Blackhawks doing their best to embrace change

[Guest Heaten]

I'm surprised Chicago hasn't lost another 4 players again today.

Edited July 2, 2010 by Heaten

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

To quote George Malik

" As someone who was nothing less than furious at the fact that the NHL allowed the Blackhawks to get away with not qualifying five restricted free agents, I can't help but laugh my rear off as the salary cap catches up to them, and those theoretically unrestricted free agents leave town. The Hawks won't bring back John Madden, and have lost Dustin Byfuglien, Brent Sopel, Ben Eager, Kris Versteeg, Andrew Ladd and Adam Burish, and remain mashed up against the salary cap, with only $3 million (per Capgeek.com) to sigh three forwards, two defensemen and attempt to re-sign Antti Niemi and Niklas Hjalmarsson. In the words of Nelson Muntz, HA-HAH! "

Hjalmarsson deserves 2.5M while Niemi could get 4M/year easy. Who's next?

That's pretty much it.

They gamed the cap. It worked because they won the Cup, but it's no surprise a whole lot of people are enjoying watching them get dismantled.

[Joseph Franks 17]

Its funny how i keep seeing Hawks fans saying

"Great trade"

"Thanks Toronto"

"We made out great in that trade"

seriously.....what are they smoking?

I don't know, but i ******* want some.

You cannot just dump half your team, and expect to go on the same way. Especially not in a league where career players are bred to play with each other.

They did what they had to do to win, and now.....they keep on this trend and they'll be lucky to make the playoffs.

Great trade....yeah my ass

[Joseph Franks 17]

they had a +62 goal differential last year.

we went from a +51 the year before, lost - what was it, 60 or so goals when Hossa, Huds, Sammy left, and finished last year a +13. Injuries had a lot to do with that obviously but Chicago is looking at the kind of swing we saw after last year.

Yeah, except, Detroit was mostly the same team as they were the prior few years, with minor changes, and a s*** ton of injuries.

They didn't switch out half of their roster during an off-season, and hope to do well the next year.

Edited July 2, 2010 by Joseph Franks

[GMRwings1983 8,794]

This is what really sucks about them winning the Cup.

They had to gut their team no matter what, and it would have been great if they'd gut their team after coming so close to the Cup and not winning.

Now, they'll at least have 50 years to talk s*** again about how great they are.

[Broken 16 381]

After gloating for the last 24 hours, I am actually starting to feel genuinely bad for the Hawks. I've never seen an upheaval like this in hockey before. The s***tiest part is that they won't be able to defend the Cup as a team and the new guys coming in are gonna have to carry that burden for the entire season. Kinda f***ed.

Edited July 3, 2010 by Broken 16

[Hockeytown0001 7,652]

After gloating for the last 24 hours, I am actually starting to feel genuinely bad for the Hawks. I've never seen an upheaval like this in hockey before. The s***tiest part is that they won't be able to defend the Cup as a team and the new guys coming in are gonna have to carry that burden for the entire season. Kinda f***ed.

Only thing is though, would Chicago fans feel sorry for the Wings had it been them?

[Broken 16 381]

Only thing is though, would Chicago fans feel sorry for the Wings had it been them?

I try to hold my self to a slightly higher standard.

[Hockeytown0001 7,652]

I try to hold my self to a slightly higher standard.

Then you sir, deserve a cigar.

[dragonballgtz 273]

I was actually pretty impressed (considering their circumstances) with what they got out of the Byfuglien trade. Chi will still be a decent team and in the playoffs.

[eva unit zero 271]

At least Pittsburgh, after losing in the finals, primarily kept the same team.

Hmm, really?

The Penguins had 13 forwards and 8 defensemen who played in the playoffs in 08-09. The regular 12-6-2 are bolded. Members of this roster who played for the 09-10 Penguins are underlined.

F: Malkin, Crosby, Guerin, Fedotenko, Kunitz, Talbot, Kennedy, Staal, Cooke, Satan, Adams, Sykora, Dupuis

D: Gonchar, Letang, Eaton, Scuderi, Boucher, Orpik, Gill, Goligoski

G: Fleury, Garon

So the Pens did keep more of their roster, losing Scuderi, Gill, and Garon, and paying out big to keep Letang. However, part of that is due to the fact that almost all of the existing contracts went for at least one more year. But this year, Guerin and Fedotenko are UFA, and they are already pushed up against the cap as it is. That's two more.

Chicago didn't buy a cup; their core was almost entirely homegrown players. The problem is that the Campbell and Huet contracts handcuffed their cap for this coming season, as did Toews' and Kane's bonuses. Beyond that, they had three excellent young players, all of whom had contracts expiring at the same time. Had Byfuglien, Versteeg, Sharp, Bolland, and Seabrook been signed to more reasonable contracts given WHEN they were signed, then the Hawks would not be in this mess. Campbell was overpaid by about $2m when he signed, and Huet got about $2m too much when he signed. So figure between Buff, Versteeg, Sharp, Bolland, Campbell, Seabrook, and Huet the Hawks save $10m with more reasonable deals. That would have allowed all of the bonuses to count on last year's cap, and saved the Hawks plenty of cap hell.

