Vegas=Optimism. This is a retool.

[ChiHawks10]

I agree on that.

My stance is more if Crawford comes back and regresses, he'd have to regress quite away before being a liability. Even taking a .010 hit on his SV% from his play last year puts him at his career average which is easily top 10 in the cap era and still well above both overall and starter's average.

Contrast to the rest of the core which have all be *below* their career norms and in the case of Toews, Kane, and especially Keith and Seabrook, don't have age on their side. Crawford hurt the team by receiving head trauma. The rest hurt the team by their on-ice play.


I'm not expecting much from this year either...barring future acquisitions this offseason of course.

Hell, we survived 2006 & 2007...why can't we survive 2018 and 2019?

Nah.

 

[hawksfan50]

Here we go again...
1st season after our last Cup Toes drops to 58 points ...Gets a Mulligan...Short Simmer. ..Loads of hockey miles..Tired...Expected ...mind also wanders...Other interests in life. ..Machu Picchu etc..The big $10.5 .



2nd season after Cup..Another 58 points. Downfall explained as he lost Saad....Had no wingers to play with ..Had some injury hampering him...the big $10 5...security for life/why exert?

3rd season after class Cup ...drops further to 52 points ...Saad back but plays poorly so again not much help at wing excuse..Tires says at start of 3rd seasonal term last Cup that he changed his training plan ...New methods would lead to rebound year..Never happened. .Instead we saw lethargic play for 3/4 of a season and he shows up to exert for only about 1/4 of the games he played in. .Not acceptable ..Again blame the $10.5 for lack of incentive/lack of inspiration/lack of hunger = decline I play ...Fans questions his new training method and his diet . ASK..Where is the Meat?Strength and energy seem to have gone away ..He got handled too easily by the oops. ..d-"effort"lacking. .Where is the Sweat? Fans say never again trust his words telling us he will have a better season. .Show us.

So now ...Going into season 4 after our Cup win ..he tells us this week that he watched the playoffs and was re-inspired! Somehow we are to believe his newv"indpuration" has re-kindled his hunger and that he can have a "revoubd" year after 3 misses and pocketing $39 million in the interim.
It kind of victory much to take.Show us..Do not tell us how great it is going to be..Frankly we are skeptical by now .Excuses have ru the course. But wait...The hockey beat writers are telling us Kruger is back and that will ease the burden on Toes to free him up to use his energy for more offense. A hypothesis that faikedcthevlast time we saw Kruger in a Hawks jersey ..so why believing g this grasp at a star now?

The fact is..IF he is to be inspired to play better he must exert for more than 1/4 of the games ..Means hustle speed not coasting speed Means make things happen not wait for something god go happen while you watch the goals go in against us...Nears setting up your liberates rather than waiting for them to set you u p and when they do you still cannot get off a good shot.
Somehow after merely 1 down season Kopitar getsvivspiredxagain last season and "reboubds" back to top for.

Toes mowxtelkibgbus he is inspired to play better. SO ..Prove it.

Until he does Proven it on the eye test and in resulting elevated production and better d-xone hustle and checking...well I for one am not accepting his word as much of anything to pin hope on ...Gotta see him show up in the show ..after 3 seasons in the Country Club.

Q is not going to light any fire in him..Upto Toes himself . The huge paycheck really over hunger very quickly.Oride ought to have restored the hunger much earlier than 3 straight dreadful performance seasons in a row. ..but saying you still want it badly and actually showing you really still want it badly are 3 different things.Do not tell me. ..Show me.

 

[Marotte Marauder]

It kind of victory much to take.Show us..Do not tell us how great it is going to be..Frankly we are skeptical by now .Excuses have ru the course. But wait...The hockey beat writers are telling us Kruger is back and that will ease the burden on Toes to free him up to use his energy for more offense. A hypothesis that faikedcthevlast time we saw Kruger in a Hawks jersey ..so why believing g this grasp at a star now?

.

