Hey guy your barking up the wrong tree here. If what your claiming to be true, I for one would not have shot you down. Here's my take on toews , he received his big pay day and went MIA with everyone making excuses for him as well as him. So on his 8 year contract year 4 he finally lives up to his 10.5 million dollar a year payday.

At 31 I wouldn't hold my breathe that toews will be the same player he was 5 or 8 years ago, he is most likely going to underperform.


Now with that said I'm not personally attacking him, just his performance for what he is being paid. We can argue semantics and say that's Stans fault he offered that to him, but their was a time where toews produced and his new contract was offered when he was 26 years old still young.
- Taylorst1

Dr.Taylor, you're telling me you wouldn't have signed Toews for $10.5 for 8 years? You would have i believe. Also do you really think of all people Toews lightened up after getting paid? I have a hard time believing he would lighten up at all regardless. His points weren't as good I know a few years ago. Toews is a beast. Toews is still the badass we thought he was. No worries on my end about Tazer. If anything the guys who left him out of the top 20 centers did us a huge favor as well.

Your mother should have swallowed you
- GPHawksfan

Awww your such a sweetheart . Your just showing your true ignorant self.

Dr.Taylor, you're telling me you wouldn't have signed Toews for $10.5 for 8 years? You would have i believe. Also do you really think of all people Toews lightened up after getting paid? I have a hard time believing he would lighten up at all regardless. His points weren't as good I know a few years ago. Toews is a beast. Toews is still the badass we thought he was. No worries on my end about Tazer. If anything the guys who left him out of the top 20 centers did us a huge favor as well.
- just69sayin

I'm going to say you didn't actually read or comprehend what I wrote.

Calling toews a beast is a bit overrated at this stage in his career.
Toews signed his last contract at age 26 , nobody is saying he did or didn't deserve that. However after he got his payday in a 8 year contract year 4 he finally plays to his contract.

However he is 31 years old I wouldn't expect toews at his age with his latest history to overachieve again.

I'm going to say you didn't actually read or comprehend what I wrote.

Calling toews a beast is a bit overrated at this stage in his career.
Toews signed his last contract at age 26 , nobody is saying he did or didn't deserve that. However after he got his payday in a 8 year contract year 4 he finally plays to his contract.

However he is 31 years old I wouldn't expect toews at his age with his latest history to overachieve again.
- Taylorst1

I'm guessing he simply disagreed, eh?

Hey guy your barking up the wrong tree here. If what your claiming to be true, I for one would not have shot you down. Here's my take on toews , he received his big pay day and went MIA with everyone making excuses for him as well as him. So on his 8 year contract year 4 he finally lives up to his 10.5 million dollar a year payday.

At 31 I wouldn't hold my breathe that toews will be the same player he was 5 or 8 years ago, he is most likely going to underperform.


Now with that said I'm not personally attacking him, just his performance for what he is being paid. We can argue semantics and say that's Stans fault he offered that to him, but their was a time where toews produced and his new contract was offered when he was 26 years old still young.
- Taylorst1

I didn't mean you said it. Unlike Yzerman who didn't let Stamkos' agent push him around, Stan got hosed to the tune of at least $2mil per year each by Kane/Toews agent. Tough spot for Stan but that's why he's paid the big bucks, rumor was Tallon was waiting to sign both of them and Stan would have been run out of town had that happened. Maybe McD said pay them and Stan was against it same with Seabrook, who knows?

Will be lucky to get one more really good year out of Toews...

Wow .Hockey is all about emotion .And Bicks had a lot of it .Points are not everything .Bickel may not of scored a lot ,but he got some big ones . He could also flatten players when needed . Bickel played through a lot more then most, and was dam good . Bickel was a lot more then one and done ..
- oldduffman

You just made my point. Everyone who is defending Bickell as if he was some power forward top 6 great player is being dishonest.

Bickell was a 4th line player , very streaky and he had one great post season that was amazing sure, but Stan and everyone jumped the gun and suddenly thought Bickell was this breakout gem , and as we know the ending he wasn't a elite player, because 2 years later he was traded for 2 reasons cap space and he was expendable because of his numbers.

Would you say darling is a great goalie ? I mean by your thinking his great run makes him elite so darlings outstanding play in 2015 playoff run is why Chicago advanced out of the 1st round.

Or how about handzus

You just made my point. Everyone who is defending Bickell as if he was some power forward top 6 great player is being dishonest.

Bickell was a 4th line player , very streaky and he had one great post season that was amazing sure, but Stan and everyone jumped the gun and suddenly thought Bickell was this breakout gem , and as we know the ending he wasn't a elite player, because 2 years later he was traded for 2 reasons cap space and he was expendable because of his numbers.

Would you say darling is a great goalie ? I mean by your thinking his great run makes him elite so darlings outstanding play in 2015 playoff run is why Chicago advanced out of the 1st round.

Or how about handzus
- Taylorst1

The MS had a lot to do with not playing to his contract and he was the only player with size Stan paid him a fair amount.

I didn't mean you said it. Unlike Yzerman who didn't let Stamkos' agent push him around, Stan got hosed to the tune of at least $2mil per year each by Kane/Toews agent. Tough spot for Stan but that's why he's paid the big bucks, rumor was Tallon was waiting to sign both of them and Stan would have been run out of town had that happened. Maybe McD said pay them and Stan was against it same with Seabrook, who knows?

Will be lucky to get one more really good year out of Toews...
- rpeters01

Thanks man, I appreciate that. I have no beef with you or most of these guys in here.

I agree with your point and I do remember that Stan didn't put up a fight or even try to negotiate.
It's hindsight now but Kane IMO is worth 10.5 toews IMO 8.5 would have been a better contract for him.

