Are the rumors real, or is it just Ek is constipated?
- tvetter

FIFY

I say a Ek rumor. If there is something to it, you would think McKenzie, Friedman, or Dreger would be reporting it. Remember Ek came up with the day-night double header rumor last week and I have heard nothing else about it since.
- boilermaker100

one of the Big guys said the market is constipated because no one has cap space over the next 3 years and most teams also have no cash. the reason matta gets bought out IMO is even if you wanted him and could afford him this year you probably cannot next when you factor your RFA's and or who brutal your cash flows could be next year. escrow is capped at 20% this coming year then 14-18% so in year 1 if revenues are down 40% because of no fans the owners can only withhold 20% so that means ever team would be showing huge losses.

Bufgylien!
- rpeters01

As assistant to the general manager responsible for organizing and supervising the team wing eating contest.

How about the Hawks just trade Maatta with no retention and take what you can get. Him being off the cap is more valuable than any return.

The resume for Crow and Ward are miles apart.
- Elbows15

Well with all these rumors about the NHL allowing cap relief, etc. etc., the trade market is going to be fully constipated. How can you make any decision when you don't know what your cap space is really going to be?
- LAHawk

I've been saying there has to be some kind of cap relief since March. Factored into that is what trades would be allowed when you are over the cap? I would say you can't add money... That said, without cap relief everything comes to a standstill. Cutting players doesn't save anything they still have to be paid then you add a player to replace them, but you are cap compliant. That doesn't work. Anything that adds cost won't work with most of the franchises to ball park it. Another thing I would look at is adding commercials to games. Anyone watching on TV will still watch. That's a slippery slope however because it also adds TV time. The network's have to be able to charge enough for additional commercials to make it worthwhile. Does it pay to do that or air another rerun of "2.5 Men?" But I do think cap relief I called it "cap amnesty" is a forgone conclusion for some period of time.

Wow...that goal Point just scored in tonight’s game 6 of the SCF broke a 0-0 tie and looked almost identical to the GWG Keith scored in game 6 of the 2015 SCF against these very Lightning(that also broke a 0-0 tie).
- SimpleJack

Also: Tampa's 2nd goal very similar to Hawk's 2nd goal in game 6 2015.
Brad Richard's cross ice pass to 88 for his one-time and 2-0 win for the CUP. Game 6, 2-0 win, and 2 eerily similar goals. Strange year 2020 to say the least. Hope everybody is doing well.

If we ate $2M on Maatta they could take him and or flip him. They can eat half again where we can't eat $3M. I'm not trading much for Kuemper. Crow needs to realize Cam Ward got $3M for one year with the same resume and less of a head injury history. Corey is getting +$500k at $3.5 whether he likes it or not.
- rpeters01

Cam Ward was (frank)ing terrible by the time you guys signed him.

He had one good playoff run as a 21 year old rookie, and then was an actually good goaltender for about 4 years from 2008-2012 before just kind of falling into being a below average starter for most of the rest of his career.

I've been saying there has to be some kind of cap relief since March. Factored into that is what trades would be allowed when you are over the cap? I would say you can't add money... That said, without cap relief everything comes to a standstill. Cutting players doesn't save anything they still have to be paid then you add a player to replace them, but you are cap compliant. That doesn't work. Anything that adds cost won't work with most of the franchises to ball park it. Another thing I would look at is adding commercials to games. Anyone watching on TV will still watch. That's a slippery slope however because it also adds TV time. The network's have to be able to charge enough for additional commercials to make it worthwhile. Does it pay to do that or air another rerun of "2.5 Men?" But I do think cap relief I called it "cap amnesty" is a forgone conclusion for some period of time.
- rpeters01

The NHL announced in early July that the cap was staying flat, and no word on compliance buy outs, which was agreed to by both the NHL and the NHLPA. Actually the $81.5 mil. cap. is actually against the agreement, as who knows what revenue the NHL is going to have next season. Plus the NHL players already owe a boatload to the owners for revenue shortfalls that the flat cap is hopefully going to make up to the owners. I can't see them changing the rules 10 days before free agency.

I was shocked the NHL didn’t pipe in booing of Bettman last night....

First time he didn’t get booed since he got the job...

So NHL not to do it....

It would have been awesome to hear....

Exhale.....

The NHL announced in early July that the cap was staying flat, and no word on compliance buy outs, which was agreed to by both the NHL and the NHLPA. Actually the $81.5 mil. cap. is actually against the agreement, as who knows what revenue the NHL is going to have next season. Plus the NHL players already owe a boatload to the owners for revenue shortfalls that the flat cap is hopefully going to make up to the owners. I can't see them changing the rules 10 days before free agency.
- LAHawk

I think its more likely the change somethin for 21-22 after the UFA's RFA's and the buyouts happen this season and the understand that 1/3 of the league is getting clobbered much harder then the 2/3 that was under contract for a few years. I would not sign a UFA player more then 1 year right now if I was a GM. things are to unsettled.

https://www.nbcsports.com...ark-kelley-2020-nhl-draft

I was shocked the NHL didn’t pipe in booing of Bettman last night....

First time he didn’t get booed since he got the job...

So NHL not to do it....

It would have been awesome to hear....

Exhale.....
- mike7076

He didn't look so good, little shaky

https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/blackhawks/blackhawks-talk-podcast-mark-kelley-2020-nhl-draft
- BetweenTheDots

I love how uninformed and plain dumb the Comcast Sports Hawk "insiders" are.

