Please no Kevin Hayes. Beside having some youthful indiscretions that don't put him in a very intelligent light, he didn't want to play here ... so why would we want a guy that that didn't want to play for the Hawks.
- EbonyRaptor

He'll go to whomever offers him the most money.

So because Crawford tweaked his groin the other night, Lankinen has been recalled from Rockford. Do you think he'll get the start tonight? With 1st place at stake in the Central, Nashville will not be taking the night off.
- boilermaker100

I like the Lankinen recall. Do wonder, though, what impact that may have on Forsberg's psyche and/or what it may mean for his future as a pending RFA? May mean nothing.

If Delia is the backup next season, then it's assumed Forsberg and Lankinen should be the Rockford tandem unless Tomkins is promoted from Indy, Gravel signs an ELC out of juniors, or Nalimov finally crosses over from Russia. Or a veteran is signed or traded for like Berube two seasons ago.

And what will be picking 12th? All in all the worst possible situation. Failed to make the playoffs and honestly NEVER ha a great chance to get there, won enough "meaningless" games to also prevent them from getting a better pick. Their pick will be no better than the wild card teams that did make the playoffs.

Team will be pretty identical next year. It's going to take vast improvement from the blueline in their own zone to get back to the playoffs. Hawks failed to make the playoffs despite career year from Kane, the blossoming of ADB, the return of Toews and the find of Strome. When you waste a year like that you know you have deeper problems. Really wish they'd get a stable top 4 guy with the pedigree of defending.

And what will be picking 12th? All in all the worst possible situation. Failed to make the playoffs and honestly NEVER ha a great chance to get there, won enough "meaningless" games to also prevent them from getting a better pick. Their pick will be no better than the wild card teams that did make the playoffs.

Team will be pretty identical next year. It's going to take vast improvement from the blueline in their own zone to get back to the playoffs. Hawks failed to make the playoffs despite career year from Kane, the blossoming of ADB, the return of Toews and the find of Strome. When you waste a year like that you know you have deeper problems. Really wish they'd get a stable top 4 guy with the pedigree of defending.
- kwolf68

Were Getzlaf, Cory Perry and Duncan Keith picked in the top 12?

Under?
- I Am The Breadman

Death wish?

Speaking from experience?😬
- paulr

YEESH!

Death wish?
- EbonyRaptor

Hahaha!

Jeff Daniels sang songs a long time ago that were really funny. I don't want to offend some with the title of his song, it's related to the topic, but he's worth looking.

Please no Kevin Hayes. Beside having some youthful indiscretions that don't put him in a very intelligent light, he didn't want to play here ... so why would we want a guy that that didn't want to play for the Hawks.
- EbonyRaptor

Youthful indiscretions - didn’t (don’t) we all. I mean - who hasn’t thrown up in a stairwell or whatever it was....

Didn’t want to play here - that was five years ago - perhaps he just wanted to stay closer to home - perhaps another youthful indiscretion.

He’s got the size people here are pining for, a 20-50 guy....

I’d consider it.

BTW - where is this rumor coming from?

Youthful indiscretions - didn’t (don’t) we all. I mean - who hasn’t thrown up in a stairwell or whatever it was....

Didn’t want to play here - that was five years ago - perhaps he just wanted to stay closer to home - perhaps another youthful indiscretion.

He’s got the size people here are pining for, a 20-50 guy....

I’d consider it.

BTW - where is this rumor coming from?
- StLBravesFan

For accuracy sake even though it's more disgusting, Hayes took a dump in a dorm stairwell. To his credit, he ate one of those 10 foot high sandwiches posted in earlier pages of this blog.

Hayes was also suspended by BC coaches at least once and disciplined on other occasions for not abiding by team rules, some or all of which related to poor behavior (i.e. not just being late to practice or something like that).

The rumor may have been just a typo in an old tweet by John Buccigross.

Youthful indiscretions - didn’t (don’t) we all. I mean - who hasn’t thrown up in a stairwell or whatever it was....

Didn’t want to play here - that was five years ago - perhaps he just wanted to stay closer to home - perhaps another youthful indiscretion.

He’s got the size people here are pining for, a 20-50 guy....

I’d consider it.

