Sam Savoie and Alex Pharand assigned to Rockford.
- boilermaker100

Yea i saw that sounds like Savoie is going to be there next season as well but Pharand is ATO

Magic Gus with a 2 assist night.

Man Verhaeghe is clutch, big win for us

Yea i saw that sounds like Savoie is going to be there next season as well but Pharand is ATO
- BetweenTheDots

I’ve seen Pharand a few times, although he could be a late bloomer I didn’t see a whole lot there. Big, reasonable skater but he's just there, he doesn’t really do anything. He’s not a scorer, he’s not physical but he plays on the PK occasionally. Now Savoie on the other hand, never seen him live but over the past two years I’ve seen him at least 20 times on TV. When Savoie is on the ice he’s always in the center of the screen, his nose is always over the puck. He hits everything, he’s always in the action before and after the whistle. I said he reminds me of Andrew Shaw but also like Brad Marchand, especially his junior scoring numbers. Although that step to the pros is huge, I’d be surprised if he’s not on the Blackhawks one day.

Sam Savoie and Alex Pharand assigned to Rockford.
- boilermaker100

Soo lost so G. Hayes could be joining also. Interested to see Savoie after return from injury.

Cool, I'll get to see Hawks pick this year Cole Eiserman

- vabeachbear

But if the Blackhawks picked 3rd or 4th, this year you may see Betsy's cousin Gavin McKenna in the Indianhead with a lottery win in 2026...

You got the Scotty Bowman way of thinking. Scotty just loves him some great defenceman.

Couple years ago he was on a radio interview in Toronto and told the story of how the Hawks sent him out to Vancouver specifically to watch Bowen Byram play. He came back and told his son to draft the kid, he was going to be a really good NHL Dman.

So the Hawks drafted Kirby Dach and the Avs grabbed Byram right after.
- RickJ

And both have been under achievers due to injury and play....

Nabers may be taken before Harrison.

The FL will not level punishment on Atlanta until later in the year so any punishment will be enacted in teh 2025 NFL draft.

So, the Bears are back in the position where it is unlikely Joe Alt is there, and all three WRs are gone.
If Michigan's McCarthey hasn't been taken, maybe the Bears add a pick to drop a couple slots.
It's. it like Minny will need that two spot improvement to land him unless the jets / Bears trade with a team who wants him.
- wiz1901

Bowers recent medical procedure may snuff any trades up for him.
- wiz1901

Nabers will not be taken before MHJ. Bowers hamstring injury woldn't scare me away from taking him at all. Yes, there is a very slim chance Alt will be there but crazier things have happened.

I woulldn't move back. Just take the pick and move on
- Elbows15

https://theathletic.com/5...nabers-harrison-williams/

"Marvin Harrison, Rome Odunze … and Malik Nabers above them both

“(Harrison’s) not No. 1 to me,” said a veteran NFL receivers coach, whose team is in the market for another top receiver, and whom we’ll ID as WR Coach 1. “(LSU’s Malik) Nabers is the No. 1 on my list and I think he is on a lot of people’s lists. He’s just different to me. I don’t think it’s anything toward Marvin, it’s just really that Nabers is that good. His skills with the ball in his hands are really different. His acceleration is just different. His explosive is different. He tracks the ball really well. He’s a smaller guy but he can still play outside. He’s rare in a lot of ways. He’s got some Ja’Marr Chase in him, some DJ Moore skills. I hesitate to say this because Tyreek Hill’s speed is just so different from anybody in the league, but Nabers has some of that kind of burst and just so explosive off the line of scrimmage.

“He’s as fast as the person chasing him. He’s gonna run away from whoever. If Deion was chasing him, he’d go 4.21 or whatever. He’s the best WR prospect since Chase and on tape, I think he’s even more impressive. This dude is different.”

Another long-time NFL assistant, who has coached receivers and been an NFL offensive coordinator, agreed that Nabers was the top receiver prospect.

“It’s Nabers and then there’s a gap,” said Offensive Assistant 1. “He is the best wide receiver in the draft in a couple of years, maybe more. He is Tyreek Hill combined with both of those San Francisco guys (Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk). He is so explosive. He has a second gear. He can stop on a dime. He breaks tackles. You can’t jam him because he’s just too quick and if you miss at all, he’s gonna outrun you. He’s really competitive but he can be a pain in the ass. He’ll be the guy who’ll have something to say to the coordinator coming off the field. He’s got that edge to him where he doesn’t know when to let up. He doesn’t know that those guys are on his side.”

