Hard Hawk Hockey

Expensive Ride

Just when I thought we might have turned the corner regarding the bad press of the summer, there’s more. On the heels of former Blackhawk great and fan favorite Jeremy Roenick announcing his retirement, providing all of us who loved him a moment or weekend of happy memories and a bit of sadness as he leaves the game, more bad news strikes, offsetting our tearful goodbye to JR.

Patrick Kane was arrested Sunday in Buffalo along with his cousin James Kane. They are charged with robbery, fourth-degree criminal mischief and theft of services. As the story goes, Patrick and his cousin James were taking a cab ride and about the pay the fare which was $13.80. They gave the driver $15.00, and apparently he could not make change. The boys took back their $15.00, and the driver was then punched, his glasses broken, and the boys got out of the cab.

Now, Patrick has already plead not-guilty. I am not aware of his cousins plea, but have read in a couple places that his cousin may not be the most upstanding person. I have no idea if that is true or not, I am only writing what I have read, so please understand that I am making no accusations here.

Whatever the entire story is, the truth needs to come out as soon as possible so that the Hawks can eliminate the addtional bad PR this is generating. We all know what a night of drinking can sometimes do, and when you are a high priced athlete things can escalate. They can also be taken out of context or exaggerated. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty, but you have to believe that some of this is true, and would be a bit strange to make up. I would think that Patrick would have made a better decision then what he is being charged with, and or that he would have been able to just drop the whole situation, and tell his cousin to just forget it if money was the source of the problem.

I still have alot of questions and am just hoping that this gets cleared up quickly. It’s a shame that this happens, but once again, young professional players who make alot of money need to insure that they do not put themselves in situations like this. I will give Patrick credit for one thing only at this point. If he was drunk and we do not know if he was, at least he was not driving. But, for godsakes, do not put yourself in the limelight for something like this. Hockey players in general have a reputation to uphold. We don’t typically read about this nonsense as much as we do in other sports.

I agonized over whether or not to post about this story. I did not want to take anything away from the retirement of Jeremy Roenick, however I ultimately felt that I couldn’t overlook this situation.

Thanks for reading.

Thanks for the Memories JR

It’s official. 20 year NHL veteran, and my favorite NHLer Jeremy Roenick officially announced his retirement Thursday August 6th. I cannot begin to say how much this is going to suck for me, even though he was a shadow of himself the last few years. Knowing that I will have to rely on you-tube and video’s that I have at home, and the NHL network classic games doesn’t ease the pain of this retirement.

Drafted 8th overall in 1988 by the Chicago Blackhawks, Jeremy instantly became not only a favorite of mine, but a favorite of Chicagoans, and many many NHL fans. Yes he was opinionated, yes he was brash and was sometimes too outspoken for some people, but bottom line, he could back it up with his play. Not many players and possibly none can match the heart and soul that this guy had and showed throughout his career. Watching the press conference, and hearing him thank all the great players that he played with, seeing him tear up made me think of all the good times and thrills he provided me throughout his career.

Like when he took a stick to the mouth in a playoff game against the St. Louis Blues and skated over to a ref and handed him the teeth that were knocked loose. Or when he scored the overtime winner against Toronto in the ‘94 playoffs. The hat tricks, the multi-point games, the hits, the leadership. I could go on and on.

Early in the press conference Roenick talked about that crazy SOB Mike Keenan (JR’s words), and how during a preseason game in Roenick’s rookie year Keenan grabbed Roenick by his sweater and told him, if you don’t finish your checks, you will never play for me in the NHL again! He talked about how that one incident, that one situation and how Mike Keenan molded him into the player that he ultimately became, and how much he owed to Mike for doing that. That was priceless. The tears flowed, the voice sputtered, and the emotion told you just how much that meant to JR’s career.

From then on, he just became like a ping pong ball on ice. Hi hit you when he needed to, he hit you when your head was down, and he took his hits too. And guess what? He didn’t care. He played the game the way it is meant to be played. Fearlessly. Passionately. With grace, gusto and tenacity. And he had some flashy moves on the ice as well, and scored some awesome goals that were not only timely, but made for highlights.

His very best years of course were with the Hawks no doubt. Those teams he played on were so exciting to watch and the stadium rocked and rolled when Roenick got things going. He always had me at the edge of my seat. Two consecutive 50 goal seasons, three consecutive 100 point seasons. He took over where Denis Savard left off, and had some great linemates and teammates to go along with him. Those years in Chicago were his absolute best.