BTW - where is this rumor coming from?
- StLBravesFan

I don't expect or require Hawks players to be paragons of virtue but there is a vibe I get from K.Hayes I don't like and my preference is he never puts on the Indian Head sweater.

I don't expect or require Hawks players to be paragons of virtue but there is a vibe I get from K.Hayes I don't like and my preference is he never puts on the Indian Head sweater.
- EbonyRaptor

Same here. Pure conjecture but he may have also influenced his buddy Vesey's decision to sign with the Rangers instead of the Hawks a few Augusts ago (IIRC, the decision was down to the Hawks and NYR).

Hindsight is 20/20 but I'm glad the Hawks didn't win that sweepstakes. We got forwards like Kahun and Sikura now so no loss there.

My Wife, my Son and I were watching Patrick Sharp’s last game, hoping for a Blackhawks’ win. We had always loved Sharpie in a Blackhawks’ uniform and we would miss him. It was April 6, 2018, just an average day.

However, in a single moment everything changed. Sharp’s last game and the Blackhawks’ performance would simply drift away. I will never forget the moment my Wife quietly said “The Humboldt Broncos’ bus was involved in a serious accident”. From that moment on we wanted to know everything. How serious an accident was it? Did people get hurt, did people die? We did not know we were entering a nightmare that would be impossible to wake up from.

Events like this do not place on a catastrophe scale. They begin at the highest possible level and they live there. The more details we learned, the more photos and video we saw, the worse the tragedy became.

The Humboldt Broncos were travelling to a play-off game against the Nipawin Hawks, in Nipiwan, Saskatchewan. Where had the accident happened? North of Tisdale on Highway 35.

This could not be true. We didn’t live in this area of Saskatchewan but we knew it very well. It was a magical area for our Family. A Disneyland for us. Humboldt was surrounded by lakes and was a wonderful community. Tisdale was where we stopped to eat before driving the last miles to Nipiwan, which is the gateway to Tobin Lake. Until this night it was impossible for us to think of Humboldt, Tisdale and Nipiwan and not smile. This area is where we vacationed, where we fished, where we were our best selves, free for a short while from the stressors of Law and University.

We found out we had driven many times, on the very route the bus of the Humboldt Broncos had travelled. Past the very intersection. The saying “If not for the grace of God walk I” was on all our minds.

However, what was most on our minds, what was the most saddening for us, was our knowledge that if we were feeling the grief we were, it was incomprehensible to us the grief that the family and friends were experiencing. Simply incomprehensible.

The Province of Saskatchewan was devastated. As was Canada. As was the United States. Truly everywhere in the World that this story travelled to, it left people in tears. This was not just a hockey story. However, anyone with some connection to hockey was simply crushed.

This was not a story from some other place, where distance provides a buffer. “That couldn’t happen here” was simply not applicable. Rather these were young men just like young men we all knew. Young men deserving of their parents’ pride just like young men we all knew.

Stories came out about just how special these young men were. How nice, how polite, simply how decent. The stories made it even harder to imagine that certain of these young men were hurt, some very severely and that others were actually gone.

It has been an entire year since this tragic accident. The Humboldt Broncos have actually completed another entire season, losing a play-off series in a game 7. Two of their players were survivors of the bus accident.

During 2018 our Family simply could not return to our beloved, special area, our Disneyland. We simply could not drive past that intersection. However, there was no possible way we could take a different route either, as that would be disrespectful. It may be true that time heals but there are times when that healing is very slow. Please say a special Anniversary prayer today, on April 6, 2019, for those lost, those who survived and the Families and Friends that loved and love them.

I was searching for any new information about Nalimov and most articles are from last summer where he states he wants to sign with the Hawks after one last year in the KHL. Let's see if that actually happens. Wouldn't hurt to add one more goalie to the minor league pipeline.

For accuracy sake even though it's more disgusting, Hayes took a dump in a dorm stairwell. To his credit, he ate one of those 10 foot high sandwiches posted in earlier pages of this blog.

Hayes was also suspended by BC coaches at least once and disciplined on other occasions for not abiding by team rules, some or all of which related to poor behavior (i.e. not just being late to practice or something like that).