In one recent telecast, one of them looked at the success of Brayden Point (a 3rd rounder) and implied the Hawks could get the next him in this draft.
If things were as simplistic as these chameleon- remember when Charile after hearing Craig Button in their podcast gussying, decided the Hawks MUST take Byram Bowen?

He didn't look so good, little shaky
- BetweenTheDots

Good call.

I thought that too

He's two years younger than me.

He was clearly shaking like there was something going on and I dont think it was the ice surface chilling his pinkies.

I am now going into an intensive media shutdown to prepare my DraftSite boards for doing the draft.
I decided that when I am done, and the draft starts I am gonna Brett if I am behind the NHL.com site.
I am gonna stop at times and I will come over here and go through my opinions on the guys the Hawks take, and not worry about real time b/c I NEVER can keep up. If fans go there (and they have in the past as now more traffic Can eb handles, as the site shut down) they are looking to see the profiles on the later selected guys...

If anybody wants to contact me, PM ME.

C ya

Cam Ward was (frank)ing terrible by the time you guys signed him.

He had one good playoff run as a 21 year old rookie, and then was an actually good goaltender for about 4 years from 2008-2012 before just kind of falling into being a below average starter for most of the rest of his career.
- BINGO!

Without looking it up he made more all-star teams than Crawford and Crawford had a much better team in front of him for more years than Ward. I'm not a homer even if I do root for Chicago. It's blasphemy but I root for the Cubs and the Sox.

If Crow doesn't sign, I am looking at Subban, Delia, Lanky and Tompkins and playing eeny meeny for two of them. Let's see what they got.

Anderson and Howard have had their time. It would be like watching Marty Turco for 50 games. I can't go through that again.
- Elbows15

Agree, let's see what they can do.

The NHL announced in early July that the cap was staying flat, and no word on compliance buy outs, which was agreed to by both the NHL and the NHLPA. Actually the $81.5 mil. cap. is actually against the agreement, as who knows what revenue the NHL is going to have next season. Plus the NHL players already owe a boatload to the owners for revenue shortfalls that the flat cap is hopefully going to make up to the owners. I can't see them changing the rules 10 days before free agency.
- LAHawk

See if any free agents get signed?

Without looking it up he made more all-star teams than Crawford and Crawford had a much better team in front of him for more years than Ward. I'm not a homer even if I do root for Chicago. It's blasphemy but I root for the Cubs and the Sox.
- rpeters01

A little confused, huh?

Without looking it up he made more all-star teams than Crawford and Crawford had a much better team in front of him for more years than Ward. I'm not a homer even if I do root for Chicago. It's blasphemy but I root for the Cubs and the Sox.
- rpeters01

Cam Ward played in an all-star game once and that was because the game was in Raleigh.

That's it. That's the only reason.

Are the rumors real, or is it just Ek?
- tvetter

You've asked and answered your own question.

I think its more likely the change somethin for 21-22 after the UFA's RFA's and the buyouts happen this season and the understand that 1/3 of the league is getting clobbered much harder then the 2/3 that was under contract for a few years. I would not sign a UFA player more then 1 year right now if I was a GM. things are to unsettled.
- kmw4631

This

Good call.

I thought that too

He's two years younger than me.

He was clearly shaking like there was something going on and I dont think it was the ice surface chilling his pinkies.

I am now going into an intensive media shutdown to prepare my DraftSite boards for doing the draft.
I decided that when I am done, and the draft starts I am gonna Brett if I am behind the NHL.com site.
I am gonna stop at times and I will come over here and go through my opinions on the guys the Hawks take, and not worry about real time b/c I NEVER can keep up. If fans go there (and they have in the past as now more traffic Can eb handles, as the site shut down) they are looking to see the profiles on the later selected guys...

If anybody wants to contact me, PM ME.

C ya
- wiz1901

Wiz, thanks for all your draft inputs over the past several weeks. We'll see you on the other side of Draft Day next week.

https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/blackhawks/blackhawks-talk-podcast-mark-kelley-2020-nhl-draft
- BetweenTheDots

Thanks for sharing this podcast link. A few thoughts on it:

Mark Kelley affirms that best player available is their strategy.

Reading tweets from several scouts and analysts I follow on Twitter often say finding the next Brayden Point (i.e. a small player with tons of skill but fear that he will get knocked around in the pros) is a matter of looking at a prospect's compete level and dedication to get better.

The sky can be the limit if those two traits exist because then the skill puts them over the top. High reward is still there but the the risk factor goes down considerably.

It's interesting what Kelley's take is on the combine because there is a subset of scouting teams that rank the combine as the least helpful part of pre-draft decision making.

Bowman is hopefully making calls to Bergevin to inquire.

@grantmccagg

Bergevin tells @TonyMarinaro he is willing to trade prospects and first picks. This is the first time I've ever heard him say that. I agree that now is the time...there is enough young quality depth to try to get better now.

Wiz, thanks for all your draft inputs over the past several weeks. We'll see you on the other side of Draft Day next week.
- Theo Fox

You all are welcome I love doing it. JJ hasn't contacted me about squat, and I need a forum.

One ask...I would live tom see Mckeen's download but I really =dont need a subscription...Do they sell their draft guide...I like to read the competition, especially now when I am close to done, and made up my mind on what I THINK I know...