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Trades Coming; Let's Play Clue |
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Blackhawk GM Stan Bowman was quoted extensively by Tim Sassone in yesterday's Daily Herald that the Hawks are in the market for depth/upgrades at center and defense.
Interestingly, Bowman couched his comments in terms of what the Hawks would need for the playoffs, which— holding tenuously on to 7th place in the conference with 20 of their remaining 32 games on the road— is no guarantee.
Understand this first. No executive from this p.r./message-conscious team is going to be that open and emphatic about something in the press without a purpose in mind.
I believe there's a message in this for both players and fans.
To the players, Bowman is saying: "pick up your game or you won't be playing to a packed house in Chicago, enjoying the spotlight of a Stanley Cup Champion. Instead, you might be playing before smaller crowds in a hockey backwater, or somewhere closer to where hockey matters, but also uncomfortably close (in January) to the Yukon."
To fans, he is saying: "we hear the boos after too many home losses. We're going to address it. We fully expect to be in the playoffs—even if you're having doubts."
Some of this is just bluster and midseason message control. Some of it is quite meaningful.
And it's likely any "message" to the players might no longer matter beyond reassuring those engaged heart and soul in helping the team win that the front office is too.
Rumor has it, Bowman knows his chemistry is bad and moves need to be made.
There are persistent reports from various sources of a recent dressing room/bench flare between a player who shows up and works hard every night and a couple of players whose commitment and discipline have been questioned repeatedly. I believe at least one of the latter two players will be dealt.
In fact, any deals Bowman makes can (and perhaps should) have a greater effect in the dressing room and on the bench than in the lineup. And that could, more than anything else, add up to more wins.
On the ice, and in light of the cap, he really is limited to making "minor" moves with and for 4th line/3rd pairing players.
However in the dressing room and on the bench, he can add experience and maturity while losing some irresponsible (and underperforming) immaturity.
There's an old adage that it's hard to have your ears and your mouth engaged simultaneously. And a certain player who has been given repeated chances to achieve his potential is now rumored to be talking his way out of Chicago.
Another adage is that boys will be boys, and young players can stay out all night and show up ready to perform in the morning. That might have been true 15-20 years ago when you could play pro hockey while carrying 15-20% bodyfat and a nasty hangover.
Not anymore.
And there's an old adage in marketing: always under-promise and over-deliver, instead of the other way around. Unfortunately, the serious money and effort the Hawks have put into their One Goal campaign again this year have over-promised. The team has under-delivered.
So , the morning after the boos resonate through the U.C., as opposed to the strains of Chelsea Dagger, fans ask themselves and eachother: why?
Chicago is the third largest city in North America, but it becomes a much smaller town when stories (and photographs) depicting certain off-ice behaviors appear over and over again.
It's all fun and games when you're the 1st or 2nd seed in the conference. Not so much when you're in danger of missing the playoffs and failing to fulfill huge expectations.
It's not just a potentially lost season, it's a potential erosion of the brand.
So now not only must the brass address the chemistry, they also need to go public that they intend to do so.
So, all that said, what will they do?
I believe both the cap and the dressing room issues call for veterans— solid team players who might be long in the tooth physically but will also set the right example in terms of preparation and work ethic.
Two names I threw out yesterday were Doug Weight (NYI) and Mike Weaver (Florida), a center and a defenseman respectively, whose salaries, resume's, current teams' standings and remaining skills suit the Hawks well.
But there might be others.
What can the Hawks give? A fair amount.
There are a couple of former first round picks in the organization who both seem to still be struggling with some of the flaws in their games and persona that scouts cited in their draft years. Bowman also stockpiled a ridiculous amount of early round picks (both used and waiting to be used) in this summer's talent sell-off. And there are perhaps one or two serviceable pieces and parts at the NHL level— who must be dealt regardless in order to accommodate any salary coming back in a deal.
Point being, even if a Weaver or a Weight or Veterans X, Y or Z are only good for a year or two of hockey, dealing for them does not— at all— entail sacrificing the future.
So fans, now it's your turn: let's play Clue.
Bearing in mind the Hawks/ cap situation and needs who do you think they'll deal, who will it be for? And when?
Thanks for reading,
JJ