Seabrook Stan should have let him walk . His term and NMC is awful and that's unforgivable

I'm guessing he simply disagreed, eh?
- mohel

No none of us simpletons can understand Taylor great wisdom

The MS had a lot to do with not playing to his contract and he was the only player with size Stan paid him a fair amount.
- rpeters01

The MS wasn't known or diagnosed until a year after his trade. Anything more beforehand is speculation on all of us. But 2013-14 season he wasn't the player he was the summer prior.

I'd keep Drake with Kane and Toews -- frankly, that line worked.

You just made my point. Everyone who is defending Bickell as if he was some power forward top 6 great player is being dishonest.

Bickell was a 4th line player , very streaky and he had one great post season that was amazing sure, but Stan and everyone jumped the gun and suddenly thought Bickell was this breakout gem , and as we know the ending he wasn't a elite player, because 2 years later he was traded for 2 reasons cap space and he was expendable because of his numbers.

Would you say darling is a great goalie ? I mean by your thinking his great run makes him elite so darlings outstanding play in 2015 playoff run is why Chicago advanced out of the 1st round.

Or how about handzus
- Taylorst1

Ya you look at it anyway you want Pal ,I disagree .In my books he was a power forward and proved it in the biggest of games .If not for some serious health issues could been a true star player ..

Also in Tyler's blog , he mentioned that Toews and Kane are ADB and Strome are givens. With the history of Shaw and Saad together having chemistry, I think the third line should be Saad, Shaw and xxx. Need to fill one spot on each of the three lines.
- LAHawk

Starting with forward duos and building lines from there makes sense to me as well. During a prospect camp interview, Colliton talked about having a flexible roster where players could play up or down or different positions. I could be wrong but I don't think he meant putting the line blender on max setting.

Having duos with the 3rd forward being a rotation of options based on opponent, game situation, hot and cold streaks, etc. helps to strike that balance of roster flexibility and stability.

LW - Toews - Kane
DeBrincat - Strome -RW
Saad - C - Shaw
LW - Kampf - RW

Colliton loves him some Kampf so I see him as the stable 4th liner with a rotation of Smith, Carpenter, and Caggiula.

No none of us simpletons can understand Taylor great wisdom
- oldduffman

He's like the guy from the beer commercials - his opinions are so perfect that they are actually facts. Those who don't see the strange things he sees are stupid and argumentative.

Did he just not have the numbers in the lower leagues? Why did he last so long in the draft?
- Chunk

His numbers were decent prior to his draft year. Not great but okay-ish. Maybe there was some truth to him lacking some intensity at times and he took it constructively.
Could be as simple as a kid just maturing a bit. His numbers don't look all that great last season but he was a one man team on most nights. He pretty much willed his Quebec team into the playoffs and his international play was strong.

Commie discrimination?
- mohel

He's Swiss, ya dolt.

wow that's harsh
- SaskHawkFan

But fair.

He's Swiss, ya dolt.
- Elbows15

Doh.....

Ya you look at it anyway you want Pal ,I disagree .In my books he was a power forward and proved it in the biggest of games .If not for some serious health issues could been a true star player ..
- oldduffman

Well we simply have 2 differing opinions and that's okay buddy we don't need to name call each other just because we disagree .
We have 1 or 2 things in common we both are hawks fans and want them to be successful.

Everyone here should respect each others opinions , no matter what.

Ya you look at it anyway you want Pal ,I disagree .In my books he was a power forward and proved it in the biggest of games .If not for some serious health issues could been a true star player ..
- oldduffman

Well we simply have 2 differing opinions and that's okay buddy we don't need to name call each other just because we disagree .
We have 1 or 2 things in common we both are hawks fans and want them to be successful.

Everyone here should respect each others opinions , no matter what.

Awww your such a sweetheart . Your just showing your true ignorant self.
- Taylorst1

But fair.
- Elbows15

You really want to start with name calling here and adding gas to the fire ?

It's one thing to disagree with someone's opinion and still be respectful it's another o name call , and attack people because your only argument is to attack the person and not the facts.

I hope you have more class to not jump into things and start ?

I’d prefer splitting up Kane and Toews, but if I had to make a lineup with them together it’d be this:

Nylander/Kubalik-Toews-Kane
DeBrincat-Strome-Perlini/Sikura
Saad-Dach-Shaw
Caggiula-Carpenter/Kampf-Smith

Lots of depth = lots of options

You just made my point. Everyone who is defending Bickell as if he was some power forward top 6 great player is being dishonest.

Bickell was a 4th line player , very streaky and he had one great post season that was amazing sure, but Stan and everyone jumped the gun and suddenly thought Bickell was this breakout gem , and as we know the ending he wasn't a elite player, because 2 years later he was traded for 2 reasons cap space and he was expendable because of his numbers.

Would you say darling is a great goalie ? I mean by your thinking his great run makes him elite so darlings outstanding play in 2015 playoff run is why Chicago advanced out of the 1st round.

Or how about handzus
- Taylorst1

I think you are overstating what others here have said. I don't recall anyone saying that Bickell was a breakout/great player. They've said that he was a good player that brought what few others on the team did.

Additionally, he was very good in virtually every post-season he played in, garnering over 0.5 PPG while, as you've stated, not always playing on the top lines. He also was a major factor in the 2013 playoffs and was in the conversation for the Conn Smythe.

- Ogilthorpe2

Just because we disagree , I've been restrained unlike that bumhole whom always starts poop . Andmive never said anything yo anyone whom I disagreed with that was derogatory.