Frank Pellico will be doing his best Don Music impressions pretty soon watching these games.

I agree. Schmaltz should get a $3mil AAV 2 year Bridge deal based on his play thus far. Great potential, but all it is thus far is potential in a incomplete package. Knowing McStanBo....I'm very worried he will be yet another overpay.
- EnzoD

Schmaltz should be considering THIS YEAR his "prove it" year. But he's acting/playing like he's already got it made.

Schmaltz should be considering THIS YEAR his "prove it" year. But he's acting/playing like he's already got it made.
- tompo1015

Maybe because he knows who the GM is.

Based on this logic, how would you or anyone consider trading Nick Schmaltz then. Giving up Teravainen in the Bickell deal sucked, but if he was playing every game in a Hawk uniform the way he was last night, he likely wouldn't have been included in that deal.
- HawkintheD

He was only 22 years old, though (technically 21 when the trade happened) and had 55 points in 140 (Reg season and playoffs) NHL games under his belt. Why on Earth do you give up on a player like that so early?

Yes, I understand there were alleged issues with conditioning and commitment, but why would you not try to work with that player? How much further ahead would they be if they had just buried Bickell for another year instead of trading Teuvo to get rid of him?

Why would any team want them? Every NHL team has better,younger, or cheaper alternatives to Kruger, Rutta, Manning, Kunitz, Ward, Davidson, Gustafson, ect...


I think Anisimov should/could be traded and slot as a 3C on a Playoff Contender. Nobody wants Seabrook without getting Boquist or Debrincat too. Keith is tradeable.
- EnzoD

That may be the case, however Stan created this mess and he needs to prove to the team , fans , coaching staff and management he can perform his job and move players out without mortgaging the future for his handling of contracts.


The only players in my opinion not tradeable toews, Kane, Johki, debrincant everyone is expandable.

Even if we can snag Cozens, that would be really good. Supposed to be big, skilled and competitive.

he's about the same size as Kane when he was drafted #1 overall...5'10' 160ish pounds and out of this world offensive skill

Cat-Toews-Anders Lee
Saad-Jack Hughes-Kane


Joki-Keith
Boquist-Tyler Myers
Mitchell-Forsling/??
- EnzoD

I don't think Sean's volunteered to be out there to be out there. Coaching decision from Mars.
- RickJ

Rick, did you mean the lumbering D man Seabrook?
I happened to see Barry's wire heat up right before he was sent out.
Word was, McDonut communicated players to Blowman who teletyped it to Barry and then he screamed it in JC's ear.

I agree. Schmaltz should get a $3mil AAV 2 year Bridge deal based on his play thus far. Great potential, but all it is thus far is potential in a incomplete package. Knowing McStanBo....I'm very worried he will be yet another overpay.
- EnzoD

Potential? This is his 3rd season - what do you expect to see that is any different from what's been on display so far? No NHL team wins with this kind of weak ass player. He should be sent to Rockford and told he won't be back until he grows a pair. It's sickening watching him.

He was only 22 years old, though (technically 21 when the trade happened) and had 55 points in 140 (Reg season and playoffs) NHL games under his belt. Why on Earth do you give up on a player like that so early?

Yes, I understand there were alleged issues with conditioning and commitment, but why would you not try to work with that player? How much further ahead would they be if they had just buried Bickell for another year instead of trading Teuvo to get rid of him?
- BINGO!

Why does Stan Bowman still have a job??....better yet, why did he get this job in the first place? Why did he think it was smart to trade Saad for Anisimov and save $1.3mil after 2015? Why did he think it was smart to trade Danault for Weise + Fleischmann? Why did he trade for Ladd instead of a dman in 2016? Why did he think David Rundblad was good enough to play in the NHL on 2 separate contracts?? Why does he build this team like its no-check Euro league hockey on the larger ice surface? Why did he think it was smart to trade Sharp and the only good dman he's drafted in Johns for Garbutt and Trevor Daley (also saving no virtually nothing on the cap)? Why did he trade Hjallmarsson for Murphy? Why did he sign Kunitz? Why did he sign Ward? Why did he sign Manning? Why did he trade Hossa's cap (with a useful player in Hinostroza)...only to not use the cap space? Why did Jan Rutta deserve a $2.3mil contract?

Questions aplenty!

