This Blackhawks team is not even in its prime yet.

[CuttyMarsh2012forOffice]

And look at how every young player coming up through the system is producing. Raanta will only get better. And the time will come when we have two #1 tenders on the roster, but I think it will work, unlike Vancouver. Saad will become a point per game player, he is becoming a beast. Shaw will be a top 6 player on this team. Bickel is coming back from injury, and the hawks will become a goalies nightmare. The Hawks excell in all phases on the ice. This teams prime hits in 3 or 4 years.........They still have ALOT of room to grow and will improve yearly.


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[CreepyBasementGuy]

2 championships in 4 years....leading NHL in points atm....and we can get better?!

:jawdrop:

Atm though, would be nice to fix the PK :cookiesmug: But yeah, I'm planning on enjoying the Hawks for years to come

 

[Jntg4]

And look at how every young player coming up through the system is producing. Raanta will only get better. And the time will come when we have two #1 tenders on the roster, but I think it will work, unlike Vancouver. Saad will become a point per game player, he is becoming a beast. Shaw will be a top 6 player on this team. Bickel is coming back from injury, and the hawks will become a goalies nightmare. The Hawks excell in all phases on the ice. This teams prime hits in 3 or 4 years.........They still have ALOT of room to grow and will improve yearly.


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Going on a 46 game losing streak because you said this :smh:

 

[Jntg4]

And look at how every young player coming up through the system is producing. Raanta will only get better. And the time will come when we have two #1 tenders on the roster, but I think it will work, unlike Vancouver. Saad will become a point per game player, he is becoming a beast. Shaw will be a top 6 player on this team. Bickel is coming back from injury, and the hawks will become a goalies nightmare. The Hawks excell in all phases on the ice. This teams prime hits in 3 or 4 years.........They still have ALOT of room to grow and will improve yearly.


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That said, I don't see the team improving too much more over either last your or this year except maybe having two special teams working at the same time, because we still need to sing Kane and Toews, so if too many players are becoming top 6 quality (Saad, Shaw as you said, Teravainen) even the rising cap may not be enough to prevent somebody having to go (at that point, probably Boss Hoss) and we are already the best team in the league point-wise the past two years.

 

[CuttyMarsh2012forOffice]

Their fluency and consistency to playing great fundamentals will continue to gel and the teams tiny weak cracks are sealing up fast. Hossa is the old guy of the bunch. If anyone drops off it is him. But his ability to play the body and his excellent puck handling on the boards makes this whole Blackhawks team prepare differently day to day. It showed in the playoffs, and I saw the difference in game 3 and 4 vs the kings. As well as game 3 against the bruins. He is honestly the more important player of our top 6. That aside, he will take a pay cut to stay here. And he will eventually become a 3rd line player in 5 years, but I think he plays until 40. Teravainen is going to be a points producing machine and I bet. We find a nice replacement for hossa within 5 years


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[CuttyMarsh2012forOffice]

Hawks don't hit their prime for another 4+ years. No other pro sports team in the states has what we have...... Nobody


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[Jntg4]

Their fluency and consistency to playing great fundamentals will continue to gel and the teams tiny weak cracks are sealing up fast. Hossa is the old guy of the bunch. If anyone drops off it is him. But his ability to play the body and his excellent puck handling on the boards makes this whole Blackhawks team prepare differently day to day. It showed in the playoffs, and I saw the difference in game 3 and 4 vs the kings. As well as game 3 against the bruins. He is honestly the more important player of our top 6. That aside, he will take a pay cut to stay here. And he will eventually become a 3rd line player in 5 years, but I think he plays until 40. Teravainen is going to be a points producing machine and I bet. We find a nice replacement for hossa within 5 years


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He is still signed for several years... at a pay cut, but the cap hit is the average of all years of the contract.

 

[CuttyMarsh2012forOffice]

He is still signed for several years... at a pay cut, but the cap hit is the average of all years of the contract.

Loopholes. In theory, you can sign the top 12 forwards, top 6 d men, top 2 goalies pound for pound in the NHL and be under the cap. That is, if everyone's willing to accept a 30 year contract and guarantee money upon retirement


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[Kurtosis]

Loopholes. In theory, you can sign the top 12 forwards, top 6 d men, top 2 goalies pound for pound in the NHL and be under the cap. That is, if everyone's willing to accept a 30 year contract and guarantee money upon retirement


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And then the team would be all but insolvent since that money does not come off the cap.

 

[HawkWriter]

Loopholes. In theory, you can sign the top 12 forwards, top 6 d men, top 2 goalies pound for pound in the NHL and be under the cap. That is, if everyone's willing to accept a 30 year contract and guarantee money upon retirement


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Can only sign a player to a max 7 year deal (8 if re-signing) currently, so throw that crazy idea out the window.

