Reunited with their shiny, yet deceivingly heavy friend, the Blackhawks take the Cup back to Chicago. The excitement has consumed the Windy City in the form of social media as well as an impressive parade route. The partying may not stop for a while amongst the players but their mortgage/lease payments may shortly. Is this the same old sob story rehashed from the 2010 dismantling? Let’s relive the past and compare to the challenges Bowman faces this offseason to find out.
Stan Bowman is not hiding the fact that keeping this core Stanley Cup team together will be a much easier task that he was subject to last time around. This was evident in the on-ice post-game interview when the Chicago Blackhawks GM, appeared relieved when the question was posed. It was almost a “that was awful, don’t bring that up ever again” look as his brushed off the reporters while he revelled in the franchises 5th Championship.
There are 30 General Managers that are dealing with a salary cap drop in a result of the new agreements within the latest CBA. Bowman Jr. is no exception to these challenging times. Also, a twist to this NHL vs. NHLPA resolution has included an amnesty clause which allows for two complete buyouts over the course of the next couple of seasons. These decisions will relieve teams of big contracts of players who feel plenty worthy of their salary as well as some who are begging for a fresh start.
Before diving into this offseason deeper then an Andrew Shaw facial laceration, let’s take a glance at what actually happened after the Hawks ended their 49 year Stanley Cup drought, four years ago.
That Stanley Cup win was bittersweet for Stan Bowman, John McDonaugh & Co. as this was more Dale Tallon’s team than their own. Moving forward their hunger grew strong to win under their own regime, however inheriting Tallon’s winning team included his salary cap mess.
It has been well documented that fan favourites and more importantly uber talented hockey players had to leave Chicago in the summer of 2010. Playoff hero and all-around enigma Dustin Byfuglien captured hearts and then crushed them with his 270 pound frame with his departure. Andrew Ladd, an underrated leader, gone. Kris Versteeg and the entire fourth line of Eager, Fraser and Burish all changed addresses as this time as well.
Doug Wilson added fuel to the fire that the Hawks roster, a blaze that saw him challenge inexperienced Stan Bowman to match a Niklas Hjalmarsson to a 4 year/14 million dollar offer sheet. An offer sheet that came out of deep left field to the Hawks as the front office appeared to have a far too casual approach in the matter. Antti Niemi was then subsequently lost due to overpayment of the young Swede defender. The rumour goes that they were low balling Niemi regardless of Wilson’s actions as they had Marty Turco lined up for a mere 1.3 million annual salary. A suitable replacement he was not, and Corey Crawford was able to emerge as a viable option.
In the form of great marketing, losing these players was countered with maintaining an exciting core group of individuals that were promised to bring many more titles for Chicago in the near future. Signing Toews, Kane, Keith on the same day to long-term contracts was a monumental day. This restored the winning culture and set the tone moving forward.
Still, salary cap restraints coupled with a couple 1st round playoff exits handcuffed the Blackhawks, resulting in trading of Brian Campbell, Troy Brouwer and Tomas Kopecky. Fans lamented that a rebuild wasn’t necessary however questioned the direction from above.
Let’s fast-forward to the summer of now. The pressure was on and clearly was met head on with a 24 game unbeaten streak in the regular season. A couple of under the radar signing and an overhyped draft pick saw Michal Rozsival, Sheldon Brookback and Brandon Saad make their way into an everyday role.
This team’s incredible start was led by the invaluable leadership of the core players remaining from the 2010 Stanley Cup winners. Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp and Marian Hossa at forward were breaking trail for the younger players while the steady play of Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Niklas Hjalmarsson held the fort down on the backend.
The Hawks benefitted from superb goaltending from Corey Crawford and Ray Emery as the entire team bought into the five-on-five and special teams systems. The media claimed while this is a good team, it’s a short season and may just be catching teams off guard as there wasn’t a lot of time for preparation with a January start. They were wrong.
The rest is history as Stan Bowman dusts off his shoulders winning with HIS team, but now has the daunting task of building off the core again, this time with less moving pieces. In the UFA column the most obvious and highest priority to re-sign is playoff hero Bryan Bickell.
Bickell earner a team low 542k per season in 2012-13. He loves playing in Chicago but will be urged by his agent to get the best deal possible. If the price tag exceeds 3.5 million/year, the Hawks will likely walk. The problem being they do not have anyone in the system to replace that combination of size and skill. Bowman will seek a similar skill-set at a much cheaper salary, a road he’s desperately looking to avoid.
Victor Stalberg, who was scolded in the playoffs by Joel Quenneville, earned him a benching. He has immense speed but lacks hockey IQ. He is still young and should garner respectable offers from numerous clubs.
Dave Bolland is finally moved as he’s been shopped before by Bowman. With the emergence of Andrew Shaw and Marcus Kruger, the inconsistent and injury prone centre is an easy target for a salary cap reduction.
Michal Handzus and Jamal Mayers could go out on top with both potentially entering retirement.
The major RFAs include the aforementioned Kruger, as well as Nick Leddy who could pose a problem with contract demands. The Hawks would be wise to keep their defence core in tact but realistically will lose Rozsival to free agency after a strong year.
Corey Crawford has proven critics wrong all year, entered his name into the Team Canada Olympic conversation and starts the year as the undeniable starter. His backup may very well be recent Finnish MVP goalie and free agent signee Antti Raanta.
So, depending on the names retained by the Hawks, this offseason may be a quiet one as the Hawks have roles to be filled by impressive performances like Frolik, Saad, Kruger and graduates from within the system.
Regardless of who ships out in the upcoming months, the pain won’t be as harsh for the Blackhawks’ faithful. With the proper moves, there will still be less Hawks changing uniforms than the summer of 2010. With the young superstars running the Windy City and the plethora of prospects, this organization could become the first dynasty in the cap era.
Tyler Cameron can be found on twitter as @tycam and writes for HockeyIndependent.com on NHL items besides the Chicago Blackhawks. ◉