Justin Lowe: Rock Bottom
The downswing from Championship glory was inevitable. I would be lying to you if I thought it would be this soon though.

The Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015 and now sit 31st in the NHL in 2018.

Hmmm… what went wrong?

Uno!

Justin Lowe: Rock Bottom

The downswing from Championship glory was inevitable. I would be lying to you if I thought it would be this soon though.

The Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015 and now sit 31st in the NHL in 2018.

Hmmm… what went wrong?
- Justin Lowe

Great blog! Also, dos!

I don't know if Hughes will play center in the nhl, I think that might be a ufa target come July 1st. I liked the line-up you proposed, but I wonder how many will be there come next season. I'm glad the front office woke up to this is not a playoff team. I think of the V8 commercials where people's foreheads are smacked for doing something dumb. I see a competitive team, once down, just not a winning team. I think pd said it, not sure, a thought that crossed my mind as well, what if the hawks starts deal with Crow not being able to start, and he plays more comfortable and makes big necessary saves as the game goes on?

To Big D telling me to blindly yell more, I'LL TRY!

" I can see a head coach being brought in to move Derek King back to associate coach. I don’t think management is content with him in that position."

How about they move Colliton back down, or make Colliton "associate head coach" of the Blackhawks and bring in a "real" head coach to groom him.

I think the lineup you posted at least gives you 4 competitive lines. The defense still some huge question marks. Forsling still really raw, and as good as Boqvist may become, I would guess he will struggle some at the NHL level, especially in his own zone.

your fan base can just watch reruns of your Stanley cup wins for the next year or two.. I think you guys will be just fine... But I would go total rebuild mode, I would sell of one of either Kane or Towes.. You don't need them both and you can get a poop ton of picks and prospects in return...

Nice column, Justin, but....

Your possible line-up for next season - which you say SHOULD make the playoffs - still have lots of players who have not yet proven to be quality performers in the show. They haven’t proven that they AREN’T - but not shown definitively that they are.

I would put Sikura, Hughes, Kahn, Strome, that whole fourth line, Forsling....I would say that group COULD make the tournament - not SHOULD. Too many forwards who apparently can’t / won’t score 10 goals.

Cap space - I know I’m harping on this - maybe too often - but will they be able to convince a quality free agent (or 2 or 3) to come here to play for an inexperienced unproven head coach (on a three-year contract) - and I’ll throw in a somewhat disfunctional front office (if that is the perception in the league)?

Rockford - if they want a new head coach, I know where they could find one close by who has experience in Screw Machine City.

I too am looking forward to the World Junior tournament.

if you get Hughes and sign Panarin next year . I think you have something to build on . The present roster doe not have young player outside of excuse the spelling Yougiharri that could be star quality

Just throwing this out there as a 'what if' scenario:

Since Raanta is done for the season, I have to believe Arizona will be looking for a legit #1. Not sure they can rely on Hill and Pickard for the rest of the season.

Hawks love to trade with the Coyotes.

Maybe send Crawford to the desert and try to get a combo of those talented/young Forwards and/or someone from the blueline like Chychrun, Demers, etc.

I doubt Crawford would waive, but Arizona is looking kind of up these days. They're fun to watch.

Why not retool?

A 3 year down period to try and get rid of a couple anchor contracts and get some decent youth in the Pipeline is not that painful.

Just throwing this out there as a 'what if' scenario:

Since Raanta is done for the season, I have to believe Arizona will be looking for a legit #1. Not sure they can rely on Hill and Pickard for the rest of the season.

Hawks love to trade with the Coyotes.

Maybe send Crawford to the desert and try to get a combo of those talented/young Forwards and/or someone from the blueline like Chychrun, Demers, etc.

I doubt Crawford would waive, but Arizona is looking kind of up these days. They're fun to watch.
- Hank3Henshaw

I wouldn't think Chychrun would be available, but that is the type of return that would make me ok with moving crawford. Like it or not, he's aging and we are likely 2 years away (even with Hughes I think we'd have a better shot in 20-21 than in 19-20). by 20-21, how much would Crow have left? Getting a high end talent like Chychrun would be great to pair with Joki.