Unfortunately, his outspoken behavior got him traded to Phoenix for some forgetable russian, and he was basaically never the same. That combined with some serious knee injuries contributed to his losing a half step, and his scoring drop a bit. He did alot of good for Phoenix though, and helped build their fan base after they moved there from Winnipeg. Then on to Philly, where they just loved him and his style. He was perfect for them. I’ll never forget his overtime playoff winning goal against former teammate Eddie Belfour. That was so cool! Then the Flyers asked him if they could trade him to bring in Peter Forsberg and JR said yes. I hope that everyone who thinks that Jeremy was such a punk remembers that. There are not too many people who would leave Philly and be in the playoffs every year, and go to LA, which at the time was struggling. (Dany Heatley are you listening?)

His year in LA and back to Phoenix for another year were not that good, as a matter of fact they sent his career backwards. Finally, his first road roommate, Doug Wilson GM of the San Jose Sharks called him and they agreed to a one year deal, and JR was respected again. Not only by his mates, but by the fans. He owes alot to Doug Wilson. As Wilson mentioned, it takes a great player to reinvent himself, which Roenick did. After being the center of attention, and playing on the top lines, JR was just as happy to be on the 3rd or 4th, and provide leadership and fill in where needed.

Ultimately, he knew that it was time however to hang them up. What a career though. 513 goals, 703 assists for 1216 points. A career +/- of 153. 92 game winning goals. 9 all-star teams. The only thing missing is a Stanley Cup. And that is quite a shame, as one of hockey’s best players ever deserved to have won it at least once. Regardless though he should end up in the Hall of Fame.

I am going to miss Jeremy Roenick very much. The NHL is going to miss Jeremy Roenick also. It needs more players like him not only for his play, but for his heart on his sleeve attitude. 20 years is a long time for any athelte to play, especially in hockey. I don’t know if there is anyone out there right now that can fill his shoes.

Thank you Jeremy for all the thrills, all the highlights, and all the wonderful things you did for the greatest game on earth.

There will never be another like you.

Congratulations on a great career. Best of luck in whatever you do. Just figure out a way to stay close to the game!

Thanks for reading.

JR To Announce Retirement

Reports by ESPN that 20 year veteran, and my favorite player, Jeremy Roenick will be announcing his retirement from the NHL on Thursday. A press conference has been scheduled for his announcement.

I will have a full post on this once it is made official. Might just be my way of not believing it till I hear it for sure. It would have been nice for JR to have finished with the Hawks, and or at least to have won the Stanley Cup. He got close in 1992 and we all remember how that ended. He was quoted as saying not too long ago that then head coach Mike Keenan told the players during the finals, don’t take this opportunity for granted. You may never be in this position again. How right he was.

More on this once it’s official. In the meantime, I’m reaching for the kleenex.

Thanks for reading.

Meet Your New Assistant GM

The Chicago Blackhawks have named Kevin Cheveldayoff as their new Assitant General Manager. Kevin, 39 years old had recently been the General Manager for one of the most successful AHL franchises in recent history, the Chicago Wolves. The Wolves are the affiliate for the Atlanta Thrashers, and he’s held that post with them for the past 12 seasons.

He has had a pretty successful carrer with them, winning the Calder Cup in 2008, 2002, and the Turner Cup, which was given to the champs of the old IHL, in 2000 and 1998.

Kevin was a first round pick, 16th overall of the New York Islanders in 1988. Known as a defensive defenseman, Kevin’s career was cut short after 5 years by a knee injury.

Is this Stan Bowman’s eventual successor? Time will tell I guess, but at least this looks like a positive move for the Blackhawks. Hiring someone who has had success, and is striving to work a similar post in the NHL can only help in the PR department. Something that has been taking quite a hit for the Hawks the past month.

Hopefully, everyone gets along.

Thaks for reading.

The Hits Just Keep On Coming!

Seems like the Chicago Blackhawks has been taking their public relations lessons from the political side of town and trying to emulate what had been known years ago as “The Daley Machine”. The NHL is now investigating the structure of the Marion Hossa deal. Apparently their was discussion about Hossa potentially retiring before the contract was up in order to ease the cap hit to the Hawks.

Other deals similar in length to this one have been signed but don’t ahve the ridiculous drop off in compensation as Hossa’s does. The NHL is trying to determine if the intent of the contract was designed to somehow circumvent the cap.

