SB Nation - Dustin Byfuglien

To The Five Boroughs - Hawks 2, Rangers 1 (OT)

McClure — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 08:33:32 -0000

Dustin Ovechkin? Where the balls did THAT come from?

If you can find anything to complain about from the Hawks from this game...you're wrong. The fact of the matter is, for nearly 64 minutes, the Hawks dominated this game, and the only thing that kept the Rangers in it was Henrik Lundqvist. The one sequence that the Hawks gave Marian Gaborik any room to work with in the first he found an open Chris Higgins who beat Cristobal Huet from the left circle with a perfect water bottle wrister. Other than that, however, the Rangers didn't get a sniff, as evidenced by the 3 shots COMBINED in the third and OT, and totaled 18 for the evening.

In the offensive zone, the Hawks mauled the rangers for a total of 41 shots for the night, and the game would have been out of hand early if not for Lundqvist's heroics. Every line for the Hawks produced offense, and it finally took four Hawks jamming away at King Henrik with 6 minutes left, and on a power play, to finally prod one past him to equal the score, and consequently force the overtime.

Once in OT, the Hawks kept the pressure on, and then came one of the most ridiculous things I've seen at the UC in a long time. Dustin Byfuglien picked up a loose puck at the top of his own rings and led a one-man rush down the ice and slid the puck past Lundqvist for the game winner. Buff has regularly been a whipping boy of this blog, and this play is part of the reason why. Seeing this, we all know he has it in him, and yet he is still quite often a passenger on whatever line he happens to be playing with. It's confounding, but even still, it resulted in my maniacal victorious laughter at the end of the night, so all's well that ends well. Hawks win 2-1.

Observations

The second line of Sharp, Kane, and Brouwer looks quite promising, as Sharp was everywhere tonight, despite not making it onto the score sheet
I TELL YA, DAT HORSA GUY CAN BACKCHECK
Nice to see Troy Brouwer throwing his weight around again
It seemed like the book on Lundqvist was to go high, which the Hawks adhered to, but it led to many, MANY shots over the net and rung off the end board glass. Had they not gotten too cute, the shot total would have dwarfed the 41 that was put up.
The Hawks have only scored 4 even strength goals since the San Jose game.
I cannot believe a game that involved Donald Brashear, Sean Avery, and Ben Eager did not contain a single moment of unbridled numbskullery.

Player of the Game

In spite of Buff's goal, and even though it ended up being a losing effort, there is no denying that King Henrik had the best game of anyone on the ice tonight.

Coming To Chicago This Summer: Cap Reality

The Falconer — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 14:48:43 -0000

More photos » by Larry Macdougal - AP

Browse more photos »

For those of you who don't pay much attention to the Western Conference the big news this week was that the Chicago Blackhawks managed to get three of their young stars resigned this week. Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane both signed for 6.3 million per year and Duncan Keith for 5.5 per year. Blackhawk fans were falling all over themselves in self congratulation with the news.

However, the team is going to have to perform "roster reduction surgery" to clear away the foolishness that former GM Tallon committed in the Summer of 2008. This coming summer the Blackhawks are going to have to move a lot of salary just to field a roster of 21 players for the 2010-2011 season. Below is 21 man roster chart of players currently under contract with Chicago and their cap salaries (or Qualifying Offers for RFAs this summer).

A couple of technical notes. RFAs who make under 1 million must be offered a 10% raise in their qualifying offers (which they don't have to sign). Young players on Entry Level Contracts (ELC) will have all bonus money count against the cap next year because it is the final year of the CBA. I have used a 21 man roster instead of the NHL minimum 20 man roster because it is virtually impossible to go with just 20 players. If a guy is out a few days, he doesn't quality for Long Term Injury Replacement, but someone has to to dress--so I budgeted for 21 roster spots. The minimum NHL salary is half a million dollars currently.

OK and now for the really ugly part. If we assume that all of the current Blackhawks RFAs were to simply accept their qualifying offers and no trades were made, then I have Chicago sitting at $66 million in cap hits with a salary cap expected to remain largely unchanged (currently $56.7 million). The team is projected to be over by $8-10 million depending on where the cap is set next season.

