What we all forget is the reason that face off occurred was Kubalik,s shot stayed stuck to Reimers pad with :41 remaining. instead of dribbling into the net. But as the west coast NBCSN announcer says That’s hockey baby.

Speaking of which, will be so glad to hear Melrose as a commentator instead of MacGuire next year on national broadcasts

What we all forget is the reason that face off occurred was Kubalik,s shot stayed stuck to Reimers pad with :41 remaining. instead of dribbling into the net. But as the west coast NBCSN announcer says That’s hockey baby.

Speaking of which, will be so glad to hear Melrose as a commentator instead of MacGuire next year on national broadcasts
- LAHawk

I had to endure Maguire last night. All he wants is to hear his voice. He babbles inanely about nothing for the whole (frank)ing game! He doesn’t even have some good anecdotes it’s all about letting the audience know how “smart he is”. I can’t believe teams were interviewing him for their General Manager positions.

ADB was not on the ice, they were split up. Kane took the face off cause Suter got thrown out of the draw. If there was a mistake in personnel it might have been Da Haan and Keith on the backend, instead of Murphy and Zadorov. I don’t know who was on D before the face-off, it might of been them.

It’s all good, offensive zone, your club has the momentum, and you put your best offensive player on the ice. I bet 30 other coaches in the NHL do the same thing.

It was a fluke play, shot was partially blocked and came to Lankanin as a change up. Unfortunately he kicked it to where Carolina was.

Why don’t you point to JC splitting up Kane and ADB, which totally turned the game around? Or is that against the narrative?

On another note, Hawks showed a lot of fight against one of the best teams in the league. Hawks are still in the playoff picture one week before TDL, but our coach sucks.

Kalnyuk>Beaudin.

Dach’s future in the NHL is as a RW IMO. (See Blake Wheeler as a comparable).
- LAHawk

Disagree on Beaudin. Think that kid is going to be very good.

Still think Dach will be fine at center. Needs to work on his faceoffs but he's starting to play with more swagger......almost pulled off a great 1 on 1 move, didn't give up after he lost the puck and road the guy into the wall in the 1st period. He's gaining more confidence.

I had to endure Maguire last night. All he wants is to hear his voice. He babbles inanely about nothing for the whole (frank)ing game! He doesn’t even have some good anecdotes it’s all about letting the audience know how “smart he is”. I can’t believe teams were interviewing him for their General Manager positions.
- paulr

I don't think anyone was seriously interviewing him for a GM position. When he was fired as the coach of the Whalers, captain Pat Verbeek called it the best thing that could have happened to the Whalers. He said his teammates had no respect for McGuire and that McGuire was mocked by other teams He was also ordered to forfeit a portion of the salary he was owed by Hartford because he provided coaching evaluations prepared while working for the whalers to the Oilers.

Maybe he gets token interviews as more PR or to appease an uneducated fan base, but i doubt he will be hired as a GM.

Kalynuk is a pretty good example for patience in player development time, especially for a Dman - 196th pick overall just 3 drafts ago. He may never become a star but after a few NHL games it looks like he is capable of playing in the best league in the world.

Meanwhile, the team that drafted him is looking for defensive help on the trade market and waiving a Dman with a $4M contract
- RickJ

I forgot Kalynuk was not a Hawks draft choice. Per cap friendly he was a Flyer 7th round pick, played 3 years at Wisconsin, never signed with Philly, and came to the Hawks as a free agent last summer. Wonder if Philly never offered him a contract, low balled him, or if he just wanted to shop around for a different team. Looks like a good pick up so far.

I forgot Kalynuk was not a Hawks draft choice. Per cap friendly he was a Flyer 7th round pick, played 3 years at Wisconsin, never signed with Philly, and came to the Hawks as a free agent last summer. Wonder if Philly never offered him a contract, low balled him, or if he just wanted to shop around for a different team. Looks like a good pick up so far.
- boilermaker100

Wait, that can't be true, it's only Hawks draft picks that don't sign and go elsewhere.....you know.....Hayes....

Disagree on Beaudin. Think that kid is going to be very good.