Why not retool?

A 3 year down period to try and get rid of a couple anchor contracts and get some decent youth in the Pipeline is not that painful.
- DuranDuran

Because thats being realistic... we can't do that!

A new blog....

Oh please oh please can we have 900+ of the same whiners complaining how everyone sucks - and everyone should be traded and/or fired???

Seriously - reading through all of your complaining - most of you are worse than a room of five year old children - that are all looooong overdue for naps!!!!!

Just keep this in mind - 29 other fan bases would KILL to be in this position right now - with three cups in tow over the past decade!!!!!!

And just remember what this franchise looked like the previous decade. Keep whining for the magical rebuild - you will be there soon enough. Just ask Bulls fans how that is going - now into its third decade!!!!!!

Can anyone explain JC's use (or lack thereof) of Jokiharju. Someone pointed out on the last blog that he was used for 0.00 minutes on the extended PP time last night. When Q was here, I thought he was VERY effective on the PP. He's also not a lack-of-effort guy (JC seems to want to reward with time for effort to guys like Kampf and Hayden), so what gives?

Would hate to slow his development and/or kill his confidence (although the has some to spare).

Just throwing this out there as a 'what if' scenario:

Since Raanta is done for the season, I have to believe Arizona will be looking for a legit #1. Not sure they can rely on Hill and Pickard for the rest of the season.

Hawks love to trade with the Coyotes.

Maybe send Crawford to the desert and try to get a combo of those talented/young Forwards and/or someone from the blueline like Chychrun, Demers, etc.

I doubt Crawford would waive, but Arizona is looking kind of up these days. They're fun to watch.
- Hank3Henshaw

I don't think Arizona is quite there yet. Even with Raanta they project to be around .500, so not sure what a top Goalie need is this year. If they are smart, I also don't think they are gonna dump any of their young players currently on their NHL roster. If you are going to do this, you need to look down into their top prospects who have not been promoted yet.

They werent bad last night and Price played his first good game in a month.

Id like to see Jokiharju stay with Keith and Seabrook and Manning in that third pairing role. Not sure why they are going away from that unless trying to showcase someone as still a top player.

The line up shuffling seems to make less sense then what Q did. Lotta penalties made for a weird game.

This week will be rough though. Jets twice and the Sharks and Penguins. Yikes.

I don't think Arizona is quite there yet. Even with Raanta they project to be around .500, so not sure what a top Goalie need is this year. If they are smart, I also don't think they are gonna dump any of their young players currently on their NHL roster. If you are going to do this, you need to look down into their top prospects who have not been promoted yet.
- TheTrob

Good points.

I was just thinking because they're a frequent dance partner of Chicago and are in need of a true #1.

Can anyone explain JC's use (or lack thereof) of Jokiharju. Someone pointed out on the last blog that he was used for 0.00 minutes on the extended PP time last night. When Q was here, I thought he was VERY effective on the PP. He's also not a lack-of-effort guy (JC seems to want to reward with time for effort to guys like Kampf and Hayden), so what gives?

Would hate to slow his development and/or kill his confidence (although the has some to spare).
- pdx2ord

I think Joki has hit a bit of a wall and you can see it in his play. I also think the change of coaches and defensive philosophy has probably effected him the most. There is a hesitation in his game that wasn't there early in the season.

If the above is the case will JC, Stan, and Shovel Face be part of it?

Just throwing this out there as a 'what if' scenario:

Since Raanta is done for the season, I have to believe Arizona will be looking for a legit #1. Not sure they can rely on Hill and Pickard for the rest of the season.

Hawks love to trade with the Coyotes.

Maybe send Crawford to the desert and try to get a combo of those talented/young Forwards and/or someone from the blueline like Chychrun, Demers, etc.