SALARY	FORWARDS
6.300	Toews
6.300	Kane
5.275	Hossa
3.900	Sharp
3.375	Bolland
3.083	Versteeg
3.000	Byfuglien
1.550	Ladd	RFA Qualifying Offer
1.200	Kopecky	ELC
1.070	Eager	RFA Qualifying Offer
1.025	Brouwer
0.770	Fraser	RFA Qualifying Offer
	DEFENSE
7.142	Campbell
5.500	Keith
3.500	Seakbook
3.083	Barker
2.333	Sopel
0.700	Hjalmarsson	RFA Qualifying Offer
	GOAL
5.625	Huet
0.800	Crawford
0.500	Bench Player
66.031	2010 TOTAL
56.700	Current Cap Max
9.331	Difference

Ch-ch-changes

The good news for Blackhawk fans is that their young core players were signed last week. The bad news is that several current members of a Cup-contending squad will have to be traded this summer. Let's play amateur GM and see how this works out.

The non-Campbell, non-Huet Scenario

Let's assume that both the Campbell and Huet contracts are too costly to move. In this situation the Hawks need to deal away 4 guys making some serious coin. If they moved Cam Barker ($3.08 million), Dave Bolland ($3.375) and Dustin Byfuglien ($3.0) and replaced them with three players averaging just $0.700 a piece that still leaves the team $2 million over the current cap. Assuming the cap doesn't rise, they would need to a) move either Versteeg or Sharp; or b) exchange their entire checking group (Kopecky, Eager, Brouwer and Fraser) for 4 guys making the NHL minimum. This scenario involves the most carnage for the existing lineup of skaters, as it would essentially gut the team's depth.

The Campbell Traded Scenario

The two most egregious contracts are those given to Brian Campbell (7.142 million) and Christobal Huet (5.625 million). To move either of this contracts Chicago would probably have to include either a 1st round pick or a top prospect to make another team swallow either of them. Let's suppose that Chicago was able to swing Campbell + 1st round pick to Dallas for a pick or prospect. If Cam Barker moves into the top 4 D for Chicago, and a journeyman making .6 million fills Campbell's roster spot, that still leaves them $2.8 over the cap. To clear that much more salary they would have to swap a player making $3.3 million for a guy making the league minimum or basically Dave Bolland or Patrick Sharp.

The Huet Traded Scenario

Most teams only have one starting goalie--there are only so many starting jobs around the NHL. Few teams can afford afford to lavish All-Star money on a non-All Star talent, which means that the Cristobal Huet contract is probably tougher to move than the Campbell contract. But let's suppose for a moment that Chicago can find a taker. Who would take Huet's place? That's a key question and one that is hard to predict. Almost any starter of any quality is going to have a cap hit of $3 million or more. The team might find a cheaper option such as Theodore, Biron or Emery on the UFA market, but those cheaper options come with a serious downside risk. Let's assume that the Blackhawks go very cheap at the goal position and only spend $2.5 on Huet's replacement. That still leaves them $6 million over the cap. Trading away Barker ($3.08), Sopel ($2.3) and one medium priced forward (perhaps Bolland $3.0) and replacing them with players making just $700,000 gets them under the cap with some money for a Hjalmarsson raise.

The Dream Scenario: Campbell and Huet Traded

The least disruptive solution to the Blackhawks depth would be to move both fat contracts next summer. The biggest question is whether they can find any suckers (call Bob Gainey?) or whether they are willing to part with high draft picks or top prospect Kyle Beach to purchase cap space. Assuming that they can make these two ugly contracts vanish and replace the D slot with a cheap defenseman, that would leave about $2-3 million for a starting goalie. This is easily the least disruptive scenario for the current roster--but presumably would come at the cost of future talent (picks and prospects).

Concluding Thoughts

Trying to game plan the future is always challenging. At this point, we have no idea what the final cap number will be (but attendance is flat and tickets are being discounted in many cities). We also have no way of knowing if RFAs like Ladd and Hjalmarsson will demand more money than their qualifying offers. Despite these "known unknowns" I've tried to get a sense of how things might play out this summer in the Windy City.

