Shantz My Pants
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My very first question that I have for people who have jumped on the bandwagon of hating Bowman is, what were his options this off-season? Yes, the Hawks admitted to being one of the teams going after Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, but at the end of the day, they both agreed to be closer to home (one being home) in Minnesota. To put blame on Bowman for not signing either of them is asinine considering another 28 GMs didn’t get them to ink their contracts either. Outside of those two skaters, this year’s FA pool is below average at best and there are not many options that would really be an upgrade over what the Hawks currently have. Plus, for the amount of money that is being thrown at these FA’s, it’s probably best that the Hawks stayed away. With 7.7 million dollars in cap space the Hawks can be rest assured that they have the space if a potential trade comes along. Also, not signing these guys to long overvalued contracts shows my next point…
The Hawks are no longer in need of “Band-Aid” type players. These would be your Brunettes, O’Donnell’s, Pisani’s, Cullimore’s, or Boynton’s. Unless a potential acquisition/signing is going to fill a hole in the lineup (see Brookbank) or stick around for some years (such as a Hossa) the Hawks aren’t in the business of bringing them into the organization. What does this mean? It means Stan Bowman has done his job in building a farm system and some, if not many are not too far away (i.e. jumping in this season or next). Guys such as Mark McNeill and Phillip Danault from last year’s draft could be playing C for the Hawks as early as this season (but will more than likely finish their final year of juniors). Brandon Saad will no doubt be playing for the Hawks this next season on the left side wing. Adam Clendening will be going to Rockford to start the season, but Bowman has said the defenseman is not too far off from making the big club. Kevin Hayes still has 2 more years of NCAA hockey left, but after that one would expect him to be ready for the NHL, if not a small amount of seasoning in the AHL. Stephen Johns (defense, NCAA) who is a solid stay-at-home defenseman with a physical edge may be ready in a year or so as well. But let’s not forget the Rockford crew of Pirri, Morin, Smith, and Kyle Beach that may get a chance throughout the upcoming season as well. As you can see, there really isn’t a need to bring in a player (unless a 2[sup]nd[/sup] line center) for this upcoming season with so many young players not too far off from playing in the pros. Plus, many of them with their contracts may cost less than a “Band-Aid’ player when called up.
My last point I like to bring up is, look what Bowman HAS done this off-season. The Hawks brought in Sheldon Brookbank, who I believe will be a huge upgrade for the Hawks defense. While he’s only going to be a 5[sup]th[/sup]/6[sup]th[/sup] defenseman, Brookbank is going to fill a void on the back six with his gritty and physical play. Outside of Seabrook, the Hawks have lacked a physical presence on the back end for a couple seasons (O’Donnell only counts as a physical presence when the opposition accidentally ran into him, which wasn’t much). Not only will Brookbank make the opposition pay for taking the puck to the net, he’s willing to drop the mitts and defend his teammates. Brookbank can also play the penalty kill, and that will give guys like Seabs and Keith a much needed breather (both averaged more than 2 minutes a game in shorthanded minutes) and will keep Leddy hopefully off the PK entirely (he’s not a defensive defenseman). Outside of Brookbank I assume people are saying “Hey, Bowman hasn’t added anybody else” and that’s exactly another point for this argument. Outside of a 2[sup]nd[/sup] line center (which they have one, and his name is Patrick Sharp. He won the cup as a 2[sup]nd[/sup] line center, so who cares what he wants to play, just do what’s best for the team and keep Kane at RW and Sharp at C) the Hawks don’t need much to be contenders for the Stanley Cup. With the depth the Hawks have, adding another player to the currently crowded depth chart wouldn’t benefit anyone, especially the younger guys who need that ice time.
So in a certain way, Bowman did a lot this off-season. He filled a hole in the lineup on defense, he stayed away from overpriced lengthy contracts, didn’t bring in any Band-Aid players, didn’t lose any core players, is trusting that his lineup he has now will be ready for the start of the season (pending any CBA issues) and that the younger players he’s invested in potentially have a spot for this season, or next. So step off that ledge and relax as this isn’t a bad off-season for the Hawks. It really could be a lot worse. Hey, at least we’re not Detroit.
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The Hawks are no longer in need of “Band-Aid” type players. These would be your Brunettes, O’Donnell’s, Pisani’s, Cullimore’s, or Boynton’s. Unless a potential acquisition/signing is going to fill a hole in the lineup (see Brookbank) or stick around for some years (such as a Hossa) the Hawks aren’t in the business of bringing them into the organization. What does this mean? It means Stan Bowman has done his job in building a farm system and some, if not many are not too far away (i.e. jumping in this season or next). Guys such as Mark McNeill and Phillip Danault from last year’s draft could be playing C for the Hawks as early as this season (but will more than likely finish their final year of juniors). Brandon Saad will no doubt be playing for the Hawks this next season on the left side wing. Adam Clendening will be going to Rockford to start the season, but Bowman has said the defenseman is not too far off from making the big club. Kevin Hayes still has 2 more years of NCAA hockey left, but after that one would expect him to be ready for the NHL, if not a small amount of seasoning in the AHL. Stephen Johns (defense, NCAA) who is a solid stay-at-home defenseman with a physical edge may be ready in a year or so as well. But let’s not forget the Rockford crew of Pirri, Morin, Smith, and Kyle Beach that may get a chance throughout the upcoming season as well. As you can see, there really isn’t a need to bring in a player (unless a 2[sup]nd[/sup] line center) for this upcoming season with so many young players not too far off from playing in the pros. Plus, many of them with their contracts may cost less than a “Band-Aid’ player when called up.
My last point I like to bring up is, look what Bowman HAS done this off-season. The Hawks brought in Sheldon Brookbank, who I believe will be a huge upgrade for the Hawks defense. While he’s only going to be a 5[sup]th[/sup]/6[sup]th[/sup] defenseman, Brookbank is going to fill a void on the back six with his gritty and physical play. Outside of Seabrook, the Hawks have lacked a physical presence on the back end for a couple seasons (O’Donnell only counts as a physical presence when the opposition accidentally ran into him, which wasn’t much). Not only will Brookbank make the opposition pay for taking the puck to the net, he’s willing to drop the mitts and defend his teammates. Brookbank can also play the penalty kill, and that will give guys like Seabs and Keith a much needed breather (both averaged more than 2 minutes a game in shorthanded minutes) and will keep Leddy hopefully off the PK entirely (he’s not a defensive defenseman). Outside of Brookbank I assume people are saying “Hey, Bowman hasn’t added anybody else” and that’s exactly another point for this argument. Outside of a 2[sup]nd[/sup] line center (which they have one, and his name is Patrick Sharp. He won the cup as a 2[sup]nd[/sup] line center, so who cares what he wants to play, just do what’s best for the team and keep Kane at RW and Sharp at C) the Hawks don’t need much to be contenders for the Stanley Cup. With the depth the Hawks have, adding another player to the currently crowded depth chart wouldn’t benefit anyone, especially the younger guys who need that ice time.
So in a certain way, Bowman did a lot this off-season. He filled a hole in the lineup on defense, he stayed away from overpriced lengthy contracts, didn’t bring in any Band-Aid players, didn’t lose any core players, is trusting that his lineup he has now will be ready for the start of the season (pending any CBA issues) and that the younger players he’s invested in potentially have a spot for this season, or next. So step off that ledge and relax as this isn’t a bad off-season for the Hawks. It really could be a lot worse. Hey, at least we’re not Detroit.
Click here to view the article