Saad=Reborn

[Callidusblackhawk]

Skinner wouldn’t really be high on my list because I think he will be over paid.

Stone would be my target.

Yeah Stone is the closest thing to Hossa we are going to find in the NHL nowadays. Duchene would be fine with me as well.

 

[RememberTheRoar]

Worst case it opens up big money to spend at forward as we have young studs coming on D.

I think it's a mistake to count on those young D bringing you to through the playoffs next season. Not that they aren't future studs, they're just really freaking young.

To be clear, I believe these guys are going to be really good, but I think it will take years for them to get to that point because that's the pattern with most defensemen. There are anomalies, but I think it's a mistake to build a plan around 2-3 anomalies.

Spend on defense, not forward (outside of re-signing Schmaltz).

 

[BK]

Yeah Stone is the closest thing to Hossa we are going to find in the NHL nowadays. Duchene would be fine with me as well.

If Saad is traded you might be able to get both as MD value is down.

 

[BK]

I think it's a mistake to count on those young D bringing you to through the playoffs next season. Not that they aren't future studs, they're just really freaking young.

To be clear, I believe these guys are going to be really good, but I think it will take years for them to get to that point because that's the pattern with most defensemen. There are anomalies, but I think it's a mistake to build a plan around 2-3 anomalies.

Spend on defense, not forward (outside of re-signing Schmaltz).

Completely disagree. You have to trust your process and player chosen by it. This team is going to score a lot going forward and the D will come second.

 

[RememberTheRoar]

Competent disagree. You have to trust your process and player chosen by it.

What do you mean by that?

When was the last time you saw a strong playoff team with 2-3 defensemen at 21 or younger?

 

[BK]

What do you mean by that?

When was the last time you saw a strong playoff team with 2-3 defensemen at 21 or younger?

I mean you have to trust that these kids will develop as the season goes. The NHL is changing and getting younger. Remember Keith, Seabrook, Forsling, HJ, and Murphy will be here in some combination so it is not be like you think it will be.

 

[Drumman44]

What do you mean by that?

When was the last time you saw a strong playoff team with 2-3 defensemen at 21 or younger?

Not quite the same thing but I see Keith and Jokiharju as analogous to Chara and McAvoy. Just need to hope Boqvist, Mitchell, and Krys are up to the task as well

 

[Fortyfives]

Can’t wait for Mitchell. I think he can make an instant impact as a Top 4.

 

[AmericanDream]

What do you mean by that?

When was the last time you saw a strong playoff team with 2-3 defensemen at 21 or younger?

Columbus had Jones -23 years old, Werenski - 20 years old, Nutivaara -23, Ryan Murray -24
Boston had Carlo - 21 years old, McAvoy -19 years old, and Grzelcyk -23
Devils has Mueller, Butcher and Severson and Santini all 22-23 years old..

might not all be apples to apples, but it is happening around the league

 

[BK]

Can’t wait for Mitchell. I think he can make an instant impact as a Top 4.

Boqvist-Mitchell will be fun to watch.

 

[Fortyfives]

Boqvist-Mitchell will be fun to watch.

Next year could be

Keith Joker
Seabrook Gus
Boqvist Mitchell
Some guy taking the league minimum but probably will be Manning.

I think that Dcore has huge upside.

 

[AmericanDream]

Next year could be

Keith Joker
Seabrook Gus
Boqvist Mitchell
Some guy taking the league minimum but probably will be Manning.

I think that Dcore has huge upside.

still have and need Murphy in that lineup IMO...I would not pair Boqvist and Mitchell...one of them earns a spot to start the year the other works in Rockford getting top minutes until an injury happens...but yes, I agree what was once a dark hole has sunshine slowly coming in...

 

[RememberTheRoar]

I mean you have to trust that these kids will develop as the season goes. The NHL is changing and getting younger. Remember Keith, Seabrook, Forsling, HJ, and Murphy will be here in some combination so it is not be like you think it will be.

Keith will continue to decline with age, as will Seabrook. So you can't expect them to carry the D like they used to.

You still need one of Jokijaru or Boqvist to be your top-pairing guy, as Murphy is somewhere between a 4/5.

Jokijaru is still young. He looks okay now through nine games, but are you sure he's going to be at a top-pairing level from here on out? I think it's a mistake to not prepare for him to go through stretches of miserable play as he continues to grow.

We still don't know exactly what we have in Forsling. We think we have a top-4 offensive defenseman, but we really don't know for sure.

Boqvist, Mitchell, and Beaudin could come in and surprise, but it's reasonable to expect them to need more development time before becoming impact NHL defensemen.

I'm not saying it can't be fine, but I think it's a mistake to hinge your immediate future on the potential of these very young defensemen while your impact vets are hitting their declines.

 

[BK]

Keith will continue to decline with age, as will Seabrook. So you can't expect them to carry the D like they used to.

You still need one of Jokijaru or Boqvist to be your top-pairing guy, as Murphy is somewhere between a 4/5.

Jokijaru is still young. He looks okay now through nine games, but are you sure he's going to be at a top-pairing level from here on out? I think it's a mistake to not prepare for him to go through stretches of miserable play as he continues to grow.

We still don't know exactly what we have in Forsling. We think we have a top-4 offensive defenseman, but we really don't know for sure.