Game 27 Preview: Jackets head to the Windy City to face the Hawks

Mike MacLean — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:03:19 -0000

by Jay LaPrete - AP

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After snapping a five game losing streak, the Jackets are in Chicago to take on the 'Hawks. On paper, this doesn't look good for the Jackets. It's the second game of a back-to-back, Rusty is out of the lineup with a groin tear (Mathieu Roy will play tonight, he's up from Syracuse on emergency recall), and tonight is the home debut of Hossa.

That said, the boys should still have some momentum from last night. It was a gutsy performance, and maybe the victory against the Blues was the tonic needed to get the Jackets back on track. Chicago is a great team from top to bottom. Their one question mark heading into the season-goaltending-seems to no longer be an issue with the strong play of Huet.

In my opinion, and likely many other share this opinion, the Hawks have the best defense in the NHL. It will be tough to score tonight, but the Jackets do have the weapons needed. Umby is playing his best hockey of the season, and Brass is looking better and better each game. If Voracek can build off of the strong game he had last night, look for that line to produce tonight. That would allow Nash and Juice to do their thing offensively-Huselius has been putting up serious points lately as well.

This is an imprtant game for the checking unit. I haven't seen much from Chimmer all season, and he needs to bring a physical element tonight. Mike Blunden hits everything that moves, and he'll need to continue doing that tonight against the 'Hawks potent forwards. Sammy was a Blackhawk for a brief period last season, and I look for him to have a strong game matching up against either Toews or Versteeg.

Fearless Prediction: Goal from a CBJ defenseman.

Game Time: 8:00pm ET

Opponent's Blog: Second City Hockey

Game Page: Blue Jackets vs Blackhawks Coverage

TSN Preview: Blue Jackets vs Blackhawks Preview

TV: FSN Ohio

Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)

More after the jump...

From the Columbus Dispatch:

The Blue Jackets snapped a five-game losing streak last night with a 5-2 win over the Blues. It should be a loud crowd tonight in United Center. The Blackhawks are back off a six-game trip, Marian Hossa makes his Chicago debut and coach Joel Quenneville goes for his 500th victory.

Jackets Links:

Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats

Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:

Columbus Blue Jackets

Kristian Huselius	Antoine Vermette	Rick Nash
R.J. Umberger	Derick Brassard	Jakub Voracek
Jason Chimera	Samuel Pahlsson	Michael Blunden
Raffi Torres	Derek MacKenzie	Jared Boll

Fedor Tyutin	Anton Stralman
Mike Commodore	Jan Hejda
Kris Russell	Mathieu Roy

Steve Mason

Mathieu Garon

EXTRA: Alexandre Picard

INJURED: Fredrik Modin, Andrew Murray, Derek Dorsett, Rostislav Klesla, Marc Methot

Chicago Blackhawks

Patrik Sharp	Jonathan Toews	Marian Hossa
Dustin Byfuglien	Kris Versteeg	Patrick Kane
Andrew Ladd	John Madden	Troy Brouwer
Ben Eager	Colin Fraser	Tomas Kopecky

Duncan Keith	Brent Seabrook
Brian Campbell	Cam Barker
Niklas Hjalmarsson	Brent Sopel

Cristobal Huet

Antti Niemi

Chicago Blackhawks 2010 Olympic Preview

Matthew Dirt — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 19:00:13 -0000

by Jeff McIntosh - AP

I don't think it's possible to take a picture of Toews on the ice without some stupid look on his face

View full size photo »

We've covered the Olympics on here a few times before and it's safe to say we're all a little concerned about them. All of the SBN Hockey blogs have once again teamed up though to give everyone a good glimpse at who on the teams they cover could be heading to Vancouver for two weeks in February to play for their countries. Please check out the other sites info on this page - it's a good read

We here are SCH are already pretty late with this preview so here we go..

Pack Your Bags

Patrick Kane (USA) - Kaner is an absolute no-brainer to play for the Americans. Kane is just one of the many young stars like Phil Kessel, Bobby Ryan, T.J. Oshie, Erik Johnson and maybe even James van Riemsdyk that could be leading the Men's team back to glory (or at least relevancy). As we've seen throughout this season, few players in the NHL (and therefore the world) can match Kane's vision and IQ out on the ice. It'll be an uphill battle for the USA team to get to any medal rounds but it's players like Kane that will give them a chance.