Me thinks, yes! How could it not be? Do we all really think that Hossa was going to play at 40, 41, even 42? When you look at the last couple years of the contract , he’s only getting paid $750,000 per year, and it doesn’t take a capologist to figure out what the intent might have been. Innocent until proven guilty, but I’m not liking how this looks. The NHL has vocally complained about deals like this before, and if this one was completed to get around the cap you can bet that there will be some penalties to the Hawks. I’m sure a fine of a large sum will be in order and probably a lost draft pick or two.

I really don’t like the way this looks and I hope that there is some way that this is proven to be a legitimate contract. With so much good news coming out of Chicago last season the offseason has been a pure public relations cluster—-.

Oh yea, don’t forget that if this does go down as an illegal contract, it was probably Tallon’s fault.

Thanks for reading.

Hossa Injured?

Reports coming out of Chicago today are that newly signed free agent forward, Marion Hossa has a shoulder injury which occured during the playoffs. The severity of the in jury is not known, other than it appears to be a torn rotator cuff, but I have not seen anything confirming that.

The $60 million dollar man is being evaluated by the Blackhawks and he is going through testing as well as therapy to determine everything. If surgery is needed, he could be out until December. Quite a blow if this is the case for sure.

This begs the question of course, how could he have passed a physical before signing? Or did he disclose this and the Hawks knew about it? Alot of questions and concerns here, and of course the talk will be, how could the Hawks sign a player with a shoulder injury to a long term deal, while letting a healthy player who had a great season for them last year leave? Did Dale Tallon and his staff do the homework? And does this injury explain why Hossa was virtually invisible in the playoffs especially the finals?

While I am not a physician, nor claim to know anything about medicine, I read that this type of injury may not show up during a physical. Hmmm, if it’s a rotator cuff, how does that not show up? Was Hossa complaining of pain, or problems? If you are going to sign someone for 12 years, and invest 60 million dollars, I would expect that you fully check out the player in question. Anything less than that is stupid. John McDonough the Hawks president is starting to get an awful lot of crap thrown his way for decisions that he has been involved in lately. I am not sure how much involvment he had in the Hossa signing, but as Tallon’s boss, he needs to be on the list here of people who may or may not have done their homework.

As fans, we need some answers, and don’t sugarcoat things. You won’t be able to sweep this under the rug, like you did with Dale Tallon by making him an advisor, after you fired him. If Hossa is going to miss the first few months of the season, things now change dramatically for the Hawks and any trades that they were thinking of making will have to be reevaluated. This could very well put new GM Stan Bowman at a huge disadvantage. The pressure to have a good start without the use of Hossa is something that the Hawks were not planning for. Kane and Toews, as well as Sharp, Keith and Seabrook will have to show their true leadership and guide this team without Hossa’s help. His potential 40 goals will probably be reduced to 25, and someone else is going to have to step up.
On top of that our “Man From France” Cristobal Huet will need to stand on his head.

Stay tuned as this develops some more. It’s more public relations negativity that the Hawks just don’t need right know.

Thanks for reading

It’s kind of messy

After the dust has somewhat settled, and after I have had a chance to read some (not all) of the information on the recent firing of Dale Tallon, one thing for sure that I can say is that once again the Blackhawks have made this a very interesting summer. I would say that since Dale was actually reassigned and made a senior advisor, maybe the Hawks should have handled things a bit differently.

Upon making the announcement that Tallon was fired as GM, and that assistant GM Stan Bowman was made new GM, Tallon was then named senior advisor, a position also held by Stan’s father Scotty Bowman. Sheesh!! Tallon also signed a two year extension accepting the position and remaining with the Hawks, an organization he has been with now for over 30 years.

The reason for the firing/reassignment has come down to the RFA offers that were not mailed out on time. Tallon like the good soldier that he is, said that he would take the blame for that. Hawks president and chief marketing guru John McDonough also shared some of the blame, but squarely said that it was the main reason for the change. Personally I would like to believe that there is someone assigned with making sure the mail gets out on time, especially things like these offers. However there are so many people in that front office, it could easily have been an oversight. However it is one of the biggest mistakes anyone can make. The problem was quickly resolved when all RFA’s were signed before they were lost, and granted Cam Barker and Kris Versteeg probably made a few dollars more than they should have, the situation was resolved.