Still think Dach will be fine at center. Needs to work on his faceoffs but he's starting to play with more swagger......almost pulled off a great 1 on 1 move, didn't give up after he lost the puck and road the guy into the wall in the 1st period. He's gaining more confidence.
- SteveRain

I have been more than happy with the improvements made by all the young D so far this season. Boqvist, Mitchell, Beaudin and Kalynuk have all made strides towards the positive. They all have shown they have a future in the NHL. My problem with the Hawks D has been mostly with Zadorov and deHaan.

I agree Dach will be fine at center. He has size and skill and gaining the strength to match up with the top centers. He is not afraid of the walls and shows better skating, hands and hockey sense than most gave him credit for. A few years down the road people will be wondering why Hughes and Kakko were drafted ahead of him.

I know he'll never be a burner but if he can play the way he has been, he'd be useful. Still needs to add some strength to his giraffe frame but with no guarantees on when the Capt returns, we might need a 2C...though technically I know Toews is a bottom 6 C at best these days.
- HawkintheD

Call me crazy...but


Dach
Toews
Suter
Kampf

down the middle is pretty nice.

They have some pieces for sure.....Think they need 1 more bonafide top 6 winger who can score.

I have been more than happy with the improvements made by all the young D so far this season. Boqvist, Mitchell, Beaudin and Kalynuk have all made strides towards the positive. They all have shown they have a future in the NHL. My problem with the Hawks D has been mostly with Zadorov and deHaan.

I agree Dach will be fine at center. He has size and skill and gaining the strength to match up with the top centers. He is not afraid of the walls and shows better skating, hands and hockey sense than most gave him credit for. A few years down the road people will be wondering why Hughes and Kakko were drafted ahead of him.
- TheTrob

Hope you're well.

Well said on the D and I should have prefaced my post with similar. Even boqvist has really ramped it and looked a lot more comfortable.

I was excited for Zadorov before the season but he seems to be content on his play.....never overly bad, but never overly good. Wish he would his size as much as Murphy tries to use his. With his huge frame he would intimidate a lot of smaller skill guys when they got in close vs him.

DeHaan....the sooner he's gone the better. I blame the 4th goal 80% on him....just gave up way too room either that outcome was going to lead to being Lankinen being screened by DeHaan or what happened. Just a dumb move by a veteran.

I had to endure Maguire last night. All he wants is to hear his voice. He babbles inanely about nothing for the whole (frank)ing game! He doesn’t even have some good anecdotes it’s all about letting the audience know how “smart he is”. I can’t believe teams were interviewing him for their General Manager positions.
- paulr

Haha....his non stop Red Deer references are annoying as well.

I do chuckle when he brings up his time as a GM and usually throws back a little softball at Eddie O for Eddie to vouch for him, and 90% of the time...Eddie stays quiet.

I know he'll never be a burner but if he can play the way he has been, he'd be useful. Still needs to add some strength to his giraffe frame but with no guarantees on when the Capt returns, we might need a 2C...though technically I know Toews is a bottom 6 C at best these days.
- HawkintheD

Depends on which Toews comes back, if he ever does. If its the one from the end of last year he is still a solid 2c. Toews is a bottom 6 just like Hossa couldn't shoot anymore, DeBrincat is a flash in the pan, Crawford has no glove hand, etc.

Call me crazy...but


Dach
Toews
Suter
Kampf

down the middle is pretty nice.

They have some pieces for sure.....Think they need 1 more bonafide top 6 winger who can score.
- SteveRain

The problem is of course Toews’ status. Without him it becomes a pretty ordinary and incomplete group of center men. But as you say a scoring top six winger would be a nice addition. I’m really looking forward to see how the young defensemen progress. The four rookies all have nice skills but they all need to get better defensively.

Haha....his non stop Red Deer references are annoying as well.

I do chuckle when he brings up his time as a GM and usually throws back a little softball at Eddie O for Eddie to vouch for him, and 90% of the time...Eddie stays quiet.
- SteveRain

His references to Red Deer always allude to how tough “Western Canadian kids” are. The idiot doesn’t realize there are tough Eastern Canadians, Americans, Czechs, Finns, Slovaks, Russians and Swedes too?

