedestrian, ultra-slow play. He's good for one or two slick plays a game when the puck is spoon fed to him in the offensive zone. Other than that he is a big looming stiff with very little hustle and crappy advanced stats. He fails the eye test and the data test. I'm pretty fed up with this guy if you haven't caught on.