Theo Fox: Game 33 vs Panthers
A preview to the Blackhawks next few weeks of home cooking starting off against the Panthers.

Plus, a look at where Nylander fits with the team and a recap of the IceHogs 6-1 trouncing of the Iowa Wild.

Thanks Theo for the preview, I think Bob is due for a subpar game and Hawks will get this one.

Pulling over from last blog:

Looks like the NCAA Frozen Four (Frozen 16) bracket is out, 6 prospects there

Ess - Wisconsin
Kaiser - UMD
Slaggert - Notre Dame
Commesso - Boston U
Wise - Boston U
Vlasic - Boston U

First games Friday and Saturday

https://wp-admin.uscho.co...n-i-men/20202021/list-26/
Shows schedule and times (showing local times)

And Michigan is there too - 3 projected in top 10 of 2021 draft per Wiz mock. Also North Dakota is top ranked and has Kawaguchi (F) and Kiersted (D) as top free agents.

“Doing that, though, would be a double whammy as the Hawks would lose Nylander and Henri Jokiharju for nothing.”

C’est la vie.

Doubling down on a mistake isn’t going to help. Just admit it was a dumb trade, and move on.

C’est la vie.

Doubling down on a mistake isn’t going to help. Just admit it was a dumb trade, and move on.
- Ogilthorpe2

I don’t disagree with your line of thinking, but he’ll come cheap next year and isn’t really blocking the plethora of top 6 fwd depth that’s ready to join the Big Club...maybe Reichel but we’ll see.

I’d plan on seeing him potentially for another year. That said, I agree with some from the last blog who said there’s more to work with there than Strome. So of the two I’d rather see if Nylander can figure it out vs Strome gaining physical attributes he doesn’t possess.

Also, death isn’t an option in this one for anyone looking for an easy way out.

I don’t disagree with your line of thinking, but he’ll come cheap next year and isn’t really blocking the plethora of top 6 fwd depth that’s ready to join the Big Club...maybe Reichel but we’ll see.

I’d plan on seeing him potentially for another year. That said, I agree with some from the last blog who said there’s more to work with there than Strome. So of the two I’d rather see if Nylander can figure it out vs Strome gaining physical attributes he doesn’t possess.

Also, death isn’t an option in this one for anyone looking for an easy way out.
- HawkintheD

Good morning, Mr. Nylander.

C’est la vie.

Doubling down on a mistake isn’t going to help. Just admit it was a dumb trade, and move on.
- Ogilthorpe2

I'd say it was an inconsequential trade. It is encouraging that Stan realized pretty early to sell The Joker. So far the trade hasn't worked out.

Nylander for Tom Wilson straight up

I truthfully have never liked Nylander or the trade and with the young guys currently in the lineup mostly playing the right way (not a strong suit for Nylander), I would cut my losses and see what I could get for him or let him hit the street. Nothing personal, of course.

nylander at 21 has 10 EV goals in 65 games and his Metrics were one of the better on the team. Janmark who makes 2.5 times what nylander does has 5 EV goals in 32 games and has some of the worst metrics in the league. I admit nylander has not been great but if you are telling me next year it makes more sense to have janmark on the 3rd line instead of Nylander that makes no sense.

Or Highmore, Carpenter, etc. etc.

Reaching out:

https://www.nytimes.com/2...e=Homepage§ion=Sports

nylander at 21 has 10 EV goals in 65 games and his Metrics were one of the better on the team. Janmark who makes 2.5 times what nylander does has 5 EV goals in 32 games and has some of the worst metrics in the league. I admit nylander has not been great but if you are telling me next year it makes more sense to have janmark on the 3rd line instead of Nylander that makes no sense.
- kmw4631

It makes sense to have virtually anyone other than Nylander on the team next year, because Nylander sucks.

nylander at 21 has 10 EV goals in 65 games and his Metrics were one of the better on the team. Janmark who makes 2.5 times what nylander does has 5 EV goals in 32 games and has some of the worst metrics in the league. I admit nylander has not been great but if you are telling me next year it makes more sense to have janmark on the 3rd line instead of Nylander that makes no sense.
- kmw4631

Agreed he has not been great but I'm in the camp that there is potential there. He has skills to play the game well. Size, speed, hands, and play making ability, however, he seems to lack intensity. That may be in the genes. I remember being irate over his dad's lack of fire as well, and his brother is the same in Toronto.