So it wasn't about buying a Cup at all. It was about developing good talent but paying too much for it. A lot of teams have this problem, Tallon just managed to make a Cup winner out of the young talent he did get and the money he was allowed to spend, even if he was sent packing midseason before the Cup was won. Chicago is losing players quicker than normal Cup champs, but most lose a third or even half of their talent within three or four years, and except for a couple players have usually seen complete turnover in six or seven seasons.

Compare the 2002 Wings to the 2008 Wings.

Datsyuk, Holmstrom, Draper, McCarty, Maltby, Lidstrom, Hasek.

Hasek was the backup in 2008, Maltby and McCarty played very little time in 2008. Rookie Datsyuk didn't play much in 2002.

So basically, Holmstrom, Draper, and Lidstrom are the only true "carryovers" from 2002 to 2008.

[thedisappearer 291]

And eva manages to dilute an argument from season-to-season to 6 years later. Well played.

[titanium2 867]

And eva manages to dilute an argument from season-to-season to 6 years later. Well played.

Kinda makes you wish that a certain KHL export never came back but ah well.

[Yellowknife Redwing 57]

I'm enjoying the dismantling as much as anybody, but I also think there's been a great deal of hyperbole regarding the Hawks' anticipated nose dive for next season.

They currently have just north of $3.6M in cap space, but are expected to bury Huet in the minors, freeing up an additional $5.625M, which in and of itself is enough to facilitate a raise for Niemi and Hjalmarsson and pay for a seasoned backup goalie. Marty Biron just signed a sub-$1M contract, for example, and there are plenty of reliable, seasoned goaltenders that could back up Niemi at a similar dollar figure.

When you look at this situation realistically, the Hawks still have a solid foundation to ensure that they're not going to get rolled and will most likely be a playoff team for the next 5 years. The following still looks more imposing on paper than any of Columbus, St. Louis or Nashville by a mile from where I'm sitting:

Hossa/Toews/Kane

Bolland/Sharp/Kopecky

Stalberg/Reasoner/Brouwer

Plug/Plug/Plug

Keith/Seabrook

Campbell/Hjalmarsson

Plug/Plug

Niemi/Plug

It's fun to partake in a little schadenfreude at the expense of their depth, but let's not pretend that they're going to magically start sucking over night. Also, be wary that if they can find a way to jettison Campbell for spare parts, they're going to become very dangerous again in a big hurry.

[thedisappearer 291]

I'm enjoying the dismantling as much as anybody, but I also think there's been a great deal of hyperbole regarding the Hawks' anticipated nose dive for next season.

They currently have just north of $3.6M in cap space, but are expected to bury Huet in the minors, freeing up an additional $5.625M, which in and of itself is enough to facilitate a raise for Niemi and Hjalmarsson and pay for a seasoned backup goalie. Marty Biron just signed a sub-$1M contract, for example, and there are plenty of reliable, seasoned goaltenders that could back up Niemi at a similar dollar figure.

When you look at this situation realistically, the Hawks still have a solid foundation to ensure that they're not going to get rolled and will most likely be a playoff team for the next 5 years. The following still looks more imposing on paper than any of Columbus, St. Louis or Nashville by a mile from where I'm sitting:

Hossa/Toews/Kane

Bolland/Sharp/Kopecky

Stalberg/Reasoner/Brouwer

Plug/Plug/Plug

Keith/Seabrook

Campbell/Hjalmarsson

Plug/Plug

Niemi/Plug

It's fun to partake in a little schadenfreude at the expense of their depth, but let's not pretend that they're going to magically start sucking over night. Also, be wary that if they can find a way to jettison Campbell for spare parts, they're going to become very dangerous again in a big hurry.

You don't think that's not a lot of "Plug" to defend the Cup with?

[Yellowknife Redwing 57]

You don't think that's not a lot of "Plug" to defend the Cup with?

To clarify, by "Plug" I mean a player whose value is generally somewhere between 800k-1M that plays low minutes. There are a ton of guys like that looking for work around the league and whatever can't be hired, can most assuredly be found in their depth chart.

Look at what Miller and Eaves did for us this year and they were scooped up for next to nothing from the unemployment line. This year we're going to be relying on a pile of guys who don't make a whole lot of money but play important roles. Eg: Kindl, Ericsson, Meech, Helm, Adbelkader, Eaves. Who's to say that the Hawks don't head right out and scoop up Lebda, Lilja, Miller, Maltby, Williams from our castoffs alone? Building a 4th line, 3rd pairing and hiring a backup goalie during FA season isn't exceedingly difficult. They've got the goods where it counts.

[Broken 16 381]

I'm enjoying the dismantling as much as anybody, but I also think there's been a great deal of hyperbole regarding the Hawks' anticipated nose dive for next season.

