When the 3rd pair is going to have one of Oduya or Campbell, things are looking pretty good at the back end. I don't trust Oduya or Campbell to hold up for a long run...but with the two taking some of the workload off of the other, I'm much more comfortable with the mix. I like the Jurco gamble for a 3rd. I won't be shocked if he sees 8 shifts and gets benched or locks into a middle 6 type role for every game.
On Thursday, the ?Hawks announced they?ve signed QMJHL forward Matthew Highmore to a three-year, entry-level deal. Highmore, 21, is an undrafted winger that?s racked up the points this year for the Saint John Sea Dogs. He has 82 through 58 games ? good for seventh in league scoring ? and sits tied for second on the team in goals with Bolts prospect Mathieu Joseph. It?s probably worth noting that Highmore?s one of the oldest players in the Q, having turned 21 earlier this week, and that his offensive spike has come in his final two years of junior hockey (he had 22 goals and 75 points last year). It?s also worth noting Highmore is teammates with Chicago prospect Nathan Noel, who was taken in the fourth round of last year?s draft.
Good stuff Will...and I have no idea how that makes the Hawks better. I'm guessing this was the contract slot they acquired yesterday. They have 3 in jrs and 2 other slots left.
Vinnie has speed and flash. I like him, but he's too small to beat NHL dmen, especially the groups on Minnesota, NSH, CGY, and STL. I think he'll be pretty useless in the offensive zone in those matchups and he's not strong enough (or have the arm reach) to win enough defensive battles. He might be useful in the blender for a game or 3, but I would much rather gamble on inconsistent Jurco than undersized Hinostroza. Lots of Hawks fans share your view. It might be the correct one, I'll be content betting on Jurco. I'm not a huge fan of Jurco btw, I just think he'll be more useful.
I like the size Jurco brings but doesn't seem to want to us it to his advantage so that perhaps may be the better matchup in the playoffs ... yea Vinnie is a little undersized , but I think he can work through that as he seasons , seems like the kids got a lot of heart which can go a long way , he's young so I hope he sticks around and is part of the future .
With the Wild losing the other night the division is still within their grasp , still going to be tough cause I expect Minny will still win many of their remaining games , hope the boys are up to it with 17 to go.
I've had enough of Jurco he's done nothing .... bring back Vinnie and his energy and get Hartman & Keor going again.
Jurco is on a good line too, but he's just not on their par. He's lucky to be a Blackhawk, but he better step up.
Yeah, he's been bad. I suspect he'll get benched one game in the next few but they, including Q, are still going to give him another 10 games or so to adjust before tossing him in the dumpster. They aren't in a position to sacrifice too much more size.
Rumors are the cap may go up more than expected hope it holds to be true as the Hawks could have a little more wiggle room this offseason.
Wow what a 3rd the Hawks had last night , the Wild are floundering and the Hawks are seizing control of the division with 10 to go. Could this really be another magical year ?????
This run by the Hawks is amazing. Helps the WC is in a down year. I never would have picked them to be where they are right now. I was expecting them to be 88-92 pts right now, way ahead of what I was expecting. Hopefully everybody gets healthy before April. All these extra points allow Q to rest players a little more. Here's to hoping Panarin misses his Schedule B bonus money! The west is wide open for them. Not the year I was expecting. Fun ride.
Yup I agree didn't expect it to come together so quickly , Stan continues to show he's got it figured out . Regardless of the outcome in playoffs the future is moving in the right direction with theses rookies , doesn't mean I be happy with a 1st round outage but a deep run would be fun to watch for sure , with a little luck you never know.
The way the WC is looking right now, I think a healthy Hawks team will be in very good shape with home ice the first couple of rounds. If they get home ice and keep their top 5 forwards and top 3 def and Crow healthy I expect them to win any series right now. The depth is much stronger than I was expecting it to be... and this is without a number of young players I thought might be making larger contributions.
Dylan Sikura was a 6th rounder in 2014. Hawks offered him a contract last summer. He's going back to Northeastern for his senior year and NOT signing with Chicago according to Scott Powers. He's turned into quite the player in H-East I guess, and he has the production to support some of that argument. Unfortunately I picked this year to ignore most of the NCAA season so I have to take other people's word on it. He's a name to watch out for next spring, hopefully he's signed or traded for a decent asset.
The Chicago Blackhawks will be allowed to place veteran forward Marian Hossa on injured reserve, according to Scott Power of The Athletic. This offseason, the Blackhawks raised some eyebrows when they placed Hossa on the long-term injured list because of a skin disorder. There was skepticism surrounding the move because Hossa, who has a cap hit of $5.275 million, is “only” scheduled to make $1 million per year starting this season. Eventually, after the announcement was made, everyone moved on to something else until Leafs forward Joffrey Lupul wrote about the Maple Leafs cheating on player physicals. Lupul had just failed his physical and the Leafs were set to put him on long-term IR so that his salary wouldn’t count towards their salary cap. Lupul backtracked as best he could, but it was too late, as the NHL decided to do their own investigation into his failed physical and Hossa’s inability to suit up. The NHL had an independent physician take a deeper look into Hossa’s case, and it looks like they’ll be able to sit him out for as long as they have to. The ‘Hawks are over the salary cap by over $500,000, so this definitely benefits them. (PHT)
I know they don't give out the Cup after 1 game but last night that's the fastest pace I have seen the Hawks play in a few years now , yes Pens were on a back to back but the Hawks have speed on their side again. The Kaner line could be off the charts this year , Schmaltz looks like he's being shot out of a cannon ... Saad what more can you say other than " Glad your back , your presence will be felt by the opponent all year " PP looked bad if I had to complain about anything , something to keep a eye on moving forward.