Probably not a real good idea to draft for specific position or slotting a player already with only 2 NHL games under his belt.
But this team is so talent short up front they have to do something to start fixing that.

Now if you promised me Levshunov will turn into an Alex Pietrangelo or Drew Doughty I'd be all in.
- RickJ

The guy who could promise you an 18 yr old playing jrs or NCAA will be an NHL #1 Dman would be Jesus or too expensive to afford. .. I know you're being satirical though.

No NHL organIzation is gonna make any decision based on 2 NHL games but as far as Nazar goes they've had eyes on him for 3-4 yrs, the last 2 as their property..... If I'm right and his game is so much better than I thought, playing NHL with only a day or so notice, never playing pro, yet making plays and reads in all 3 zones, excellent off the puck, smartly backchecking, smartly forechecking, poking pucks alive 7ft from his line change, supporting pucks, being dangerous often, not playing safe yet still playing responsibly, poised beyond what could have been hoped for then it's at least validation for the evaluators. And he scored and this far from a 2nd goal..... We thought so KD says but now we see it in the NHL!!

But you've slotted Celibrini 1, Lindstrom and Buium at 2A and 2B. Toss up at 2. 4 scouts pounding the table for Lindstrom and 4 pounding it for Buium or Levshunov. ..... Did Nazar's play affect KD's decision on the way to the podium?

And both have been under achievers due to injury and play....
- wiz1901

Byram was in real trouble with concussion effects early on with Colorado. Tough league for a 19 yr old Dman. I think he will play very well in Buffalo under Lindy Ruff.

I'm gonna assume the Hawks were as amazed by Nazar's complete game and high IQ as I was or they already knew it before his 2 game NHL stint.

Got me to thinking. Kid showed in his tiny NHL sample size he's gonna be an NHL centerman giving the Hawk's their 2C in their minds. Will that affect how they draft? ...... Is it cemented in the organIzation's head they have their top 2 centerman with a decent chance they have a 3C in Moore?

Would that cause them to draft a Dman instead of Lindstrom due to Nazar's 2 game showing? ...... I've come around to thinking if Levshunov is there they'll take him cuz he'd be their best shot at a true top Dman, and he's a right shot, but can't help thinking after watching Lindstrom, Demidov too, a GM just can't pass up that package.

Can't help but wonder if I'm correct will Nazar affect their draft and if so will that be bad or good? Can't see the bad cuz I'm ok with drafting Levshunov, Buium, Parekh or D!ckinson. Same goes for Eiserman but I think they go Dman.
- Mr Ricochet

Their biggest need is people able to put the puck in the net. Period.

The guy who could promise you an 18 yr old playing jrs or NCAA will be an NHL #1 Dman would be Jesus or too expensive to afford. .. I know you're being satirical though.

No NHL organIzation is gonna make any decision based on 2 NHL games but as far as Nazar goes they've had eyes on him for 3-4 yrs, the last 2 as their property..... If I'm right and his game is so much better than I thought, playing NHL with only a day or so notice, never playing pro, yet making plays and reads in all 3 zones, excellent off the puck, smartly backchecking, smartly forechecking, poking pucks alive 7ft from his line change, supporting pucks, being dangerous often, not playing safe yet still playing responsibly, poised beyond what could have been hoped for then it's at least validation for the evaluators. And he scored and this far from a 2nd goal..... We thought so KD says but now we see it in the NHL!!

But you've slotted Celibrini 1, Lindstrom and Buium at 2A and 2B. Toss up at 2. 4 scouts pounding the table for Lindstrom and 4 pounding it for Buium or Levshunov. ..... Did Nazar's play affect KD's decision on the way to the podium?
- Mr Ricochet

The 18 year old draft is a crapshoot once you get past the obvious early picks.

Some kids are ready a year or 2 after being drafted, others need much more time. I keep thinking Alex Turcotte, Philip Broberg - top 10 picks - whats taking so long? Where is Specer Knight vegetating?

Hawks gotta get this one right.

Their biggest need is people able to put the puck in the net. Period.
- LFS

And staff that don’t diddle players. Also a need.

The 18 year old draft is a crapshoot once you get past the obvious early picks.

Some kids are ready a year or 2 after being drafted, others need much more time. I keep thinking Alex Turcotte, Philip Broberg - top 10 picks - whats taking so long? Where is Specer Knight vegetating?

Hawks gotta get this one right.
- RickJ

Think it was 2-3 yrs ago I asked you, as a Canadian, is what's up with Josh Morrisey? Is he gonna be a solid NHLer? .... For some it takes time but for the others the sooner the organIzation realizes a player isn't gonna be what they thought he was gonna be the better.