The problem is of course Toews’ status. Without him it becomes a pretty ordinary and incomplete group of center men. But as you say a scoring top six winger would be a nice addition. I’m really looking forward to see how the young defensemen progress. The four rookies all have nice skills but they all need to get better defensively.
- paulr

100% on Toews. Be nice if we got some sort of update even if it's just "not career ending" That would end all the speculation of this vs that.

Young D I think will get better defensively as they learn some of the corners they cut in lower tiered leagues don't work in the nhl as the game is too fast and too skilled. Did like Keith's reaction in the 1st or 3rd when somebody shoved Boqvist and he stopped in and shoved him back.

Hope you're well.

Well said on the D and I should have prefaced my post with similar. Even boqvist has really ramped it and looked a lot more comfortable.

I was excited for Zadorov before the season but he seems to be content on his play.....never overly bad, but never overly good. Wish he would his size as much as Murphy tries to use his. With his huge frame he would intimidate a lot of smaller skill guys when they got in close vs him.

DeHaan....the sooner he's gone the better. I blame the 4th goal 80% on him....just gave up way too room either that outcome was going to lead to being Lankinen being screened by DeHaan or what happened. Just a dumb move by a veteran.
- SteveRain

So true. Horrible Gap control, backing all the way down to goalie and too far back to effectively stick check, then instead of squaring up to block a shot he turns so its deflected. He does any one of those better and the puck winds up off the glass/behind the net/never gets to the goalie. Then Keith and Suter have a chance to make a play.

In terms of Zadorov, just so bad in so many ways. He does make some nice physical plays now and again, but it is so overshadowed by 1) his inability to handle the puck. 2) his atrocious passing, watch and count next game how many of his passes connect with anything but the opponent. 3) his poor ice awareness. There were several plays last night where Murphy had the puck and looked for Z as an option and he was either in the wrong place or not presenting himself to receive a pass. 4) For a big guy, his shot is like a pop gun.

His references to Red Deer always allude to how tough “Western Canadian kids” are. The idiot doesn’t realize there are tough Eastern Canadians, Americans, Czechs, Finns, Slovaks, Russians and Swedes too?
- paulr

Ole Penis head McGuire.....he used to drive me nuts gushing over the Wings in 2007,2008,2009 as the Hawks got good. Best comment he made was about the Hammer early on and how he thought he was going to be good....so I give him credit for that.

But yeah, I can't imagine him running a hockey ops department. Reason NBC downgraded him and promoted BB.

Ole Penis head McGuire.....he used to drive me nuts gushing over the Wings in 2007,2008,2009 as the Hawks got good. Best comment he made was about the Hammer early on and how he thought he was going to be good....so I give him credit for that.

But yeah, I can't imagine him running a hockey ops department. Reason NBC downgraded him and promoted BB.
- SteveRain

Kinda fun watching players roll their eyes at him during interviews. They fulfil their obligations, but they know he is a windbag.

So true. Horrible Gap control, backing all the way down to goalie and too far back to effectively stick check, then instead of squaring up to block a shot he turns so its deflected. He does any one of those better and the puck winds up off the glass/behind the net/never gets to the goalie. Then Keith and Suter have a chance to make a play.

In terms of Zadorov, just so bad in so many ways. He does make some nice physical plays now and again, but it is so overshadowed by 1) his inability to handle the puck. 2) his atrocious passing, watch and count next game how many of his passes connect with anything but the opponent. 3) his poor ice awareness. There were several plays last night where Murphy had the puck and looked for Z as an option and he was either in the wrong place or not presenting himself to receive a pass. 4) For a big guy, his shot is like a pop gun.
- TheTrob

Exactly and I was furious watching it live because you expect that out of a young rookie D man, but not a seasoned vet. They just need to trade him. At this point, I would rather see another young D man than DeHaan. I think the other thing here is Lankinen learning to feel those weak pad shots a little better so he doesn't over extend and kick them out too strong. Nit picking but recalling Crawford he was good at absorbing those and getting a cover. Especially come playoff time when it's helter skelter in close.

I need to watch 16 more closely. I am surprised hes not a baby chara clone.....long reach, physical, with a cannon. Seems he has the size but missing almost all those attributes that could/should take his game to the next level.

