fatbeard
Well-known member
- Joined:
- Dec 25, 2013
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- 13,193
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http://thecommittedindian.com/lock-leave/
Summary:
1) The sky is not falling. Yes, this loss hurt and the Hawks were frustrating all postseason long, but the future still looks bright. However, there are a number of issues that need to be addressed in order to go from a team capable of "surviving" playoff opponents to dominating them. Several core players are getting up in age and the Hawks need to solidfy younger "Plan B's" in the event of a dropoff.
2) Are Bowman and Quenneville on the same page? Bowman seems to recognize the necessity of working young talent into the lineup, yet many of the Hawks young players can't get off Q's bench ahead of scrub veterans whose names we all curse and who provide literally no value to the team. Whatever disagreements that are going on behind the scenes need to be solved ASAP.
3) Blackhawks were killed by their lack of depth. Although the Hawks boast more top-end talent, the Kings eventually wore them down over the course of games by rolling all four lines while Q was basically forced to roll 3 and play Russian Roullete with the 4th in order to rest the others. And in the end, they eventually rolled the bullet in the form of a bad bounce. But, the Hawks had plenty of chances to end the series before putting themselves in position where one bad puck could lose it. Lack of depth was a killer factor in their inability to hold leads and sustain momentum.
4) Offseason moves: Teravainen and Johns will play immediately next year, and improve the Hawks depth from opening day. Oduya is likely the biggest name who could move this offseason, although some writers are throwing around a core player "black swan" like Sharp or Seabrook (two mediocre seasons followed by two bad postseasons) as possibilities.
Summary:
1) The sky is not falling. Yes, this loss hurt and the Hawks were frustrating all postseason long, but the future still looks bright. However, there are a number of issues that need to be addressed in order to go from a team capable of "surviving" playoff opponents to dominating them. Several core players are getting up in age and the Hawks need to solidfy younger "Plan B's" in the event of a dropoff.
2) Are Bowman and Quenneville on the same page? Bowman seems to recognize the necessity of working young talent into the lineup, yet many of the Hawks young players can't get off Q's bench ahead of scrub veterans whose names we all curse and who provide literally no value to the team. Whatever disagreements that are going on behind the scenes need to be solved ASAP.
3) Blackhawks were killed by their lack of depth. Although the Hawks boast more top-end talent, the Kings eventually wore them down over the course of games by rolling all four lines while Q was basically forced to roll 3 and play Russian Roullete with the 4th in order to rest the others. And in the end, they eventually rolled the bullet in the form of a bad bounce. But, the Hawks had plenty of chances to end the series before putting themselves in position where one bad puck could lose it. Lack of depth was a killer factor in their inability to hold leads and sustain momentum.
4) Offseason moves: Teravainen and Johns will play immediately next year, and improve the Hawks depth from opening day. Oduya is likely the biggest name who could move this offseason, although some writers are throwing around a core player "black swan" like Sharp or Seabrook (two mediocre seasons followed by two bad postseasons) as possibilities.