That may be the case, however Stan created this mess and he needs to prove to the team , fans , coaching staff and management he can perform his job and move players out without mortgaging the future for his handling of contracts.


The only players in my opinion not tradeable toews, Kane, Johki, debrincant everyone is expandable.
- Taylorst1

What was the purpose of the Hossa/Hinostroza/Oesterle for Kruger deal?

Rick, did you mean the lumbering D man Seabrook?
I happened to see Barry's wire heat up right before he was sent out.
Word was, McDonut communicated players to Blowman who teletyped it to Barry and then he screamed it in JC's ear.
- savvyone-1

Seabs - sorry didn't do spellcheck

Why does Stan Bowman still have a job??....better yet, why did he get this job in the first place? Why did he think it was smart to trade Saad for Anisimov and save $1.3mil after 2015? Why did he think it was smart to trade Danault for Weise + Fleischmann? Why did he trade for Ladd instead of a dman in 2016? Why did he think David Rundblad was good enough to play in the NHL on 2 separate contracts?? Why does he build this team like its no-check Euro league hockey on the larger ice surface? Why did he think it was smart to trade Sharp and the only good dman he's drafted in Johns for Garbutt and Trevor Daley (also saving no virtually nothing on the cap)? Why did he trade Hjallmarsson for Murphy? Why did he sign Kunitz? Why did he sign Ward? Why did he sign Manning? Why did he trade Hossa's cap (with a useful player in Hinostroza)...only to not use the cap space?

Questions aplenty!
- EnzoD

Thank you. He's made some utterly baffling choices with this roster.

Thank you. He's made some utterly baffling choices with this roster.
- BINGO!

Forgot to add...why did he give a big, slow, hard milage dman a Top 10 in the NHL Cap hit for 8 seasons after his 30th birthday? NO WAY anyone could've seen that turning out poorly......I'm sure I missed a few others...how about that trade return for Nick Leddy???

Potential? This is his 3rd season - what do you expect to see that is any different from what's been on display so far? No NHL team wins with this kind of weak ass player. He should be sent to Rockford and told he won't be back until he grows a pair. It's sickening watching him.
- RickJ

I tend to agree with you Rick, but Alligator Arms Tuevo is a cautionary tale for 2 very similar players.....

Seabs - sorry didn't do spellcheck
- RickJ

No worries, I figured it out pretty quickly when you said coaching decision from Mars (although the initial decision to put the fraidy-cat Schmaltz out for the 1st shift in OT had me scratching more than my head).

Sure Jeremy, let's put our most lead-footed defenseman out in 3 on 3 OT against some of the faster players in the league. Great idea.

No worries, I figured it out pretty quickly when you said coaching decision from Mars (although the initial decision to put the fraidy-cat Schmaltz out for the 1st shift in OT had me scratching more than my head).

Sure Jeremy, let's put our most lead-footed defenseman out in 3 on 3 OT against some of the faster players in the league. Great idea.
- savvyone-1

How happy must Joel be right now?? Collecting his paycheck on the beach and no longer having to try and turn horsepoop into lemonade with this roster StanBo gave him.

Forgot to add...why did he give a big, slow, hard milage dman a Top 10 in the NHL Cap hit for 8 seasons after his 30th birthday? NO WAY anyone could've seen that turning out poorly......I'm sure I missed a few others...how about that trade return for Nick Leddy???
- EnzoD

It was always going to end with Q being the first to leave, but man, Bowman has gotten an awful lot of leeway.

What was the purpose of the Hossa/Hinostroza/Oesterle for Kruger deal?
- BINGO!

Stan in my opinion was not aggressive earlier on trying to move Hossa contract out and instead of upgrading this team he wasted cap money on romper room rejects, ward , manning , Kunitz, Davidson and then sat on over 4 million available cap space money .

Their was plenty of impact guys out their whom Stan should have aggressively pursued , and the only talk we kept hearing was Chicago was going to be big players in free agency Then some murmurs of going after patches.

Stan should have pursued Skinner and or De HAAN both impactful young players who would immediately solve key issues and be here for the foreseeable future.



Instead we got sold a clunker with toews and Kane getting another year older and wasting away what talent they have left.

Then they played coy with Crawford's situation and basically blew smoke up the fans butts in order to pump up ticket sales and season ticket holders as to not come to terms with addressing the real problem Mismanagement of salaries, contracts , players and moral of the team.