The parts of this that are bothersome to me have to do with timing. Right before the Blackhawks summer convention? First we have all known that Tallon’s days were numbered last year when Scotty was signed, so why wait so long after the season was over? Unless of course you were hoping Tallon would do something stupid and there would be your excuse. Secondly, Rocky Wirtz made a very “silly” comment indicating that Stan is younger. I will paraphrase: We like getting younger people involved. Dale is 58, and is getting old. Rocky then proceeded to say that he’s 56 and he’s getting old. WOW. Could have a discrimination thing going here. But Tallon signing on for two more years probably negates any leverage he may have had.

Let’s also admit that while Tallon did make some poor decisions, and what GM doesn’t? His players thought very highly of him, and he made some pretty good moves as well. Getting Patrick Sharp from Philly for next to nothing. Getting Kris Versteeg for Brandon Bochenski was a steal. Drafting Kane & Toews, and his overall influence on most of the Hawks roster was a calming effect. Dale was a staple.
He had served in many capacities with the Hawks, and has had some success, and was mostly responsible for being the architect of this current resurgence. At least as far as assembling the roster goes.

But, he made some mistakes too. Martin Havlat except for his last year here was not a good deal overall, however he was their most consistent player last year. Nikolai Khabibulin, also was injured a majority of the time. Although last year was a banner year for him, even though it was a contract year. Not signing Havlat to a long term deal in favor of Marion Hossa? I’m ok with that. Hossa has been injury free for the most part and giving Havlat longer than 2 years could have been a mistake. Giving Hossa 12 years is nuts! Signing Khabibulin longer than one year would have been a problem too. He is 36, and has shown that the injury bug hits him as well. However, the Campbell signing and the Huet signing are major problems. While Campbell does improve the power play and is a good puck moving defenseman, he’s grossly overpaid. You cannot tell me that he’s worth as much as Chara for example. Huet, well the jury is still out on this one, but I think that at 34 years old, and a goalie who never really has played more than 50 games, it was a risk. We will find out very quickly this year if Huet is the answer in net. If he resembles anything like he did in game 5 of the conference finals, I’ll be ok with it. If he falters, it’s going to be a tough contract to move.

Which brings us to the salary cap issue. The Hawks are going to have a problem. Potentially. This year they are already over the cap, so expect a move or two to be made. Next year, three big name players must be kept. Duncan Keith, Jonathan Toews, and Patrick Kane. I don’t care (well I do) what has to happen, but in no way are these three players to leave this team. The problem is going to be who do you move, and for that, the Hawks better hope that they make the right choices. Patrick Sharp, Dustin Byfuglien are two names that continue to be mentioned. I don’t want either of them to go, but it may come down to them, as well as a couple others. Stan Bowman who is in charge of the cap numbers seems to feel everything will work itself out. I hope so. This change in management was handled like a hot potatoe, and for all the good the Hawks have done recently, it doesn’t need to be wiped out by a PR blunder and some fat contracts that should have never been given.

Time heals all wounds, and we’ll all get over this, but what scares me is that the Hawks mentality of how they have done things with their management recently. Denis Savard being fired, didn’t bother me. The timimg did. Tallon being reassigned, kind of bothers me, but if they did it after last season, I probably wouldn’t mind. It will be interesting to see how this all shakes out and the rest of the summer will give us a chance to see how things go.

In closing, I just pray that Kane and Toews don’t end up going the way some other famous Hawk players have gone. Here’s a list:
Phil Esposito, Bobby Hull (I cried as a kid when this happened), Ed Belfour, Chris Chelios, Steve Larmer, and finally my favorite Hawk of all time, Jeremey Roenick. JR deserved to be with the hawks forever. He was never the same after he left, but sure enough, his years here were the best. We loved him and he loved us back. He was traded for Alexei Zhamnov? I was so mad a Wirtz for this, I could have shot him! He really hurt the franchise when he pulled that one. As for Kane and Toews, they deserve better fate than what ended up happening to these other players. Only time will tell.

Thanks for reading

Tallon Fired!

We could see the handwriting on the wall ever since last July when the Chicago Blackhawks hired Scotty Bowman as a consultant for the organization. We all knew that Dale Tallon’s days as Hawk GM were numbered and as soon as the mistakes, or bad decisions which in all honesty there weren’t too many of, reached the boiling point, we knew he would be fired.