The rumor may have been just a typo in an old tweet by John Buccigross.
- AEL_Fox

I stand corrected - but I still would consider his coming here.

For accuracy sake even though it's more disgusting, Hayes took a dump in a dorm stairwell. To his credit, he ate one of those 10 foot high sandwiches posted in earlier pages of this blog.

Hayes was also suspended by BC coaches at least once and disciplined on other occasions for not abiding by team rules, some or all of which related to poor behavior (i.e. not just being late to practice or something like that).

The rumor may have been just a typo in an old tweet by John Buccigross.
- AEL_Fox

OMG - I feel like an idiot. The Bucci tweet was posted on April 1.

Free agents i would target in this offseason:
Hayes
Ferland
Tanve
Dzigal
Stralman
Coburn
I m not saying hawks will sign all these players but hawks could sign IMO tanve stralman or Coburn and hayes that fills a lot of holes. Top 9 forward and 4th line physical forward and a veteran stabilizing d man. Then if hawks could make a trade with vegas for miller or mcnabb and eakin trade gust at the draft acquire a 2nd and prospect or a first then things would be looking good next year. Just hypothetical if these things happen:
Saad towes hayes
Dcat strome kane
Caggulia eakin perlini/kauhn
Tanve kampf hayden

Keith joki
Murphy miller or mcnabb
Coburn/ stralman Seabrook
Koko
AA forsling traded for picks and prospects
Crawford
Delia or veteran goalie like ward was this year
That lineup should get them in the playoffs now dont know how it would cost for the free agents but hawks should have enough. Plus if i was BOWMAN lock up strome and dcat this offseason.
Dcat 7 million per year for 8 years
Strome 5 million per year for 5 or 6 years
Perlini 1.5 per year for 2 years

OMG - I feel like an idiot. The Bucci tweet was posted on April 1.

- pdx2ord

Hahahahaha!!!! We all have moments like that. Don't feel too bad.

OMG - I feel like an idiot. The Bucci tweet was posted on April 1.

- pdx2ord

No worries! I posted old news here before. We don’t get paid enough to verify our sources

Free agents i would target in this offseason:
Hayes
Ferland
Tanve
Dzigal
Stralman
Coburn
I m not saying hawks will sign all these players but hawks could sign IMO tanve stralman or Coburn and hayes that fills a lot of holes. Top 9 forward and 4th line physical forward and a veteran stabilizing d man. Then if hawks could make a trade with vegas for miller or mcnabb and eakin trade gust at the draft acquire a 2nd and prospect or a first then things would be looking good next year. Just hypothetical if these things happen:
Saad towes hayes
Dcat strome kane
Caggulia eakin perlini/kauhn
Tanve kampf hayden

Keith joki
Murphy miller or mcnabb
Coburn/ stralman Seabrook
Koko
AA forsling traded for picks and prospects
Crawford
Delia or veteran goalie like ward was this year
That lineup should get them in the playoffs now dont know how it would cost for the free agents but hawks should have enough. Plus if i was BOWMAN lock up strome and dcat this offseason.
Dcat 7 million per year for 8 years
Strome 5 million per year for 5 or 6 years
Perlini 1.5 per year for 2 years
- Scott1977

Prefer to not pursue Hayes but also trust Hawks management to ensure he’s matured and has no ill will towards the franchise if they do bid for him.

Yes to pursuing Ferland, Dzingel, Tanev, and Stralman just don’t overpay for them especially Ferland and Dzingel.

Would rather have Chiarot or Benn over Coburn.

Please say a special Anniversary prayer today, on April 6, 2019, for those lost, those who survived and the Families and Friends that loved and love them.
- Z3Hawk

Nicely done Z3.

Prefer to not pursue Hayes but also trust Hawks management to ensure he’s matured and has no ill will towards the franchise if they do bid for him.

Yes to pursuing Ferland, Dzingel, Tanev, and Stralman just don’t overpay for them especially Ferland and Dzingel.

Would rather have Chiarot or Benn over Coburn.
- AEL_Fox

Ok chiarot forgot about him he be a good option also

And what will be picking 12th? All in all the worst possible situation. Failed to make the playoffs and honestly NEVER ha a great chance to get there, won enough "meaningless" games to also prevent them from getting a better pick. Their pick will be no better than the wild card teams that did make the playoffs.