I'd hate to just dismiss him at his age. He just turned 23 years old this month and may take longer to realize his potential. As a comparison, Patrick Sharp didn't score 20 goals until he was 25 years old, however, Sharpie never lacked the fire and passion that I can remember. I hope the Hawks brass can get him to make a big leap before giving him away.

so if you take EV goals for highmore, kampf, wallmark shaw, soderberg, hagel, carpenter, in roughly 165 games they have a combined 7 EV goals. so having a bottom 6 that cannot score makes more sense then trying to get a player that can score to play a more reliable and consistent game. finding guys that can score in the NHL is way harder then finding guys that play hard.

Nylander is an interesting case. It depends on how the Hawks value him and how another team might value him.

I think the Hawks have gone this far and it does not cost much to extend his stay with the Hawks. They will probably make him an offer as an RFA. They could offer at least $1.4 mil so that if anyone else offers him more they get a 3rd round pick. They could even go to $2.1 mil bridge deal for 2 or 3 years and get a 2nd round pick. It is a little more expensive and risky, but if he figures it out it would be more reward at a very low price.

There could be teams bumping up against the cap that might like a cheap young prospect with some upside and overpay. He could be part of a deal.

Taking the contrarian point of view, I would not mind seeing him re-sign with the Hawks. I think competition for playing time on the top two lines will be fierce (Kane, Dach, ADB, Kubalik, Suter, Kurashev, Reichel). Also the compete level of the entire team is higher than when he played last year. If he does not compete he is not playing. Period.

I still feel the Leafs may want him to play with his brother, and being cheap he would help out their cap situation.

Nylander is an interesting case. It depends on how the Hawks value him and how another team might value him.

I think the Hawks have gone this far and it does not cost much to extend his stay with the Hawks. They will probably make him an offer as an RFA. They could offer at least $1.4 mil so that if anyone else offers him more they get a 3rd round pick. They could even go to $2.1 mil bridge deal for 2 or 3 years and get a 2nd round pick. It is a little more expensive and risky, but if he figures it out it would be more reward at a very low price.

There could be teams bumping up against the cap that might like a cheap young prospect with some upside and overpay. He could be part of a deal.

Taking the contrarian point of view, I would not mind seeing him re-sign with the Hawks. I think competition for playing time on the top two lines will be fierce (Kane, Dach, ADB, Kubalik, Suter, Kurashev, Reichel). Also the compete level of the entire team is higher than when he played last year. If he does not compete he is not playing. Period.

I still feel the Leafs may want him to play with his brother, and being cheap he would help out their cap situation.
- -Doh-

I think Pius Suter is being way overrated, he is no more than a 3rd/4th line player. Taking away his hat trick, he has 5 goal and 5 assists for the season playing mostly top 6, and with Kane a bunch of times. In the 9 games in March he has 1 goal no assists, and has disappeared offensively which is bad, because defensively he currently is substandard.

I tend to look at Suter as a bottom 6, someone similar to carpenter but would probably give you a few more goals. Ialso would split up Kane, Cat and strome. putting them together is just not physicals enough.

reachel-dach-kane
Cat-kurashev-Kubalik
nylander-strome-suter
hagel-kampf-carpenter

Thanks Theo for the preview, I think Bob is due for a subpar game and Hawks will get this one.

Pulling over from last blog:

Looks like the NCAA Frozen Four (Frozen 16) bracket is out, 6 prospects there

Ess - Wisconsin
Kaiser - UMD
Slaggert - Notre Dame
Commesso - Boston U
Wise - Boston U
Vlasic - Boston U

First games Friday and Saturday

https://wp-admin.uscho.co...n-i-men/20202021/list-26/
Shows schedule and times (showing local times)

And Michigan is there too - 3 projected in top 10 of 2021 draft per Wiz mock. Also North Dakota is top ranked and has Kawaguchi (F) and Kiersted (D) as top free agents.
- totem

You bet, totem.

I would kick the tires on UND's Jordan Kawaguchi. Not big but built like a tank. Sturdy and strong on the cycle. Playmaker than scorer. Captained the Fighting Hawks, too.

He's been turning heads since his sophomore year. On the one hand, why didn't he get drafted. But on the other, he could be a low risk, high reward gem.

From Sun Times Ben Pope...

Chicago Blackhawks Mattias Janmark on trade rumors: “You’re always aware the deadline is coming up. It’s out of your control. I signed a 1-year deal to improve my value and set myself up for the future. Whether that’s here or someone else, we’ll see.”

Blackhawks defenseman Calvin de Haan on the Seattle Kraken expansion draft.