...how about that trade return for Nick Leddy???
- EnzoD

Avangard Omsk of the Kontinental Hockey League says thank you and passes along a Zdravstvuj from Comrade Ville.

One of Blowman's best trades, don't you think Enzo?

I tend to agree with you Rick, but Alligator Arms Tuevo is a cautionary tale for 2 very similar players.....
- EnzoD

Do they realize they're poopting all over a 22 year old forward who is averaging over 40 points per season again?

Schmaltz is not the problem.

You're catastrophically slow defense and utter lack of depth is.

He was only 22 years old, though (technically 21 when the trade happened) and had 55 points in 140 (Reg season and playoffs) NHL games under his belt. Why on Earth do you give up on a player like that so early?

Yes, I understand there were alleged issues with conditioning and commitment, but why would you not try to work with that player? How much further ahead would they be if they had just buried Bickell for another year instead of trading Teuvo to get rid of him?
- BINGO!

Same reason people want to give up on Schmaltz so quickly (at only 22 also) - and DuClair (at only 22 also) and....

TT had 44 games in the "A" - DuClair had 16 - Schmaltz had 12.

It's the "new NHL" (MLB has the same issues) - we expect players to come straight out of Europe / Juniors / college and be ready for the Show - and when they show that they aren't - time to move them.

No worries, I figured it out pretty quickly when you said coaching decision from Mars (although the initial decision to put the fraidy-cat Schmaltz out for the 1st shift in OT had me scratching more than my head).

Sure Jeremy, let's put our most lead-footed defenseman out in 3 on 3 OT against some of the faster players in the league. Great idea.
- savvyone-1

One Colliton approach that I am already tired of is rewarding poor play. Gus played most minutes in Colliton’s first game although he played horribly. Hawks actually win that game if Gus doesn’t single-handedly give the game away. Schmaltz starts OT although he played stupidly, lazily and afraid all night long. BTW in OT he just skated around like he was in Stars on Ice.

It was always going to end with Q being the first to leave, but man, Bowman has gotten an awful lot of leeway.
- BINGO!

IMO he earned the leeway with the team getting to the conference finals 5 times in 7 seasons and winning 3 cups. Just the fact that the team did that with him as GM (Not getting into any Tallon/Bowman debate, because that is pointless, just stating the fact that Stan was GM for that whole stretch.)

The rope is coming towards an end and if the slide continues Stan won't last to see 2019, but it wasn't like he was a GM who never did anything positive. He did earn extra leeway compared to most GM who never got a team over the hump even once.

How happy must Joel be right now?? Collecting his paycheck on the beach and no longer having to try and turn horsepoop into lemonade with this roster StanBo gave him.
- EnzoD

Is like the Emperor finally realizing he has no clothes.
I have been a big Q critic but his firing exposed Blowman beyond my wildest dreams. Doubt anything will be done, he will still be here a year from now.
The Blowman/Q "marriage" was pretty toxic for a long time, resulting in Blowman trading for "Q guys" and Q not effectively utilizing players. It's what happens when hardheaded meets emptyheaded.

I'd say by January McDonut and Rocky will really see the fruits of Blowman's labors in the way of thousands of empty seats and ticket prices dropping through the floor.

Playoff-worthy roster indeed!

Same reason people want to give up on Schmaltz so quickly (at only 22 also) - and DuClair (at only 22 also) and....

TT had 44 games in the "A" - DuClair had 16 - Schmaltz had 12.

It's the "new NHL" (MLB has the same issues) - we expect players to come straight out of Europe / Juniors / college and be ready for the Show - and when they show that they aren't - time to move them.
- StLBravesFan

And that's why I'm okay with Sikura getting seasoned in the AHL. He will be in the NHL in due time. It's best not to wreck his confidence, and instead, amp it up to the point where it's sky high once he does get recalled.

The Hawks have no top 6 prospects outside of him and Wise so it's best to bring them along at a smart pace. Several middle 6 and tons of bottom 6 prospects, though.

Speaking of which, Barratt is having a monster sophomore campaign so far at Penn State. Top 5 in NCAA scoring so far this early part of the season. He may prove to go from a 4th line grinder to someone like Shaw who can slot on any line and score while agitating the crap out of the other team. Reports say coaches love his attitude as he takes to feedback well and is actually quite humble off the ice.