It actually resulted in Toews' lowest goal output of his career. And the came last year, lower yet.

 

[BobbyJet]

I can already hear it: If Toews gets off to a decent start it will be mainly because of Kruger's presence (assuming he is gifted a spot on the roster).

But if Toews doesn't get off to a good start it will be all about Toews. Kruger is doing his usual stellar job. I'll try not to gag.

 

[featherhawk]

vegas has a coach that can motivate, adapt and change, he also puts players in positions to succeed and where they will use their strengths.

the hawks have none of the above with coach Q and as a result any optimism for this season should be met with trepidation UNLESS Q is gone come the 25 game mark

 

[ClydeLee]

I can already hear it: If Toews gets off to a decent start it will be mainly because of Kruger's presence (assuming he is gifted a spot on the roster).

But if Toews doesn't get off to a good start it will be all about Toews. Kruger is doing his usual stellar job. I'll try not to gag.

Why does random things said affect you?

In reality there will be nuance there, who are Toews linemates, is he playing with kane or more in the offensive zone and less against top lines. If that happens and scores he scores more all these things will be mentioned. But harping on the black and white views of it is a choice

 

[BobbyJet]

You haven't been paying attention. Kruger is the best 4th line center in the league when he's healthy, didn't you know?.

 

[Robsker]

Not quite. VGN is much more than simply a fast team. Start with dedication and hard work on every shift, and playing a full 60 minutes. Pretty much the opposite of what we see in Chicago these days.

Agreed. i watched 75% of their games (they are my "local' team) and can say that their success is because they utilized their speed well...

they were amazing on the fore-check and the back-check and created turnover after turnover from their opponents
their forwards played amazingly intense defense and were constantly aiding their defenders in their own zone
they moved without the puck astonishingly well --- creating many scoring chances
they were big-time north-south and did not tippy-tap with east-west passing in their own zone
they had net-front presence constantly and flashed across the goal-mouth constantly
and they had great goal-tending

these team attributes are the polar opposite of the Hawks... yes the Hawks have some speed, but, at least last year...

they did not fore-check or back-check well
their forwards were not overly good on D and rarely helped in their own zone
they did not move well w/o the puck
they played east-west and not north-south
the Hawks had little net front presence and rerely crossed the goal-mouth
the Hawks had poor goaltending (after Crow went down)...

so the Hawks having speed is not relevant unless they utilize that speed well. Vegas did so... the Hawks did not.
With Q as coach, i would expect little change in approach and, as a result, little change in results (apart from what Crow will buy us --- which can be much --- but he can carry the team only so far).

A rebound year is really unlikely. Hope I am wrong.

 

[Hawkaholic]

Hino is a huge difference maker, dontcha know?

 

[Panzerspitze]

Agreed. i watched 75% of their games (they are my "local' team) and can say that their success is because they utilized their speed well...

they were amazing on the fore-check and the back-check and created turnover after turnover from their opponents
their forwards played amazingly intense defense and were constantly aiding their defenders in their own zone
they moved without the puck astonishingly well --- creating many scoring chances
they were big-time north-south and did not tippy-tap with east-west passing in their own zone
they had net-front presence constantly and flashed across the goal-mouth constantly
and they had great goal-tending

these team attributes are the polar opposite of the Hawks... yes the Hawks have some speed, but, at least last year...

they did not fore-check or back-check well
their forwards were not overly good on D and rarely helped in their own zone
they did not move well w/o the puck
they played east-west and not north-south
the Hawks had little net front presence and rerely crossed the goal-mouth
the Hawks had poor goaltending (after Crow went down)...

so the Hawks having speed is not relevant unless they utilize that speed well. Vegas did so... the Hawks did not.
With Q as coach, i would expect little change in approach and, as a result, little change in results (apart from what Crow will buy us --- which can be much --- but he can carry the team only so far).

A rebound year is really unlikely. Hope I am wrong.

Like I observed before, they play "scared". Wonder who's responsible for that behavior.