I doubt Crawford would waive, but Arizona is looking kind of up these days. They're fun to watch.
- Hank3Henshaw

Start with possible playoff teams who need a goaltender badly to have any chance of making the playoffs - Philly, Arizona, Carolina, Florida. Add in other teams who would benefit from an upgrade in goal - Calgary, Pittsburgh, St. Louis.

There will be a market for Cro, Quick and Jimmy Howard if not now certainly by the trade deadline.

If the Hawks are to trade #50, they need to extract maximum value in return because they have no full time replacement for him internally and there is no way to win in the NHL without big league goaltending.

I think Joki has hit a bit of a wall and you can see it in his play. I also think the change of coaches and defensive philosophy has probably effected him the most. There is a hesitation in his game that wasn't there early in the season.
- TheTrob

OK, thank you. Nuances I hadn't picked up on, so I appreciate it. Will watch him more closely. I'm sure the transition to the NHL has been a big change for him.

carrying over from the last blog in response to Seabrook getting almost 10 mins of PP time:

I would rather see Seabrook with 10 minutes of PP time than 5-on-5 time. It becomes more and more obvious every game that Seabrooks remaining time should be as a 3rd pairing D-man. He can manage and handle matchups with most 4th lines, and some 3rd lines in the league, but is over-matched against most teams Top 6.

Although the PP actually spent some zone time last night for a change it yielded only 1 of 8. I though Barry Smith was a PP guru, after last night just escort him out and say thanks for the years of service, you wont be needed anymore. While the PP unit has been bad for years now, it amazingly has regressed from bad to worse. 11% success rate is pitiful, whats surprising is the Flyers, with guys like Giroux, Voracheck, Simmons, Gostibiherre are only slightly better.

2 THINGS:

1. Hawks need to win the lotto to land Jack Hughes. Just finishing last overall does not mean the Hawks automatically get Hughes unfortunately.

2. The Hawks are paying the price for always flirting with salary cap issues and an aging core. The Hawks twice dismantled teams and still won 2 championships, almost totally unheard of when you think about the talent that they lost. It shows you just how good this core was when these guys were in their primes. The core has lots of miles on them and just cannot win now when you have to lose players because of the cap and you are forced to bring in the Mannings and Kunitzs types.

NOTE: As frustrating as this is right now, I will still take 3 Stanley Cups over the last decade, and the true greatness that this generation provided me with in watching the Hawks.

JC hasn't paid his dues and it shows.

Coaching in the NHL- Sorry for the length of this piece but this is how a Coach learns to be Coach of the Year- its called paying your Dues!!! This after an amazing journey as an NHL player.

Coaching career- Turk Gallant
Gallant began his coaching career in 1995–96 with his hometown Summerside Capitals of the Maritime Junior Hockey League, leading the team to the Royal Bank Cup in 1997.

Gallant then moved on to the professional coaching ranks, serving as an assistant coach for the Fort Wayne Komets of the IHL in 1998.[17][18] He spent the 1999-00 season serving as an assistant for the Louisville Panthers of the AHL.

Gallant then served as assistant for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the NHL from 2001 to 2004 under head coaches Dave King and Doug MacLean. King had served as Gallant's head coach for Team Canada at the 1989 World Ice Hockey Championships. MacLean had been an assistant coach with the Red Wings in the early 1990s. MacLean, who was also serving as the Blue Jackets general manager, resigned as head coach on January 1, 2004, and named Gallant as his successor. Gallant's assistant position was filled by veteran college hockey coach Dean Blais. Gallant served as the Blue Jackets head coach for the remainder of the 2003–04 season, through the 2004–05 season lost to the NHL lockout, all of the 2005–06 season, and a portion of the 2006–07 season. On November 13, 2006, Gallant was fired as head coach and was replaced by assistant Gary Agnew for five games.[19] The Blue Jackets ultimately hired Ken Hitchcock as full-time coach on November 22, 2006.[20]

In 2007, Gallant was named by Team Canada general manager Steve Yzerman as one of the two assistant coaches for the 2007 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships. Gallant helped the Canadian team to a championship and gold medal finish.[21]

Gallant joined the New York Islanders as an assistant coach for the 2007–08 and 2008–09 seasons. Then head coach of the Islanders, Ted Nolan, had been a teammate of Gallant's on the Adirondack Red Wings in 1983.