Team will be pretty identical next year. It's going to take vast improvement from the blueline in their own zone to get back to the playoffs. Hawks failed to make the playoffs despite career year from Kane, the blossoming of ADB, the return of Toews and the find of Strome. When you waste a year like that you know you have deeper problems. Really wish they'd get a stable top 4 guy with the pedigree of defending.
- kwolf68

It’s easy to say in hindsight that they never had a chance, but if the Blackhawks win those games against the avalanche than they are playing to get in tonight, so it’s not like it was so out of reach.

Hawks need to lose today. I hate the preds, but a loss means we draft 10 instead of 13...

I recommend anyone with an athletic subscription to read the Jordan Tootoo article. It is a moving story about the tragedy that he has endured personally and about the influence that he has had on the Inuit people of Rankin Inlet.

I didn’t know much about Tootoo when he played for the Hawks, but after reading this story I definitely have some additional respect for the man. These types of stories are why I love the athletic, it is well worth the monthly fee if anyone is considering subscribing.

My Wife, my Son and I were watching Patrick Sharp’s last game, hoping for a Blackhawks’ win. We had always loved Sharpie in a Blackhawks’ uniform and we would miss him. It was April 6, 2018, just an average day.

However, in a single moment everything changed. Sharp’s last game and the Blackhawks’ performance would simply drift away. I will never forget the moment my Wife quietly said “The Humboldt Broncos’ bus was involved in a serious accident”. From that moment on we wanted to know everything. How serious an accident was it? Did people get hurt, did people die? We did not know we were entering a nightmare that would be impossible to wake up from.

Events like this do not place on a catastrophe scale. They begin at the highest possible level and they live there. The more details we learned, the more photos and video we saw, the worse the tragedy became.

The Humboldt Broncos were travelling to a play-off game against the Nipawin Hawks, in Nipiwan, Saskatchewan. Where had the accident happened? North of Tisdale on Highway 35.

This could not be true. We didn’t live in this area of Saskatchewan but we knew it very well. It was a magical area for our Family. A Disneyland for us. Humboldt was surrounded by lakes and was a wonderful community. Tisdale was where we stopped to eat before driving the last miles to Nipiwan, which is the gateway to Tobin Lake. Until this night it was impossible for us to think of Humboldt, Tisdale and Nipiwan and not smile. This area is where we vacationed, where we fished, where we were our best selves, free for a short while from the stressors of Law and University.

We found out we had driven many times, on the very route the bus of the Humboldt Broncos had travelled. Past the very intersection. The saying “If not for the grace of God walk I” was on all our minds.

However, what was most on our minds, what was the most saddening for us, was our knowledge that if we were feeling the grief we were, it was incomprehensible to us the grief that the family and friends were experiencing. Simply incomprehensible.

The Province of Saskatchewan was devastated. As was Canada. As was the United States. Truly everywhere in the World that this story travelled to, it left people in tears. This was not just a hockey story. However, anyone with some connection to hockey was simply crushed.

This was not a story from some other place, where distance provides a buffer. “That couldn’t happen here” was simply not applicable. Rather these were young men just like young men we all knew. Young men deserving of their parents’ pride just like young men we all knew.

Stories came out about just how special these young men were. How nice, how polite, simply how decent. The stories made it even harder to imagine that certain of these young men were hurt, some very severely and that others were actually gone.

It has been an entire year since this tragic accident. The Humboldt Broncos have actually completed another entire season, losing a play-off series in a game 7. Two of their players were survivors of the bus accident.

During 2018 our Family simply could not return to our beloved, special area, our Disneyland. We simply could not drive past that intersection. However, there was no possible way we could take a different route either, as that would be disrespectful. It may be true that time heals but there are times when that healing is very slow. Please say a special Anniversary prayer today, on April 6, 2019, for those lost, those who survived and the Families and Friends that loved and love them.
- Z3Hawk

Thank you for the great post. Here in Whitby Ontario there are still the odd ownerless hockey sticks beside the front door of homes to express condolences and solidarity with Humboldt.