Thoughts from the first weeks of the season ...

[DMelt36]

We've got 4 days til the next game, so here are some things for you to tell me I'm wrong about.

1) Really enjoying the Hawks second line. Anisimov is giving Kane the 2C he hasn't really had in Chicago, Panarin seems like the type of guy that has the offensive playmaking ability that can actually keep up with Kane, and Kane himself has been playing quality hockey. I expected Kane to struggle this year amid all the off-ice drama and because of the reports I'd read that said Kane spent about 2 months without stepping on the ice at all because of his legal issues. But it appears Kane has opted for the mode where he plays with a giant chip on his shoulder -- and that's usually when he's at his best.

2) Corey Crawford is playing quality hockey again, and will likely need to continue to play at that level while the Hawks figure things out in their defensive end. Yet I'll still probably log on to some social media outlet tonight and see demands for him to be traded. I never fucking understand it.

3) The Hawks are will need to acquire a defenseman from outside the organization if they want to run to the Cup again. I see Trevor Daley becoming a pretty reliable 5th guy who can contribute extensively in the offensive zone but will still have some issues on defense. I see some combination of TVR and/or Roszival occupying that sixth spot. But that No. 4 position in the D-man rotation seems wide open to me as of now. I won't rule out Daley improving enough to handle that role, but I haven't seen anything yet to convince me that he will.

4) I'm not using this as my only source (the eye test says similar things), but all of the advanced analytics detail Jonathan Toews struggling to get going this season. All of his possession metrics are in the red, which is highly unusual for him. But I've got no reason to believe he won't be turning it around at some point.

5) Q needs to find some combination with his lines that gets Teuvo a competent winger if he's to remain at the 3C spot. That may force Q to break up the aforementioned second line, but skating Teuvo with guys like Bickell and Garbutt on his wings just seems like a waste to me.

Have at it.

 

[Ares]

DMelt, what do you think of Svedberg aka Lurch?

Hes really good at screening his own goalie, mayhaps we put him on our PP and park him in front of the opposing goalie?

 

[clonetrooper264]

Trade Crow

 

[HawkWriter]

Blackhawks defense needs to improve but I think it is more the #5/6 spot that needs to get going. Daley certainly hasn't looked great, but they will need him to step up and he should be capable of filling in the #4 spot. There isn't going to be any salary cap room for a #4 dman via trade. A combination of Rozsival/Cumiskey/Rundblad will likely occupy the #6 spot. I thought that Svedberg and TVR played some of their better games against CBJ, which is always promising but it is just one game. Svedberg is a Dman that is going to cost the Blackhawks if they keep putting him out there. He is raw and could have a future, but right now he is a #6 dman that you notice out there...not really a good thing.

TT has to force Q's hand. He hasn't looked great this year unless he has the puck. While that isn't all bad, he just isn't creating without it and he needs to get more involved in that way. He is still young and still learning, but his play is going to dictate what type of help he gets out there...or better yet, his play will dictate that he should be in the top 6 since he certainly has the skill level necessary to play there.

Toews hasn't looked great early on, but luckily it is still early on. He is a player that can get hot when it comes to putting up points and he is also a player that always, almost every single game, does the little things right. He wins battles, he wins faceoffs, he plays defense, he works his ass off, he does a lot of things that the box score won't notice. I've said it a couple of times, I'd like to see Toews/Kane paired up together. Could definitely be good for the both of them and I've been a fan of breaking up Toews/Hossa and Kane/Panarin because of their similar playing styles.

 

[HawkWriter]

Also - Panarin is looking like the real deal out there. Before the season started I was hoping for around 40 points from him (same with TT actually). If you told me that he ended up with 60+ points after this season, it wouldn't surprise me. He is the type of player that is going to score in bunches. A great first step, really underrated shot, and some top notch vision to go with it.

 

[DMelt36]

Like I said before I'm not ruling out that Daley can develop into that #4 guy. I think that Q and his staff are pretty damn good at getting the best play out of D-men. It's not a coincidence that guys like Roszival and Oduya played some of the best hockey of their careers while on the Hawks.

But Daley's had this rep for over a decade now, and I think that's going to be a tall task for the coaching staff.

 

[HawkWriter]

Like I said before I'm not ruling out that Daley can develop into that #4 guy. I think that Q and his staff are pretty damn good at getting the best play out of D-men. It's not a coincidence that guys like Roszival and Oduya played some of the best hockey of their careers while on the Hawks.