On April 24, 2009, Gallant was named head coach of the Saint John Sea Dogs of the QMJHL. During his three seasons with Saint John, he compiled a 159-34-9 record and led the Sea Dogs to three first-place finishes, three league final appearances, two QMJHL championships (2011 & 2012) and one Memorial Cup (2011). Gallant was also named the QMJHL and Canadian Hockey League Coach of the Year twice (2010 & 2011).[17]

On June 15, 2012, Gallant returned to the NHL when he was appointed as assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens under Michel Therrien. Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin had been a teammate of Gallant's with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 1990s.[3][22]

On June 21, 2014, he was named head coach of the NHL's Florida Panthers by then executive vice president and general manager, Dale Tallon.[23] In his first season, he led the Panthers to a record of 38 wins, 29 losses, 5 overtime losses, and 10 shoot-out losses for 91 points. The record was an improvement of 9 wins and 25 points over the prior season. In 2015–16, Gallant led the upstart Panthers to a 24–12–4 record at the All-Star break, earning him a spot in the all-star game as the head coach for the Atlantic Division All-Stars. The Panthers finished with a club-record 47 wins and 103 points, enough for the second division title in franchise history. For his efforts, Gallant was named as a finalist for the Jack Adams Award.[24] On November 27, 2016, Gallant was fired by new Panthers general manager Tom Rowe after posting an 11–10–1 record to start the season.[25]

On April 13, 2017, Gallant was announced as the first head coach of the Vegas Golden Knights.[26]

Gallant led the Golden Knights to one of the most successful debut seasons for an expansion team in North American major professional sports history. On January 3, 2018, it was announced that Gallant would coach the Pacific Division All-Stars in the 2018 NHL All-Star Game.[27] On February 1, 2018, the Golden Knights set the NHL record for most wins (34) by an expansion franchise in league history. The mark was set in only 50 games played.[28] They clinched the Pacific Division title on March 31, becoming the first true expansion team in the four major sports to do so (not counting all-expansion divisions).[29] On April 25, 2018, Gallant was nominated for the Jack Adams Award for the second time,[30] which he would be awarded on June 20.[31]

/b]

OK, thank you. Nuances I hadn't picked up on, so I appreciate it. Will watch him more closely. I'm sure the transition to the NHL has been a big change for him.
- pdx2ord

I think its a combination of "all of the above". Transition to the North American Rink, new country, language, speed of game, 2 coaches in the span of a few months, etc.

Most young Defenseman will struggle in their first year. Look at Forsling and Rutta last season. They started strong, and then really faded. Forsling was sent down and Rutta had his minutes reduced a bunch.

Start with possible playoff teams who need a goaltender badly to have any chance of making the playoffs - Philly, Arizona, Carolina, Florida. Add in other teams who would benefit from an upgrade in goal - Calgary, Pittsburgh, St. Louis.

There will be a market for Cro, Quick and Jimmy Howard if not now certainly by the trade deadline.

If the Hawks are to trade #50, they need to extract maximum value in return because they have no full time replacement for him internally and there is no way to win in the NHL without big league goaltending.
- RickJ

The Leafs badly need a defenseman or two that can win puck battles, win races to loose pucks and generally know how to play without the puck. Without bolstering their defense the leafs run the risk of not having the team balance to win a cup. Next season the Leafs are going to be in cap hell especially if they don't lock up Marner and Matthews and they get offer sheeted. Keith would give the Leafs that two way defender they need and should the Hawks help the Leafs by eating salary it may make a trade attractive to the Leafs. Also Babcock has always loved Keith and a team that has a legit chance at the cup may persuade Keith to waive his NMC.