Theo Fox: Trick-or-Treat, Part 1
Part one of a Trick-or-Treat special highlighting things that scare me (tricks) about the upcoming season for the Blackhawks. Part two out later this week highlighting what excites me (treats) about 2020-21.

1st? Seven year lurker, never posted, love this blog, had to take the chance to go 1st from Australia

Yet, Colliton’s stated preference is to give the youngsters the experience in those critical situations so they learn even if they fail in the process. I think that’s fine in many instances of a game but not when the game is on the line.

Call me old school but that’s why you pay your best players top dollar: to play in those game-breaking scenarios and elevate the team to the desired outcome.

Everyone wants to play, but all players know too well who should be on the ice during these moments. There is a place for loyalty to your long-term best players, a place for coaching ideas and long-term plans, but bottom line is everyone has to earn the ice time for these situations, no matter the age or experience. Right now, the team needs a coach who develops, not only hockey players, but leaders, winners, decent people. That requires the will to play young guys over established veterans during important moments only when but every time when they earned it with their play.

This is where mgmt isn't being completely open. Have they already asked any of the core to waive yet? All these interviews and no one has asked this? Are they going to ask them to waive? Again, anyone? No one asked this? Do they plan to trade any of the core? They don't owe us this info cuz its delicate with players involved but my God until we know this the rebuild talk is pointless. Every team wants to integrate younger players in so that tells us nothing. Unless they move players with value no rebuild is happening
- ctbullets

Lazerus and Powers of the Athletic asked it in their interview with Stan.

Lazerus: So just to pin you down — there’s been no discussion about asking (Toews, Kane, Keith and Seabrook) to waive their no-movement clauses, anything like that? You’re not intending to explore that option anytime soon?

Bowman: Not right now, I am not.

On your other point, as far as moving players of value, there are others besides the Core that could be traded and bring back something.

"Kudos for the honesty" for Colliton.


It's high time someone was completely honest out of that club. He's not walking on eggs like Bowman, who has no choice but to. SB might not be the best GM moving forward, but he hangs in there somehow. Say again, SB has the toughest job in town and it's getting tougher.

I would think to make that big jump and to get those high draft picks an long term impact player they may have to move on from Kane and Toews. That's if it's done this year. Wait too long and that value is gone. Not saying I would do this but seems to be an option and something nobody would even mention before. Funny how that's changed. Otherwise if the core remains it will probably be that much longer to being that dominant team once again....money and everything.

As well I don't believe Colliton is the solution but that's just me.

Of the 4 core, the only one I figure to request a change is Keith. He has been the most underpaid of the 4, and his comments have been the strongest against playing with younger teammates. I just wonder if Seabrook's comments late last season paraphrasing "I want to be part of this team", was more in frustration with himself that he was out injured and couldn't help the team, rather than the team not wanting him. Of all the players to watch, I am most interested in him to see if he can come back to be the type of player we think he can be.

Big picture worry - are we going to be one of those teams stuck in neutral when it comes to rebuilding? We've been at this since the Nashville sweep, when we were promised change, & wouldn't accept less anymore (kinda sounds familiar.) Bowman has more lives than a cat & his ideas of change are just picking at scabs, when the team has bigger flaws to address. What, he just now realized this offseason we need to be tougher to play against? I can't change the past, but him & Q should have been let go together. Win together, lose together. JC hasn't exactly won me over either ...

Theo- It will be interesting to see if your treats feel more or less likely than your tricks. The tricks that could be the hardest to overcome are the ones that have to do with the system and JC's coaching. The vets might not buy into, and we have yet to see if the youngsters can apply and adapt to it.

Good morning Theo, nice blog. It’s going to be an interesting season coming up. You would think that there are more trades coming, we shall see. Also, I agree with many posters here that if any of the fantastic four are traded it will be Keith. He has a team friendly contract, his statement of “the NHL is not a development league”, and he still has that compete level and edge to his game. If I’m a contender, I want Keith on my team.

When the league catches up to young players - which is what causes sophomore (or “junior” in the case of AdB) slumps), it’s time to see how good at development Colliton and his staff really are, and how flexible and ice-aware the players are.

Colliton et.al need to help Dach, Boqvist, especially Kubalik adjust to the new stuff the defenses with throw at them (having had a full season to see what the three like to do) and the players need to understand that what worked last season (and, perhaps throughout their careers so far) may not work now - and they need to ability and the willingness to learn and do different (perhaps initially uncomfortable) things.

If they can - the “new things” open up new ice for them - and re-open some of the old things that used to work.

I think what Seabrook wants or doesn't want is irrelevant. that is probably the most untradeable contract in the league for the next 3 years. Even if Chicago ate half the salary and cap, Seabrook is still massively overpaid at 3.4 mil.

the other 3 are definitely moveable assets.....probably need to eat a bit of cap on Keith, he's not the player he used to be, understandably.......but you guys are stuck with Seabrook for sure, unless you send multiple good assets out the door with him.

1st? Seven year lurker, never posted, love this blog, had to take the chance to go 1st from Australia
- jkirish5

Welcome. Hope you keep on posting. Enjoy the upcoming summer down there.

While I think Stan Bowman is diplomatic with his words about the core and how they fit in with the team, I don’t think Jeremy Colliton is as tactful and isn’t shy to outright say they may not be around.

Maybe Colliton is the bad cop compared to Bowman's good cop. Stan can play nice with the core during their Zoom conferences. Jeremy can play hard ass with them regarding in game decisions, playing time, and comments to the press with the objective to make them think about waiving their NMC's.

6. Sophomore slumps hit for Kirby Dach, Dominik Kubalik, and Adam Boqvist.

This surely won't happen. Isn't Colliton a good developmental coach?