Marian Hossa (Slovakia) - According to NHL.com - there are only 12 skaters in the NHL from Slovakia that have played this year so my knowledge of who is going to be on this team is pretty damn limited. Regardless, from what we've seen in just 2 games, Hossa would be a lock to make any team in the country so Slovakia is sure to love having him.

Tomas Kopecky (Slovakia) - As I said above, there are very few players from Slovakia who have made it to the NHL - so somebody like Kopecky is pretty much a lock. While he wouldn't make other power house teams, or most teams really, he's a pretty good lock for the Slovak team.. so good for him.

Nearly A Lock

Jonathan Toews (Canada) - I debated putting Toews in the "pack your bag" category but since he's not a 100% sure thing, I thought he should go here. There's very little doubt that Toews will make the team, especially given Yzerman's fondness for Captain Marvel. The fact that Toews might not crack Canada's top 4 centers tells you how deep their team is going to be. With Toews' injury earlier in the year and not exactly lighting the world on fire so far, his stock may have dipped slightly but there's still very little chance we don't see Toews on the team.

Duncan Keith (Canada) - Keith is almost certain to join the team in Vancouver as well - we know that Keith is one of the best defenseman in the league and I'm sure Yzerman does too. Keith is 4th overall in points for d-man and 3rd overall if you take out the Czech Tomas Kaberle.. Keith logs big minutes against tough competition in all situations. It'd be surprising to see him miss the games.

Work To Do

Dustin Byfuglien (USA) - Buff rode an outstanding end of the regular season and even more impressive playoffs to get himself an invitation to the Men's Olympic Hockey Camp this summer. However it was pretty clear to anyone who went there that Buff was at least a step behind every other player in that camp. Brian Burke has an unexplained soft spot for tough guys who can't do much else (read: The current Maple Leafs) - so there's an outside shot that Buff makes the Men's squad. If he had played with the same intensity we saw late last year I think he'd be much closer to making the team but instead we've seen him revert to the player who takes games off at a time, only to have a shift or two of interest. Probably won't be enough for him to make the team but weirder things have happened before..

Brent Seabrook (Canada) - I don't know if Biscuit actually has much "work" to do but he's a dark horse at this point to make the squad. If he could be assured to play with Keith I think they'd obviously be a force during the games. It's not a stretch to say those two are at least in the top 5 of defensive pairs in the league and having a pairing with that level of familiarity could give the Canadian squad a major leg up over players that rarely ever get to play with their teammates for any extended periods of time. I'd think it'd be foolish not to take him but I'm biased...

Patrick Sharp (Canada) - Sharp got off to a red-hot start this year - 9 points in his first 6 games. He's settled down a lot though with only 12 points in the games since that start. Canada's absolutely loaded with snipers that are better than Shooter. He'd pretty much be a lock to make the US squad but the Canadian squad might just be a bridge too far.

Niklas Hjalmarsson (Sweden) - I don't really know much about Olympic hockey squads - I enjoy watching it when it happens but don't follow the build up too far beforehand. So I don't know what Hammer's shots are but in my slight research on the issue, I've only seen Hammer's name thrown out there on message boards so I'm thinking he doesn't have the greatest shot to make the team for Sweden. The Swedes won the gold last year so their team is going to be tough to crack but we've seen how Nintendo has upped his game from the start of last year, especially in the playoffs. If he can play there I don't see a reason why he wouldn't be a great addition to the Swedish team.

His Name Isn't Jonas

Arthur from Anaheim Calling — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 23:56:47 -0000

DANIEL:

This is Anaheim Calling to the hockey world.

The Ducks surprised just about everyone who seriously follows hockey by blanking the Blackhawks 3-0 on Friday. Chicago came into Anaheim with the league's second best penalty killing unit, but left the building 2 for 5 shorthanded.

J.S. Giguere was key in shutting down the Blackhawks soaring offense. Jiggy's statline for the past 3 games reads as follows: 3 wins, 1.30 GAA, .960 SV%. The Anaheim netminder is starting to look like his old self again, and he isn't giving any indication that Hiller will be logging crease time in the near future. Arthur, there's no denying that Hiller is a great young goaltender; will it be devastating for the organization if he loses the goalie battle and gets shipped off this season?