But Daley's had this rep for over a decade now, and I think that's going to be a tall task for the coaching staff.

I don't think that Daley has gotten into the flow of the game with the Blackhawks yet. He hasn't shown his offensive side, which he does have. He certainly isn't going to be the reliable Dman in his own zone that we saw for the #4 in year's past. However, he should get better as he becomes more accustomed to the team.

Also - would really like to see the Blackhawks pair up their top 4 dmen. Right now we have seen Seabrook play with Svedberg, Daley w/ TVR and Keith with Hjalmarsson. Need to get Seabrook away from Svedberg, but the Blackhawks likely don't want to do that until they have a #6 that can play in his own zone and can handle his own.

 

[DMelt36]

DMelt, what do you think of Svedberg aka Lurch?

Hes really good at screening his own goalie, mayhaps we put him on our PP and park him in front of the opposing goalie?

Heh. What, you think he's Zdeno Chara or something?

I don't know how well you guys could pick this up on the broadcast, but during that Caps game, every single time Svedberg wound up for a slapper, he was aiming for the end boards to bank it to the front of the net. Counted five different times where he was aiming for that instead of a shot on goal. Can't decide if that's a good or bad thing. Just an observation.

I don't think that Daley has gotten into the flow of the game with the Blackhawks yet. He hasn't shown his offensive side, which he does have. He certainly isn't going to be the reliable Dman in his own zone that we saw for the #4 in year's past. However, he should get better as he becomes more accustomed to the team.

Also - would really like to see the Blackhawks pair up their top 4 dmen. Right now we have seen Seabrook play with Svedberg, Daley w/ TVR and Keith with Hjalmarsson. Need to get Seabrook away from Svedberg, but the Blackhawks likely don't want to do that until they have a #6 that can play in his own zone and can handle his own.

Kept an eye on Daley while I was watching in Washington and he skated through the neutral zone quite masterfully a few times. Would love to see that a lot, lot more. That's biggest thing I miss from when Leddy and/or Campbell was on the team.

 

[Chief Walking Stick]

We've got 4 days til the next game, so here are some things for you to tell me I'm wrong about.

1) Really enjoying the Hawks second line. Anisimov is giving Kane the 2C he hasn't really had in Chicago, Panarin seems like the type of guy that has the offensive playmaking ability that can actually keep up with Kane, and Kane himself has been playing quality hockey. I expected Kane to struggle this year amid all the off-ice drama and because of the reports I'd read that said Kane spent about 2 months without stepping on the ice at all because of his legal issues. But it appears Kane has opted for the mode where he plays with a giant chip on his shoulder -- and that's usually when he's at his best.

2) Corey Crawford is playing quality hockey again, and will likely need to continue to play at that level while the Hawks figure things out in their defensive end. Yet I'll still probably log on to some social media outlet tonight and see demands for him to be traded. I never fucking understand it.

3) The Hawks are will need to acquire a defenseman from outside the organization if they want to run to the Cup again. I see Trevor Daley becoming a pretty reliable 5th guy who can contribute extensively in the offensive zone but will still have some issues on defense. I see some combination of TVR and/or Roszival occupying that sixth spot. But that No. 4 position in the D-man rotation seems wide open to me as of now. I won't rule out Daley improving enough to handle that role, but I haven't seen anything yet to convince me that he will.

4) I'm not using this as my only source (the eye test says similar things), but all of the advanced analytics detail Jonathan Toews struggling to get going this season. All of his possession metrics are in the red, which is highly unusual for him. But I've got no reason to believe he won't be turning it around at some point.

5) Q needs to find some combination with his lines that gets Teuvo a competent winger if he's to remain at the 3C spot. That may force Q to break up the aforementioned second line, but skating Teuvo with guys like Bickell and Garbutt on his wings just seems like a waste to me.

Have at it.

#calledit

Glad the homers are finally coming around.

 

[DMelt36]

#calledit

Glad the homers are finally coming around.

Look forward to throwing it in your face when Toews gets rolling again.

 

[Novak]

Grimson, stirring the pot...

Dmelt, point 4, been saying that... He's not above criticism, as much as some here would like to believe so. To say he's been average up to this point in the season would be an overstatement. This team FEEDS on the energy and momentum he brings to the ice. The Hawks NEED him to get going.

Look forward to being called a troll.

 

[Tater]

DMelt, what do you think of Svedberg aka Lurch?

Hes really good at screening his own goalie, mayhaps we put him on our PP and park him in front of the opposing goalie?

