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Off-Season Checklist – Goaltending & Defence

April 17, 2019, 3:47 PM ET [363 Comments]
Tyler Cameron
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT


Ahhh… every Blackhawks fan favourite off-season topic, "we need to find a top 4 dman."

I can't argue one bit; I've been in that same boat and will address some of this below.

This is the Goaltending and Defence summer to-do list for the Blackhawks from MY perspective. Please note, this could be very different than what Mr. Stan Bowman will do.

First, let's start with the last line of defence, the goalie.

Corey Crawford played 39 games last year. There were many questions leading into the season (Cam Ward started as the #1 if you recall) and there were many questions during the season when Crawford went down with another concussion.

On one hand, Crawford is in the last year of his contract (@$6M per) and if the Hawks are invested in Colin Delia – which they proved with a 3 year / $3M contract – Crawford would serve as a great leader for Delia to learn from all year while getting 20-30 games.

On the other hand, if it were me, I would be very wary of betting on a Crawford and Colin Delia duo next year. The above scenario would entail Crawford being healthy all season and playing 50-60 games, which I would love to see happen, but history is leaning against #50.

So here's what I would do/investigate:

* Look to re-resign Anton Forsberg
– now hear me out. As you can see from the UFAs below, there isn't much out there in what I believe the Hawks need. Forsberg has proven in multiple seasons that he's one hell of an AHL goalie. He's worth keeping around on a 1-year deal and I would imagine he would see some NHL action again at some point in the season. Essentially he's a safety net in the AHL while keeping Rockford competitive again all year. He's an RFA so the Hawks have leverage in this situation. However, I wouldn't be surprised if his agent convinced the Hawks to let him walk to head overseas.

* Cam Ward – talk to Ward about his plans and expectations of salary. He's already made it clear that he liked it in Chicago and would like to stay if possible. He wasn't perfect, but he served as a quality teacher for Delia and veteran voice in the locker room. We'll circle back on this in a second.

* Chat to some UFA Goalies – here are the top 20 UFA goalies:
Screen-Shot-2019-04-16-at-9-39-40-PM



* Conclusion – there are a few factors in play here and they involve some moving parts and information I'm not privy to – ie. How the Hawks doctors feel about Crawford's healthy, how CHI coaches and scouts view Anton Forsberg and Kevin Lankinen.

However, here's what I would do using my own assumptions – I would go into camp with Crawford, Delia and a veteran goalie. I would look to Cam Ward again as said veteran goalie and if he would accept a 1-year / $2M (max) deal without a NMC, I'd say lock him in. If that's not something he and his family are interested in, I turn to guys like Al Montoya, Michael Hutchinson or Chad Johnson for a 1-year / $1M deal.

Then Delia has some competition coming into camp and he can always be sent down without having to pass through waivers. As per CapFriendly, he is still waiver exempt.

Then, sign Anton Forsberg and you have similar, if not identical depth as last year. Done.

--

Moving on to the defence, which needs to do a much better job for their goalies. The number of high danger shots against were staggering and need to be cut down significantly. This is not just on the guys playing the defence position, but the forwards as well.

Now, I know we're all hoping for sweeping changes on the backend, but the way it is shaping up, I'm not entirely sure that is going to happen. Here's why:

* Who's signed? – the Hawks already have Keith, Seabrook, Murphy, Gustafsson and Dahlstrom locked in. Let's add Henri Jokihaju into that equation as well and you're already 6 deep.

So, there isn't a lot of room unless some trades are made.

I think we all agree that the Hawks could use 1-2 top end defencemen added to their roster. I think what they also need is a full training camp with Colliton and staff, as well as some "re-adjusting" of roles and ice time.

First, let's look at who are left unsigned – Gustav Forsling and Slater Koekkoek.

I believe Forsling is signed and Koekkoek is not. That's not to say I don't think Forsling (or Dahlstrom) get moved in a package this summer, but I do think they see more potential in Forsling than Koekkoek. We'll deal with those minor trades later.

* Ideal UFA – LHD / 6'0+ / 200 lbs+ - this would be my ideal candidate for the Hawks to sign or acquire over the summer. Add to that that this defender has to be a very competent defensive player and PKer.

Here's a list of available UFAs based on LHD / 6'0+ / 200 lbs+ (courtesy of CapFriendly):

Screen-Shot-2019-04-16-at-9-31-24-PM

Not much there to my eye unless you want a reclamation project in Marc Methot which I would entertain based on health and his willingness to sign a 1-2 year deal for much less than his last contract.

There's also Ben Chiarot who is an interesting one. He's big, physical and is babysitting Dustin Byfuglien's rovering all over the ice in the playoffs. He could be an option.

* Other UFAs
– now here are the top 15 based on TOI in the 2018-19 regular season. Chicago is looking for a top 4 D and one that is more defensive than offensive – so this is a good way to look at which defenders play the most in the upcoming FA class:

Screen-Shot-2019-04-16-at-9-35-55-PM
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Not much there either. I like Stralman, but I also liked if Stralman was 5 years younger and a left-handed shot.