“If you go to Seattle, you go to Seattle. That’s how it is. You still have a job, get to play hockey. I’ve been through it before with Vegas — I was left exposed in that draft, too, and ended up staying with the Isles. It’s not going to be a burden on my play. I’m still going to try to play my best. If I’m exposed, maybe this season is a tryout for that team. We want to make the playoffs here, so that’s the most important goal.”

Nylander is an interesting case. It depends on how the Hawks value him and how another team might value him.

I think the Hawks have gone this far and it does not cost much to extend his stay with the Hawks. They will probably make him an offer as an RFA. They could offer at least $1.4 mil so that if anyone else offers him more they get a 3rd round pick. They could even go to $2.1 mil bridge deal for 2 or 3 years and get a 2nd round pick. It is a little more expensive and risky, but if he figures it out it would be more reward at a very low price.

There could be teams bumping up against the cap that might like a cheap young prospect with some upside and overpay. He could be part of a deal.

Taking the contrarian point of view, I would not mind seeing him re-sign with the Hawks. I think competition for playing time on the top two lines will be fierce (Kane, Dach, ADB, Kubalik, Suter, Kurashev, Reichel). Also the compete level of the entire team is higher than when he played last year. If he does not compete he is not playing. Period.

I still feel the Leafs may want him to play with his brother, and being cheap he would help out their cap situation.
- -Doh-

IMO Nylander at 1.4M for one year or 2.1M for 2 to 3 years is a hard pill to swallow. Stan shouldn't sign him to a figure just to thwart a possible offer sheet which is highly unlikely to occur. Besides in this flat cap world, money ain't what it used to be. 1M for one year on a show me contract is reasonable. As an RFA, his choices are sign with the Hawks, sit out the season in protest, or go play in Europe. If the latter two, will the Hawks be any worse off then they are this season?

so if you take EV goals for highmore, kampf, wallmark shaw, soderberg, hagel, carpenter, in roughly 165 games they have a combined 7 EV goals. so having a bottom 6 that cannot score makes more sense then trying to get a player that can score to play a more reliable and consistent game. finding guys that can score in the NHL is way harder then finding guys that play hard.
- kmw4631

IMO, this is a situation where the eye test is helpful to paint a picture that stats (gross or advanced) may suggest. Rundblad had great advanced stats but was far from an NHL player.

Players like Janmark, Kampf, Soderberg, and Hagel optimize their talents to help the team compete and are built for playoff intensity. When they don't produce offensively, they still impact the game.

While he has the tools, Nylander has fallen short, IMO. I still have some hope he can step it up once healthy.

Agreed he has not been great but I'm in the camp that there is potential there. He has skills to play the game well. Size, speed, hands, and play making ability, however, he seems to lack intensity. That may be in the genes. I remember being irate over his dad's lack of fire as well, and his brother is the same in Toronto.

I'd hate to just dismiss him at his age. He just turned 23 years old this month and may take longer to realize his potential. As a comparison, Patrick Sharp didn't score 20 goals until he was 25 years old, however, Sharpie never lacked the fire and passion that I can remember. I hope the Hawks brass can get him to make a big leap before giving him away.

I agree with this and HD as well. Nylander can skate, has decent hands, and will be inexpensive, and without many forward prospects in the horizon, the Hawks have to give him an opportunity to try and succeed. The kid came up with one of the worst organizations in hockey, that’s a fact, let’s see what the Hawks can do with him, but in my opinion given the circumstances, I would not give up on him just yet.

Agreed he has not been great but I'm in the camp that there is potential there. He has skills to play the game well. Size, speed, hands, and play making ability, however, he seems to lack intensity. That may be in the genes. I remember being irate over his dad's lack of fire as well, and his brother is the same in Toronto.

I'd hate to just dismiss him at his age. He just turned 23 years old this month and may take longer to realize his potential. As a comparison, Patrick Sharp didn't score 20 goals until he was 25 years old, however, Sharpie never lacked the fire and passion that I can remember. I hope the Hawks brass can get him to make a big leap before giving him away.
- Hawkytalk

Nylander reminds me a bit of former Cubs prospect Corey Patterson who was described as a five-tool player but couldn't put it all together on the big stage. Patterson had an okay career but not a stellar one that he was projected to have.

Entwistle reportedly will make his NHL debut tonight.

Beaudin, Bowey, Carlsson, Kalynuk, Entwistle, and Johnson reassigned to the Hawks.

Hakkarainen, Pirri, Quenneville, and Regula are back with the Hogs.

Someone is going poop their pants...

Colliton on Entwistle: "He’s been getting better as the year goes on here... He’s been steadily improving here over the last few weeks. He was really good these past two games [in Rockford] so excited to get him in here and we'll see if he can give us a spark."