Well that day is here. It is being reported all over that the Blackhawks will make the announcement this morning that current GM Dale Tallon will be fired and replaced by assisant GM Stan Bowman.
Tallon has filled many roles during his time with the Hawks. From player, to color analyst, to director of player personnel to finally General Manager. One thing is certain however, that he is one of the last of the Bill Wirtz era (head Scout Michel Dumas the other), and for that he may be paying a price as the new regime seems to be cleaning house of all things associated with that era.

We will all argue of the timing of this, and was he made a scapegoat of the free agency offers that were allegedly not delivered on time, and the fat contracts (i.e. over payments) to Bryan Campbell and Cristobal Huet, and now to Marion Hossa, and possibly even John Madden. Dale is and was not perfect. No general manager is, except maybe the guy in Detroit. That being said, Dale Tallon has built or should I say rebuilt this Hawks roster from the scrapheap and made it a true contender. He has been part of the regime that has brought back repectability, and the passion that was part of the Hawks for so long. Now he will not be able to enjoy the fruits of his labors, which that alone is sad.

I am not saying that I agree or disagree with this move yet. Being here in Florida, I need some more time to read and investigate the story and see what additional info I can find, and also let it sink in alittle bit as well before I comment on it further. There is a lot going on in this front office, there are alot of opinions and so called experts attempting to bring Lord Stanley to the Windy City. The recently departed Rick Dudley commented that “The front office is pretty crowded”. That speaks volumnes of the situation in that maybe there were too many chiefs and not enough indians. Parden the pun.

Tallon was loved by his players. As we are able to confirm with the players decision last season to all attend the funeral of Dale’s father during a road trip. That story alone is all you need to know to see how his players felt about him. While the firing of Denis Savard last season after four games was brutal, the players got over it. I am sure that they will get over this as well, but what is the message that the Hawks brass is sending about these abrupt firings?

In the picture at the beginning of this blog, both Tallon and Scotty are smiling. But something tells me that the thoughts going through their heads went something like this:

Tallon: Welcome aboard Scotty. It’s great to have one of the smartest guys in hockey as part of our organization. Please let me stay here until we win the Cup.

Scotty: Dale, don’t know why your smiling. The first mistake you make will probably get you fired. My son was named after the Stanley Cup. If you think I’m not going to let him be the one to take the credit for that, your sadly mistaken.

More to follow.

Thanks for reading

The Offer Is In The Mail!

I am sure that most of us have heard about the recent “clerical” snafu that has become the talk of the NHL over this past weekend involving the Chicago Blackhawks. In short, appraently offers to RFA’S Troy Brouwer, Ben Eager, Colin Fraser, Aaron Johnson, Kris Versteeg, Cam Barker and Corey Crawford may or may not have reached the players in time.

While the offers were sent to the NHL offices in time, due to the July 4th holiday, it is apparent that a player or two may not have received their offer before the deadline. Whether postmarked, not postmarked, delivered or not, how much of an issue is this? And is it really necessary to have this blemish thrown at the Hawks after one of the most successful rebounds in sports?

Many people are pointing the finger at Hawks GM Dale Tallon, while others say that there are too many people in the front office, and too many hands are in the pot. Regardless, of the original issue, as of yesterday, All of the above mentioned players except for Kris Versteeg have signed contracts.

So while this might be a bit of much ado about nothing, the NHLPA still felt it necessary to file the grievance anyway. It does however speak volumes for the Blackhawk franchise that these players, did not wait for the outcome and decided to sign with the Hawks rather than get the ability to test free agency.

That right there, shows how far the Hawks have come, and what type of people these boys are!

Thanks for reading.

Can You Say Hossa!!!

Once again the Hawks make big news on the first day of free agency (2 years in a row) and sign high scoring forward Marian Hossa for 12, yes 12 years!!!! 62.8 million! While the contract is front loaded for the most part this is about a big a splash as you can make. Not sure if 12 years had to be part of this, but it still is a good pick up, for this year.

Not to rain on the parade however, but this could present a problem next year when the law firm of Kane and Toews must be signed. Please make sure that those 2 kids NEVER leave Chicago.

Now the question remains regarding Marty Havlat and his situation. Does this signing of Hossa mean he’s gone?
Time will tell.

Finally, Nikolai Khabibulin has just signed for 4 years in Edmonton for 15 million total, an avg of 3.75. The salary is good, but the length is too long.

More as things develop.

Thanks for reading.