2010 Chicago Blackhawks

After the Blackhawks hoisted the league’s top prize, the reigning Stanley Cup Champions went on an extreme dismantling project that I’m sure had most players wondering when they would get the call telling them to pack their bags.  The core players avoided a move to a new city including Marion Hossa, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook.  But the one thing that the Blackhawks had over all other teams last season was their immense depth.  Can they compete at a level close to their 2009-2010 season without some key players that came up big when asked upon?

Dustin Byfuglien, Ben Eager Andrew Ladd and Brent Sopel headed to Atlanta in trades that were to build for the future and not enhance the upcoming year in my opinion.  Also, in a move to build for the future and relieve salary, was a trade that sent Kris Versteeg to Toronto for Viktor Stalberg, plus prospects and picks.  They also lost Adam Burrish and veteran John Madden as they signed elsewhere in the off-season.  Now normally a Stanley Cup champion is hard pressed to keep the same team intact for a follow-up run in the next season, and losing these players is eye-opening but not absolutely devastating, as long as they are replaced with potential role players of the same caliber.  I question if the holes were filled where needed.

Byfuglien, although not a great performer in the regular season, was instrumental in their playoff run to the finals and Burrish and Ladd are great playoff grinders.  In acquiring Stalberg the Blackhawks received a bigger guy with potential sniper abilities but he will be unable to wreak havoc on defenses as Byfuglien did last season. Now with Cristobal Huet playing in Switzerland after clearing waivers, chopping his salary from the Blackhawks cap, and Antti Niemi signing with San Jose, the Blackhawks go into the 2010-2011 season with two new goalies between the pipes.  Marty Turco was signed this summer and their goalie of the future, Corey Crawford, will be backing him up.  The Turco signing would be a great piece of news if we could go back in time say three years ago when he was posting a GAA of less than 2.50 and finally had the playoff performance that everyone expected of him but since then he has been closer to a 3.00 GAA than the 2.50 marker.  The 35-year old struggled at the end of last season allowing four-plus goals in four of his last ten games and was pulled twice.

The Blackhawks defensive core is still strong but I believe Niemi did not get enough credit for his seven shutouts in only 39 games played and his fourth highest GAA at 2.25.  Chicago went from dead last in the Western Conference six seasons ago to back-to-back 100-point seasons in the previous two years.  Although they should hit the century marker for the third straight year and are in no trouble of setting up golf tee times come playoff season, they will struggle to finish in the top two of the West as they did last season.