I'd say the Blackhawks are pretty much operating in their prime, even though I don't see them tapering off really anytime soon. There are other teams in the West that are coming on and the competition will definitely be tough. I don't see Shaw ever being a top 6 player, even though I love what he brings to the table - sort of a Bolland situation, he is pretty valuable on the 3rd line and I just don't see him ever jumping up to a top 6 guy with the game he has. I can't see Toews/Kane getting exponentially better, even though they continue to improve and look good. This team has also avoided major injuries for the most part, which is always in the back of everyone's mind. They should continue to be a solid team, but I wouldn't expect them to all of a sudden get leaps and bounds better as certain players age.

 

[CuttyMarsh2012forOffice]

I was being a Shaw homer for a sec. Teravainen will probably become the 2C, Pirri likely will become 3C. Do we then trade Shaw/Pirri or move Shaw to 3rd line wing?


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[Jntg4]

I was being a Shaw homer for a sec. Teravainen will probably become the 2C, Pirri likely will become 3C. Do we then trade Shaw/Pirri or move Shaw to 3rd line wing?


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Wing.

 

[DMelt36]

I was being a Shaw homer for a sec. Teravainen will probably become the 2C, Pirri likely will become 3C. Do we then trade Shaw/Pirri or move Shaw to 3rd line wing?


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Pirri's future on this team is either as the 2C or as trade bait.

Danault or McNeill will probably take the 3C role in the next year or two.

 

[DewsSox79]

hossa (my fav hawks player) will regress and it will happen sooner than later. toews and kane will maybe get a little better but i see those 2 staying the same for a good stretch. the only thing that can really be serious is injury...especially in the playoffs.


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[Jntg4]

hossa (my fav hawks player) will regress and it will happen sooner than later. toews and kane will maybe get a little better but i see those 2 staying the same for a good stretch. the only thing that can really be serious is injury...especially in the playoffs.


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Toews has a bad history with concussions too, that's something that concerns me long-term.

 

[DewsSox79]

Toews has a bad history with concussions too, that's something that concerns me long-term.

i agree


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[DMelt36]

The biggest obstacle for this team will be how quickly and efficiently its able to replace the production of Hossa as he (eventually) regresses. He's not there yet, though. In fact, Hossa is looking as good as ever this season.

Sharp and Keith will be the next two, probably a few years after Hossa.

 

[ClydeLee]

The biggest obstacle for this team will be how quickly and efficiently its able to replace the production of Hossa as he (eventually) regresses. He's not there yet, though. In fact, Hossa is looking as good as ever this season.

Sharp and Keith will be the next two, probably a few years after Hossa.

This is the first mention of a defender on the team. I found it oddly lacking in this thread.

As great as the O is with only only Hos being a legit past prime player, the defense that's immensely significant may have 3 guys hitting their primes now. Who knows what point Keith abs Seabs trend in the future. Odyua is surely in prime form. It's half the D that could make this upcoming future downslide. Though Hammer isn't at his prime likely and Leddy is nowhere near it. It's a significant overlooked aspect. Perhaps in a few years with an offensive prime the Hawks may be more Penguins/Capitols like in that trend.

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[Jntg4]

This is the first mention of a defender on the team. I found it oddly lacking in this thread.

As great as the O is with only only Hos being a legit past prime player, the defense that's immensely significant may have 3 guys hitting their primes now. Who knows what point Keith abs Seabs trend in the future. Odyua is surely in prime form. It's half the D that could make this upcoming future downslide. Though Hammer isn't at his prime likely and Leddy is nowhere near it. It's a significant overlooked aspect. Perhaps in a few years with an offensive prime the Hawks may be more Penguins/Capitols like in that trend.

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And while we have a few good D prospects, they don't have quite the upside of our forward prospects.

 

[DMelt36]

This is the first mention of a defender on the team. I found it oddly lacking in this thread.

As great as the O is with only only Hos being a legit past prime player, the defense that's immensely significant may have 3 guys hitting their primes now. Who knows what point Keith abs Seabs trend in the future. Odyua is surely in prime form. It's half the D that could make this upcoming future downslide. Though Hammer isn't at his prime likely and Leddy is nowhere near it. It's a significant overlooked aspect. Perhaps in a few years with an offensive prime the Hawks may be more Penguins/Capitols like in that trend.

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That's a very good point.

The top D prospects I consistently hear about for the Hawks are Adam Clendening and Stephen Johns. While there's quite a logjam at forward, the D prospects don't have quite the depth. That'll be something to keep an eye on for sure.