Exactly and I was furious watching it live because you expect that out of a young rookie D man, but not a seasoned vet. They just need to trade him. At this point, I would rather see another young D man than DeHaan. I think the other thing here is Lankinen learning to feel those weak pad shots a little better so he doesn't over extend and kick them out too strong. Nit picking but recalling Crawford he was good at absorbing those and getting a cover. Especially come playoff time when it's helter skelter in close.

I need to watch 16 more closely. I am surprised hes not a baby chara clone.....long reach, physical, with a cannon. Seems he has the size but missing almost all those attributes that could/should take his game to the next level.
- SteveRain

I have been watching Zadorov. The games where people are raving about his play, he has been.....OK. He looks great in those games because the norm is much worse than OK. He really doesn't use his size or reach very well. He isn't a great skater, as many big guys aren't, but he is so tentative going toward the boards it reminds me of a mite/squirt who is afraid to catch an edge an slam into the boards. Yet, even with all the deficiencies he possesses, if he had a big shot from the point you could excuse some of it. Imagine a Chara/Weber/Subban type shot from the point. Zadorov seems to be missing 40 caliber from that 50 caliber gun.

Disagree on Beaudin. Think that kid is going to be very good.

Still think Dach will be fine at center. Needs to work on his faceoffs but he's starting to play with more swagger......almost pulled off a great 1 on 1 move, didn't give up after he lost the puck and road the guy into the wall in the 1st period. He's gaining more confidence.
- SteveRain

Agree on both points. This board just can't stop itself from judging ~20 year olds at the NHL level. See me in three years.

Call me crazy...but


Dach
Toews
Suter
Kampf

down the middle is pretty nice.

They have some pieces for sure.....Think they need 1 more bonafide top 6 winger who can score.
- SteveRain

Centers
Dach
Reichel (maybe wishful thinking, but reports so far are good)
Toews 3C (red font)
Kampf

Top 6 wingers
Kane, Kubalik, ADB, and maybe one of Suter/Hagel/Nylander/Strome???

Happy easter weekend to all of you....

I had a big problem with DeHaan giving up a ton of room on the zone entry on the winning goal. Back Peddled and if his gap coverage was better, the shot LIKELY never gets to Lankinen. Any time the Hawks want to send DeHaan elsewhere, is perfectly OK with me. He's aged a lot, and is becoming more and more noticeable in a bad way during games. Very hard 1-2 pts to give up after rallying from 2 down, and 1 down against a very good Carolina team.

Fly by, by Suter needs to be addressed as if he stays with his man, the "change up" kick out is likely not ending in the back of the net.

Just a chain of events that didn't go the Hawks way.
- SteveRain

Wasn't that future hall of famer Duncan Keith standing at the edge of the crease puck watching on that play?

I have been watching Zadorov. The games where people are raving about his play, he has been.....OK. He looks great in those games because the norm is much worse than OK. He really doesn't use his size or reach very well. He isn't a great skater, as many big guys aren't, but he is so tentative going toward the boards it reminds me of a mite/squirt who is afraid to catch an edge an slam into the boards. Yet, even with all the deficiencies he possesses, if he had a big shot from the point you could excuse some of it. Imagine a Chara/Weber/Subban type shot from the point. Zadorov seems to be missing 40 caliber from that 50 caliber gun.
- TheTrob

He and Keith....the pea shooter brothers.

Wasn't that future hall of famer Duncan Keith standing at the edge of the crease puck watching on that play?
- Rota's Rooter

May have been but he didn't back pedal and lose gap control creating the storm to begin with...especially under a minute to go, in a tie game, in your own zone.

Entire sequence by DeHaan was disgusting to watch. A rookie or younger D man? Ok....but a seasoned veteran? Not ever.

May have been but he didn't back pedal and lose gap control creating the storm to begin with...especially under a minute to go, in a tie game, in your own zone.

Entire sequence by DeHaan was disgusting to watch. A rookie or younger D man? Ok....but a seasoned veteran? Not ever.
- SteveRain

Plus...Square the (frank) up and block the shot, don't turn and deflect it.