I don't know what to think about the guy, but he sure is getting a good long look in the bigs. Every game I seem to end up thinking he might be sent down be he always returns.

 

[DMelt36]

Grimson, stirring the pot...

Dmelt, point 4, been saying that... He's not above criticism, as much as some here would like to believe so. To say he's been average up to this point in the season would be an overstatement. This team FEEDS on the energy and momentum he brings to the ice. The Hawks NEED him to get going.

Look forward to being called a troll.

He's certainly not above criticism and you're certainly not a troll for saying he'd been bad this year. Now if you suggest he should traded? Then you're either a troll or a fucking moron. (And not suggesting that you have done that, Novak)

But throughout the course of his career, Toews has always showed up. He's always delivered. I've got no reason to believe this season will be any different.

 

[DMelt36]

I don't know what to think about the guy, but he sure is getting a good long look in the bigs. Every game I seem to end up thinking he might be sent down be he always returns.

I don't think they have any other choice, really. It's not like Rundblad and Cumiskey are so good that they have to be kept in the lineup every night.

 

[Ares]

I don't think they have any other choice, really. It's not like Rundblad and Cumiskey are so good that they have to be kept in the lineup every night.

Idk why TVR cannot solidify himself in the top 4.... he showed flashes last year before he got hurt.

I would like to see how TVR does next to Hammer or Keith.

Also, I think Svedberg with Seabrook is a bad pairing.... if you gonna stick the #6 Dman with a good player, put him with Keith.... Keith made Brookbank look like a top 4 D man in the playoffs 2 years ago.

 

[clonetrooper264]

Idk why TVR cannot solidify himself in the top 4.... he showed flashes last year before he got hurt.

I would like to see how TVR does next to Hammer or Keith.

Also, I think Svedberg with Seabrook is a bad pairing.... if you gonna stick the #6 Dman with a good player, put him with Keith.... Keith made Brookbank look like a top 4 D man in the playoffs 2 years ago.

Imo TVR can and should be in the top 4. I can't see any of Svedberg, Cumiskey or Rundblad surpassing him.

Keith would definitely made Svedberg look less like a noob. I support this pairing. And we all know my opinion means everything when it comes to hockey. :elephant:

 

[Ares]

Imo TVR can and should be in the top 4. I can't see any of Svedberg, Cumiskey or Rundblad surpassing him.

Keith would definitely made Svedberg look less like a noob. I support this pairing. And we all know my opinion means everything when it comes to hockey. :elephant:

You know nothing Clonetrooper Snow

 

[clonetrooper264]

You know nothing Clonetrooper Snow

There is much truth in this statement

 

[Raskolnikov]

The off-season barely exists when you win. The first week hammered home for me just how difficult this entire process of winning a cup is.

We have so much chemistry to work out, and roles to fill, you can tell there are going to be some serious growing pains at times this year. I think we might get blown out and manhandled by some of the great teams before we pull this together.

The first week also showed we might have the talent to pull it together. There are glaring holes in the defense, and the lack of depth was pretty glaring in the playoffs, I think we are fortunate to say the least that we survived the playoffs after Rozy went down and Timo couldn't fill that spot. So far we have a bunch of guys failing to even bring us up to reasonable depth level.

Rozy still hurt. Svedberg too slow, not ready. Pokka not ready. Forsberg not ready.

TVR improving nightly. But what if we have a defensive injury to the top 3? Then what?


Early on it seems they must really prefer Panarin-AA combo.

I suppose eventually you may want to add TT or Dano to that pairing, and slide Kane up into the Toews-Hossa line to get that one going.

It will surely be interesting to see in the playoffs what our backs to the wall cornered does.

 

[Spunky Porkstacker]

Toews and Hoss have both started off slow, could be because Q hasn't found a winger that looks right playing with them and that it's so early in the season. Could it be Dano? Daley doesn't look like a #4 Dman, seems that will be the hardest fix. Bigfoot needs to be gone !!!!

As far as the Toews trolling that started in last years playoffs he had 21 pts, Kane had 23, for Tampa Bay, Stamkos had 18 pts and Tyler Johnson had 23 pts. So comparing him to other top players playoff production and considering his 2 way game the constant harping on Toews in last years playoffs was complete BS . He is off to a slow start this year (so criticize away) but my guess is the trolling would have kept up even if he was the leading scorer on the team this season. So long live the Toews trolling game plan, have fun with that.