Tyler Myers could fit the bill but he's a righty as well and will command too much money/term.

Jordie Benn is a nice player but how much better is he than what the Hawks have?

* Trade targets: moving right along to some trade targets. I have identified the team before the player based on salary cap or whether the team might be looking for a roster shakeup. Here we go.

~ WIN - Jacob Trouba (RHD, will be RFA – could command $6-8M per) – this will all depend on how much luck Kevin Cheveldayoff has convincing Trouba and his agent to stay in Winnipeg. I have a feeling that Trouba is in his last year with the team; if that is the case, does Chevy want to trade him in-division. My guess is no. He would be a nice have but I'm not confident he lands in Chicago.

~ VGK – Colin Miller (RHD but can play both sides, 3 years remaining at $3.85M) – his name has been brought up on the message board and I've been told to keep an eye on Vegas for a while now. George McPhee has worked himself into cap hell for the last couple of years but it may be worth it considering how they are playing right now. Miller is a guy that played 19 mins TOI in the regular season but has fallen out of favour a bit, as he has been a healthy scratch on-and-off heading into the playoffs. He is physical but isn't trusted with defensive assignments starting just 39% in the DZ. I like his combination of speed, agility and physicality but maybe proceed with caution with him.

~ VGK - Brayden McNabb (LHD, 3 years remaining at $2.5M per) - McNabb, on the other hand, is more the player the Hawks need to target. He's not as "sexy" but he's big, can skate and is used in a defensive role (53.3% DZ starts – 2nd on the team) for Gerard Gallant. He was a 52 CF% as well and 3rd on the team in hits (200) and 2nd in blocks (139). He also played 2:29/game short-handed, which was 22nd overall in the NHL.

~ EDM – Kris Russell (LHD but can play both sides, 2 years remaining at $4M per) – I'm adding him on here as the Oilers are forever in shakeup mode. After another disappointing season, Russell could be one on the move. He is a shot-blocking machine with 185 this year (3rd in the league) and would serve as a solid in-zone defensive stabilizer for the Hawks. It wouldn't take much to get him either.

~ PIT - Olli Maatta (LHD, 3 years remaining at $4.08M) – due to his past history issues the Hawks would really have to like this player but Pittsburgh's early playoff exit this year will definitely bring changes. Maata's stats surprised me a bit with 18:35 TOI (2:01 PK), 97 hits (60 games), 116 blocks = 1.9 per game (#1 on PIT) and 57.1% DZ%. His 46.4 CF% is not amazing but all other above are workable for a top 4 D and to work with fellow-Finn Jokiharju. Oh, and he's also 24 years old.

~ SJ, Brendan Dillon
(LHD, 1-year remaining at $3.27M) - San Jose is on the verge of losing to the Golden Knights in the playoffs and if they do, I suspect there will be a shakeup. They have cash but might have less if they sign Erik Karlsson. The Sharks could look to part ways with some guys and Dillon would be one I would look at. He wouldn't cost them a ton. He's huge, physical (led SJ in hits with 201), averaged 17:45/game, had a 56.8 CF% and started 52% of his faceoffs in the d-zone.

~ CAR – Brett Pesce (RHD but can play the LH-side, 5 years remaining at $4.03M) – after the significant investment CAR made in Pesce, I doubt they let him go very easily. He's a great dman and is still young. He's a long-shot but added him to the list as the Hurricanes have a slew of quality Dmen.


* Conclusion: Don't get too worked up about the list above if I've included someone you don't agree with or if I've left someone off. This is a best guess as I stated based on team situation and some players – like Trouba and Pesce – might be a pipedream.

If I were the GM, based on who is signed already, I would have Jokiharju penciled into the top 4. Then, I would look to acquire 1 top-end defender in a trade to be inserted into the top 4.

So, while I'm not going to work out every trade scenario, for the sake of this conclusion, I am going to do this:

CHI acquires Brayden McNabb + pick/prospect for Dylan Sikura and Gustav Forsling which rounds out the D like this:

Keith-Gustafsson
McNabb-Jokiharju
Murphy-Seabrook
Dahlstrom


Would I like to have a higher-end defenceman brought into the top 4? Yes, I would. I’m just not seeing a clear path to that now, however, if the Hawks trade magically acquire Jaccob Slavin or Seth Jones, I wouldn’t be overly upset.

I do know, a more experienced Jokiharju, along with a guy like defensively minded guy like McNabb would help a lot. Couple that with better overall commitment and a couple of smart additions at forward, the Hawks will be in much better shape as a team in the GA category.

I also wouldn’t be opposed to bringing in a guy like Marc Methot or a lower profile veteran on a 1-year deal to work as a 6th/7th D.

I reserve the right to expand that Vegas deal to include a guy like Cody Eakin later in the week.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

See ya out there.

JL
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