Boqvist, Mitchell, and Beaudin could come in and surprise, but it's reasonable to expect them to need more development time before becoming impact NHL defensemen.

I'm not saying it can't be fine, but I think it's a mistake to hinge your immediate future on the potential of these very young defensemen while your impact vets are hitting their declines.

Then you are saying don’t trust the process. We disagree. You can’t wait and wait and sign vets. Doesn’t work in the new NHL.

 

[RememberTheRoar]

Columbus had Jones -23 years old, Werenski - 20 years old, Nutivaara -23, Ryan Murray -24
Boston had Carlo - 21 years old, McAvoy -19 years old, and Grzelcyk -23
Devils has Mueller, Butcher and Severson and Santini all 22-23 years old..

might not all be apples to apples, but it is happening around the league

Is Jokijaru at the level of McAvoy, Werenski, or Jones? Or is he more of a Carlo/Severson type?

 

[BK]

Is Jokijaru at the level of McAvoy, Werenski, or Jones? Or is he more of a Carlo/Severson type?

Closer to the top 3 than the bottom 2.

 

[RememberTheRoar]

Then you are saying don’t trust the process. We disagree. You can’t wait and wait and sign vets. Doesn’t work in the new NHL.

Ya, I guess I don't trust the process because defensemen development can be a lot more erratic than forward development. Some of these guys don't hit their stride until 25. Yes, there are the guys like McAvoy and Werenski but are those guys the norm?

I think the Hawks need an impact top-pairing guy as Keith ages. I'm hopeful that will eventually be Boqvist, but I'm not counting on that being Boqvist next season.

 

[pvr]

Can’t sleep on Krys, either. Hard to tell which one makes the show first. Hopefully two of the four play well enough to be considered top two dmen, other two top fours. Then we’re set.

 

[RememberTheRoar]

Closer to the top 3 than the bottom 2.

That's fair, he's probably somewhere between those two groups. But I don't think it's fair to say he's the equivalent of McAvoy just yet. It has only been 9 games, we're bound to see a drop-off in play soon.

When/if that comes, because he's so young, we need to worry about him losing confidence and the same way Forsling did [who was a few years older when it happened].

 

[Kevin Musto]

Saad didn't skip practice. Perhaps he truly is reborn.

 

[AmericanDream]

Is Jokijaru at the level of McAvoy, Werenski, or Jones? Or is he more of a Carlo/Severson type?

I don't think he is at their level, that is about as elite as it gets for a young defenseman, but definitely somewhere in between which is perfectly fine for a late 1st round pick.

I think we can easily succeed with Joker and Boqvist in the top 6 and load up and land a Mark Stone/Panarin in free agency.

My issue would be locking up another defensemen (Seabs, Keith, Murphy all signed) to a long term deal (no matter who it is, that is what needs to happen to get these guys..John Moore got 5 years IIRC) and blocking another spot for our young kids. I totally understand they all are not guarantees to make it, but you have to keep room open if you feel they will be impact players which Management seems to feel at least Boqvist and Mitchell will be...

Beaudin, Krys, Hillman, etc are all solid wild card guys who can potentially be top 4 dmen, but I am not holding spots for any of them...but Joker, Boqvist and Mitchell...yeah, I would make sure there is room here for them to make this team and show what they can do.

 

[ChiHawks10]

Saad didn't skip practice. Perhaps he truly is reborn.

Has he ever skipped practice?? Pretty sure pros don't do that without good reason.

 

[jls24]

Saad didn't skip practice. Perhaps he truly is reborn.

This is a really good sign that the Hawks are feeling themselves right now. Too many times over the past few years practices tended to be Kane + the kids.

 

[Kaners Bald Spot]

Keith will continue to decline with age, as will Seabrook. So you can't expect them to carry the D like they used to.

You still need one of Jokijaru or Boqvist to be your top-pairing guy, as Murphy is somewhere between a 4/5.

Jokijaru is still young. He looks okay now through nine games, but are you sure he's going to be at a top-pairing level from here on out? I think it's a mistake to not prepare for him to go through stretches of miserable play as he continues to grow.

We still don't know exactly what we have in Forsling. We think we have a top-4 offensive defenseman, but we really don't know for sure.

Boqvist, Mitchell, and Beaudin could come in and surprise, but it's reasonable to expect them to need more development time before becoming impact NHL defensemen.

I'm not saying it can't be fine, but I think it's a mistake to hinge your immediate future on the potential of these very young defensemen while your impact vets are hitting their declines.

While I don't necessarily think that Murphy is a #3, the way I'd describe him is a solid middle pairing guy. Low end #3, solid #4, and a high end #5. Ideally, he's on your bottom pairing, but that is only if you're super deep on D. There aren't enough quality defensemen to go around for that to be the case most of the time. With the Hawks having Keith and Seabrook here for the remainder of their careers, they really can't afford to keep him around. His cap space needs to be used for a defender with top pairing potential, or who is a low end #2/High end #3-4. In my mind, #3-4-5 defenders are almost the same guy. Hammer was a low end #2. He was on the 2nd pairing because the Hawks were insanely deep.

 

[jls24]

Has he ever skipped practice?? Pretty sure pros don't do that without good reason.

I believe he just skipped one last week that was optional. Maybe Saturday?