And yes, the Hawks must get their top 4 pick right this yr and what's best about that is after the top pick the next tier has about 6ish players so they're gonna get a good one. In theory of course.

As far as will Frankie cause the Hawks to "adjust" their top pick, I hope not. But, I bet if you polled 100 GM's 95% would say they drafted the BPA but 50% would admit they find ways to justify to pick an area of need. ...... A team that is desperate for a top pairing Dman would probably take one when they have a winger rated "slightly" above him.

Watching Makar tonight snap off that shot that was tipped in took my mind to Parekh. The exact kinda play he makes.

It occurs to me that the Hawks were able to win 3 Cups in large part because they had a lot more pieces already in place by the time Toews and Kane came on board, and were able to take advantage of being competitive while having both of those two on entry level and bridge deals (+ Keith on a 13 year deal). Bedard will be making $15 mil/yr+ by the time the Hawks are ready to compete this time around. Are they more likely to be the McDavid Oilers than the Toews/Kane Hawks?

I think Foligno deserves to wear the C. I was happy to see him the last off the ice in many of the games. I understand that eventually they'll want Bedard to wear the C, but Foligno probably doesn't have a lot of years left with the Hawks, so turn it over then.

And staff that don’t diddle players. Also a need.
- Big23Questions

Such a relevant comment

I think Foligno deserves to wear the C. I was happy to see him the last off the ice in many of the games. I understand that eventually they'll want Bedard to wear the C, but Foligno probably doesn't have a lot of years left with the Hawks, so turn it over then.
- ktsparks

Folign is a great interview, will definitely have a broadcast career after he retires

BUT

Besides his one year with the team, what history does he have with the Hawks?

He wore down the second half of the year at 37 years old, and had I believe 4 points in his last 20 games. He shouldn't gets more than 15 minutes a night next year, he allready looks like he carries a baby grand on his back skating, might as well add oxygen tanks to it.

I thought the one of the reasons for trading Kane (and not signing Toews) was to have the leaders come from the young guns.

Until Bedard is ready to be Captain, IMO they should leave it like it is, and go with 3 assistants. In the modern game, when do you really see captains and the refs really hasing it out? Any play of consequence gets reviewed anyway.

It occurs to me that the Hawks were able to win 3 Cups in large part because they had a lot more pieces already in place by the time Toews and Kane came on board, and were able to take advantage of being competitive while having both of those two on entry level and bridge deals (+ Keith on a 13 year deal). Bedard will be making $15 mil/yr+ by the time the Hawks are ready to compete this time around. Are they more likely to be the McDavid Oilers than the Toews/Kane Hawks?
- Quetzalcoatl

That is really tough to predict and a lot of unknowns. I know what you are getting at, but I would argue that Edmonton isn't the best example. Their previous GM Peter Chiarelli made some really awful moves and Holland still a few blunders held their team back. If they had figured out their defense/goal-tending a little sooner, McDavid might already have his name on the cup.

It will come down to asset management in general and not just one star player being on ELC. I'm not too sure if he will be quite making $15M+ on his first deal. There are some unknowns that are yet to be written there. It might be 4 or 5 years at something like $12M. We don't really know how high he will fly yet.

I would argue that you are right about the Hawks winning cups because Kane and Toews weren't making outrageous salaries, but also because they had a truckload of talent in the system and didn't have to try to go out to the UFA market to plug many holes at a premium price. Hossa being signed to a contract that took advantage of the system. The Hawks probably don't get those cups without Hossa playing on a very friendly contract, along with Keith. Tons of factors went into building a team that won 3 cups in a short span.

It occurs to me that the Hawks were able to win 3 Cups in large part because they had a lot more pieces already in place by the time Toews and Kane came on board, and were able to take advantage of being competitive while having both of those two on entry level and bridge deals (+ Keith on a 13 year deal). Bedard will be making $15 mil/yr+ by the time the Hawks are ready to compete this time around. Are they more likely to be the McDavid Oilers than the Toews/Kane Hawks?
- Quetzalcoatl

Sort of yeah. Keith and Seabrook had two full seasons before Kane and Toews came on board. Hossa was brought on the year they won (two years after their rookie year). Campbell one year after their rookie year. Hjalmarsson was a rookie the same year. Sharp hadn't really established himself until Kane and Toews rookie years. Brouwer and Bolland were basically rookies the same year as Kane and Toews.

I guess you can say that a lot of pieces were in place, but no one really knew that they were the right pieces yet. The Hawks surrounded a bunch of kids with enough solid veteran depth to get them over the hump.