They currently have just north of $3.6M in cap space, but are expected to bury Huet in the minors, freeing up an additional $5.625M, which in and of itself is enough to facilitate a raise for Niemi and Hjalmarsson and pay for a seasoned backup goalie. Marty Biron just signed a sub-$1M contract, for example, and there are plenty of reliable, seasoned goaltenders that could back up Niemi at a similar dollar figure.

When you look at this situation realistically, the Hawks still have a solid foundation to ensure that they're not going to get rolled and will most likely be a playoff team for the next 5 years. The following still looks more imposing on paper than any of Columbus, St. Louis or Nashville by a mile from where I'm sitting:

Hossa/Toews/Kane

Bolland/Sharp/Kopecky

Stalberg/Reasoner/Brouwer

Plug/Plug/Plug

Keith/Seabrook

Campbell/Hjalmarsson

Plug/Plug

Niemi/Plug

It's fun to partake in a little schadenfreude at the expense of their depth, but let's not pretend that they're going to magically start sucking over night. Also, be wary that if they can find a way to jettison Campbell for spare parts, they're going to become very dangerous again in a big hurry.

Sorry, but you don't just 'plug' holes that Versteeg, Ladd and Buff left with just anybody. Just because there are new bodies in place doesn't mean it's a push to who they replaced. If they can ship Campbell... maybe I will consider them dangerous again and that depends on who they pick up. Head to head, as the rosters stand with plugs for Chicago in place, the Wings hand them their lunch. If Chicago has two significant injuries during the season, they will be chasing the pack like we were last season. Except I don't think they will have the chemistry to pull it out like we did. Nor the goaltending.

I'd be pretty nervous if I were a s***hawks fan.

[egroen 384]

Did I just see Kopecky projected on a 2nd line???

[jeff48109 474]

Did I just see Kopecky projected on a 2nd line???

he will probably be on the first PP unit, to take over the Buffy role in screening the goalie.

[Guest Heaten]

To clarify, by "Plug" I mean a player whose value is generally somewhere between 800k-1M that plays low minutes. There are a ton of guys like that looking for work around the league and whatever can't be hired, can most assuredly be found in their depth chart.

Look at what Miller and Eaves did for us this year and they were scooped up for next to nothing from the unemployment line. This year we're going to be relying on a pile of guys who don't make a whole lot of money but play important roles. Eg: Kindl, Ericsson, Meech, Helm, Adbelkader, Eaves. Who's to say that the Hawks don't head right out and scoop up Lebda, Lilja, Miller, Maltby, Williams from our castoffs alone? Building a 4th line, 3rd pairing and hiring a backup goalie during FA season isn't exceedingly difficult. They've got the goods where it counts.

Hossa/Toews/Kane

Bolland/Sharp/Kopecky

Stalberg/Reasoner/Brouwer

Plug ($800)/Plug($800)/Plug($800)

Keith/Seabrook

Campbell/Hjalmarsson ($3)

Plug($800)/Plug($800)

Niemi ($2.5)/Plug($800)

Okay, so Hawks re-sign Niemi and Hjalmarsson and that eats up Huet's money, and they still lose Hendry. Now they have $3.6 million to sign 6 scrubs. Lets assume (like your theory suggests) they sign those scrubs @ $800:

6 x $800,000 = 4.8 million.

You stated Hawks have $3.6 million to sign 6 players (not including a 13th forward and 7th dman).... they can't even afford 6 players @ $800k

Hawks are not in good shape like you seem to think. They are poorly managed and you are seeing the effects right now for being a subpar hockey club.

Blackhawks will never be an elite franchise nor will they ever be a dynasty; they are nothing more than the "Florida TBL" and "Carolina Hurricanes" who won the cup. One and done.

Edited July 3, 2010 by Heaten

[55fan 5,133]

Did I just see Kopecky projected on a 2nd line???

Why not? He has twice as many Stanley Cup Rings as Hossa, Kane, or Toews. Heck, you could even add Malkin, Crosby, Zetterberg, Selanne...

Amazing what a little advertising spin will do for you.

I'm thinking that since he has now played a full season without injury, he is probably recovered from all that he encountered with the rough-and-tumble Wings. It seems like every time he started to look good for us, he got injured again. Maybe he is working on his gravitational-pull-towards-the-ice issues and since he has chemistry with Hossa, he will be worthy of the second line.

Or maybe they just figure they're stuck with him and since Hossa, Toews, and Kane are the other ones they can't trade, that he's the next best that they haven't traded yet.

[Hockeytown0001 7,652]

Did I just see Kopecky projected on a 2nd line???

Indeed.

[Heroes of Hockeytown 694]

Did I just see Kopecky projected on a 2nd line???

You've gone and done it now. That typing you hear is the sound of eva putting the finishing touches on his magnus opus, the Kopecky Manifesto.

[Hockeytown0001 7,652]

You've gone and done it now. That typing you hear is the sound of eva putting the finishing touches on his magnus opus, the Kopecky Manifesto.

[Guest Crymson]

Salary cap? What salary cap?