Good write up THEO ! I share the same concerns that you have mentioned. I have an odd observation / question / suggestion
Last year, Strome proved he is better offensively as a center and not on the wing. But given all the players the Hawks have this year as potential third line center ... Wallmark-Janmark - maybe Suter .... maybe it would be possible to use Strome as top six winger ? Afterall, he was on the 1st powerplay unit at one time, with Toews. Do you recall when he played on the wing last year, who was the center ? Maybe on the right line, with proper linemates, he might be good on the wing ? His defensive liability at center would not be exposed ... and the third center would probably much better than Strome would be defensively.

While Colliton's quote could be read as one or more of the core being traded,

"And hey listen, [the core] may not all be around for [being Cup contenders again],

it could also be read as Colliton saying that the core will be retired before the Hawks become SC contenders again.

Based on the current status of the organization, I think all 4 will be retired well before the Hawks make a SC final again, or even a WCF.

With the exception of 1, and maybe 6 and 7. I'd call those more than just concerns but likelihoods, if not guarenteed.


The Cat is way more talented than Chechoo ever was. He had a down season, but I suspect we saw his floor.

I can see Kubalik regressing, but Dach and Boqvist are only going to get better

when the hawks pay SEABS bonus next year he will be owed 13.5 lef in real salary so if we retain 1/2 it would be AAV of 3.4 but real dollars of 2.25. if you did it in 2 years he would be owed 5.5 total and if we retained 1/2 1.375 in real $$ over 2 years.

While Colliton's quote could be read as one or more of the core being traded,

"And hey listen,
- scottak[the core] may not all be around for [being Cup contenders again],

it could also be read as Colliton saying that the core will be retired before the Hawks become SC contenders again.

Based on the current status of the organization, I think all 4 will be retired well before the Hawks make a SC final again, or even a WCF.

It seems to me that the teams that win cups tend to improve rapidly, going from bad to average to very good over the course of just a couple seasons ie.’08, ’09, ’10.

The question then becomes how long can they sustain being a legit contender before $/mismanagement catches up to them?

Teams that try to improve/rebuild gradually never seem to get over the hump. By the time they’re ready to contend, their stars make too much $, and they can’t afford a proper supporting cast. Being perpetually trapped in mediocrity is the nightmare every team wants to avoid.

That being said, this rebuild needs to happen fast. Otherwise not only will the Fab 4 be gone by the time this team has another chance at greatness, but so will the likes of Dach and Boqvist.

Can they get good faster with 2,7,19,88, or without some or all of them? Stan and Co need to act decisively, pick a lane, and go hard and fast in one direction or the other.

I tend to think that, given the financial state of the league, and the corresponding difficulty in moving big contracts, that the most likely route to winning again soon is with 19 & 88 leading the way, and Dach and the kids taking big strides while still on cheap contracts.

when the hawks pay SEABS bonus next year he will be owed 13.5 lef in real salary so if we retain 1/2 it would be AAV of 3.4 but real dollars of 2.25. if you did it in 2 years he would be owed 5.5 total and if we retained 1/2 1.375 in real $$ over 2 years.
- kmw4631

I do not know whether all this matters because it seems that teams are not taking on dead salaries for Cap purposes anymore.

Omigosh, this WAS scary blog!


I think Kubalik's production is basically tied to getting him the puck not him slumping unless an injury is incurred.

Boqvist and Dach had a lackluster "year" eg. the regular season, and they post season is what set them up to improve.

I think Dach will never slump, because he gives his team terriifc value as an all around defensive players, regardless of point totals. As he get stronger and more adjust that will com.

Boqvist to me is an entirely different animal and his fortunes are tied to the Hawks encouraging and loosen ing the offensive reigns on him.
(Personally I thought in the final couple games when he saw he was being made a target in his defensive end, would have been a perfect tine to encourage him to attack =like he know how, not as set up and but as an attacking shooter slashing down and through causing havoc to the coverages but either HE or his coaching staff chose to attempt to play to try and improve his over-all feel in a quick paced series...

Sure all those things Can happen, but all in all compact scheduling will afford as many chances to win as to lose and team games are won when MANY of your concerns dont come to fruition.

Where is James Tanner these days? If this was been discussed in a previous blog, then I guess I missed that discussion.

1st? Seven year lurker, never posted, love this blog, had to take the chance to go 1st from Australia
- jkirish5

Welcome, Mate!

I think what Stan has realized, and Colliton has known is that the "core" never bought into anything that Colliton is trying to implement. The 3 cups under Q entitles them to play the system they want and to play how they want. Remember at the beginning of the year when the core was whining that they were dumping the puck into the offensive zone, and they are a puck control team. Keith saying he plays better because JC put him on the first PP unit Well, when they were winning cups, they were a puck control team. How can they be a puck control team when a completed pass for the defensive to center ice or in center ice (either because the passer can't pass the puck to the receiver's stick or the receiver has hands of granite (Saad), and the puck explodes off his stick for a turnover. Sharp, Hossa, Versteeg, etc, etc, are gone replaced by Kampf, Highmore, Carpenter, etc. With that talent, you better be a dump and chase team.

Amazing that with all the tweaks and practicing about the power play, the players go back to Kane on the half wall having a coffee klatch, as the rest of the players wait for him to make his amazing back door pass for the one timer by Sharp (oh wait he retired). Too bad the rest of the league has seen that movie more than the Guns of Navarone.

Probably JC is ultimately not the coach for this team, but I think he had as much a chance of success as Gaethje had over Khabib.

Getting back to my point, I think Stan said enough, and he is going to try and change the room, why Crow was not resigned, and Saad was traded. 2 less guys to play Elaine Paige's classis "Memory" in the dressing room.

If I was Stan, next move is to give the C to Dach. Tell him it is his team now, lead it. Hawks have done it before anointing a young captain with leadership qualities (Toews)