I'm happy to hear that KD is acknowledging that they are done bottom feeding. My hope is that he is not just adding guys to fill in around the rookies but finding pieces that fit into a competitive roster.

One thing I think you hit on the head was the lower cost contract part. The Hawks did all of their winning before Kane and Toews matching $10.5M contracts kicked in. KD has done a good job of adding ton of draft picks to the system to hedge against that a bit, but he'll have to continue to space them out if he wants to remain competitive over the long term.

It occurs to me that the Hawks were able to win 3 Cups in large part because they had a lot more pieces already in place by the time Toews and Kane came on board, and were able to take advantage of being competitive while having both of those two on entry level and bridge deals (+ Keith on a 13 year deal). Bedard will be making $15 mil/yr+ by the time the Hawks are ready to compete this time around. Are they more likely to be the McDavid Oilers than the Toews/Kane Hawks?
- Quetzalcoatl

I think that's a great question and they definitely could be.

First off the Oilers were unorganized in their approach. So let's just say the year before McDavid they drafted Draisaitl at 3 OA, (that's why Eiserman would be a good choice for the Blackhawks this year) you have Nurse in the system.

Blackhawks have KK and Nazar on the Blackhawks team, Vlasic and Kurashev from before KD, Vlasic looks like a shut down defenseman

So in a 5 year span, 1 year before McDavid, 6 top 50 picks, 7 from 51 to 100. Blackhawks most likely have 16 top 50 picks, 17 from 51 to 100 picks.

So the Blackhawks in total will have 20 more picks in the top 100 in that 5 year span. So in total 33 top 100 picks. Oilers only had 13. So i really don't see them being like the Oilers or really any other team.

Sort of yeah. Keith and Seabrook had two full seasons before Kane and Toews came on board. Hossa was brought on the year they won (two years after their rookie year). Campbell one year after their rookie year. Hjalmarsson was a rookie the same year. Sharp hadn't really established himself until Kane and Toews rookie years. Brouwer and Bolland were basically rookies the same year as Kane and Toews.

I guess you can say that a lot of pieces were in place, but no one really knew that they were the right pieces yet. The Hawks surrounded a bunch of kids with enough solid veteran depth to get them over the hump.

I'm happy to hear that KD is acknowledging that they are done bottom feeding. My hope is that he is not just adding guys to fill in around the rookies but finding pieces that fit into a competitive roster.

One thing I think you hit on the head was the lower cost contract part. The Hawks did all of their winning before Kane and Toews matching $10.5M contracts kicked in. KD has done a good job of adding ton of draft picks to the system to hedge against that a bit, but he'll have to continue to space them out if he wants to remain competitive over the long term.
- Chunk

It's interesting when you look at the past drafts many players they hit on other than 1st round picks, Keith and Byfuglien, they had multiple picks in those rounds they drafted.

These are the teams with cap overages starting next season. What is interesting is that Vegas is NOT on the list.

Overage Penalties for 2024-25
Team Overage Penalty
Edmonton Oilers $3,450,000*
Dallas Stars $2,595,407
Washington Capitals $2,252,500
Los Angeles Kings $1,850,000
New Jersey Devils $1,538,897
Montréal Canadiens $1,022,500
Ottawa Senators $850,000
New York Rangers $512,500*
Minnesota Wild $425,000*
Philadelphia Flyers $245,000
Boston Bruins $50,000*
(Florida Panthers) ($500,000)**
(Carolina Hurricanes) ($50,450)***

Such a relevant comment
- LFS

Funny, he boasts about being a masters and a scientist then come out with a dumbass comment like that

I think that's a great question and they definitely could be.

First off the Oilers were unorganized in their approach. So let's just say the year before McDavid they drafted Draisaitl at 3 OA, (that's why Eiserman would be a good choice for the Blackhawks this year) you have Nurse in the system.

Blackhawks have KK and Nazar on the Blackhawks team, Vlasic and Kurashev from before KD, Vlasic looks like a shut down defenseman

So in a 5 year span, 1 year before McDavid, 6 top 50 picks, 7 from 51 to 100. Blackhawks most likely have 16 top 50 picks, 17 from 51 to 100 picks.

So the Blackhawks in total will have 20 more picks in the top 100 in that 5 year span. So in total 33 top 100 picks. Oilers only had 13. So i really don't see them being like the Oilers or really any other team.
- BetweenTheDots

That's pretty crazy when you think about it, teams get 7 draft picks a year and the Blackhawks will have that many in the top 100 picks for a 5 year span. Dobber said about 60 NHL players are in each draft. Really will be interesting in a few years.