ARTHUR:

It would be devastating, but I think the devastation began when Francois Allaire left Anaheim. If Allaire was still around, I would say that Hiller could return to dominance or that we could still find another Hiller. But without le guru des gardiens, we were always running the risk of a Peeters and Pogge regime i.e. the end of goaltending as we know it.

And yet, I just don't think Murray can make the call to ship off Hiller, even if Giguere legitimately beats him out for this job. They've reached a point of no return where the best thing that Giguere can do is increase his own trade value, which is exactly what his recent performance does.

Jiggy is also reminding us that his colleague in the crease is an unfinished work in Francois Allaire's portfolio, that the Swiss netminder has yet to snatch the pebble from Allaire's hand. Hiller hasn't learned to trust his positioning on nights when he doesn't have his best stuff, and that is the lesson that carries a goaltender, particularly an Allaire pupil, through the NHL regular season. Don't get me wrong, Hiller's raw skills, his rockstar reflexes and highlight-reel athleticism, are enough to win a playoff series, but in a six month season, he has to find a way to win when those skills are not available to him. Otherwise, teams will catch him guessing, moving and generally struggling to find the plate.

And I know Ducks fans will blame the defense for either goalie's performance this year, but I think that, too, is a lesson for Hiller. He needs to be able to win games without a Norris ballot playing in front of him; Giguere certainly did when he earned this job.

DANIEL:

I don't think losing Hiller would be as bad as my knee-jerk reaction is telling me. In fact, losing Hiller might help Anaheim this year as well as in the future. Hiller is scary good with those reflexes, but you've already said he's an incomplete product of Allaire. Meshing styles is dangerous when you haven't fully mastered at least one. Peeters' might not be able to help HIller without clashing with the foundation that Allaire has laid. If that's the case, it would be wise to stick with the veteran Giguere, who has a strong identity as a net minder, and let Hiller re-create himself on someone else's time and dollar.

Our goalie cupboard isn't overflowing with prospects, but Pogge has experience and Pielmeier had outstanding moments during camp. Maybe Peeters can still bring along one of those prospects. We'd have to keep Giguere past his current contract, but I think he would have the wherewithal to know he's aging and doesn't have the same $6 million value. Goalies are playing a little longer these days, and Giguere might still be a long way from "done." Will losing Hiller be a problem next year? Yes, because no matter what he gets paid it will be less than Giguere, and we'd lose an extraordinarily capable back up.

However, if Hiller becomes available, I don't think there's a better goalie out there on the trading block. Hiller is nothing but upside. Plus, his contract situation is ideal for teams who aren't sure about their goaltending situation this year. So, is there a cap-strapped team, looking to make a splash by announcing three huge new contract extensions, but thinks their Cup dreams could still be sideswiped by their lack of quality goaltending...?

Dear Chicago,

Send us Dustin Byfuglien, Cam Barker and your First Rounder for Jonas Hiller and James Wisniewski. Keep in mind, Blackhawks fans, this rids you of Dustin Byfuglien and frees up money for Toews, Kane and Keith.

That deal would give us three first round picks in the next draft. Yes, we would be taking on 6M in salary for next year without dropping any, but the fact is we have to trade a goalie, either this year, or this summer, and Hiller has more trade value than Giguere.

Bomb.Repeat.Bomb. - Blackhawks 7 - Flames 1

Matthew Dirt — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:15:03 -0000

Its become something of a tradition around these parts - but every time the Blackhawks absolutely dismantle the Flames we get an appearance of a vastly under-appreciated Simpsons character

That my friends, was a paddlin' indeed.

During the first period it seemed like the Hawks were having a bit of trouble getting things going. They grabbed the lead when Troy Brouwer was left alone in front of the net on the Hawks first power play but it didn't seem like somthing you'd want to rest on. It was obvious the winning team would need more than just one goal that resulted after an even first. The shots on goal were tied and if not for a few great saves by Huet, it could have been tied. Then the Flames started the second on a power play and wasted only 14 seconds before Olli Jokinen snuck the puck past Cristobal Huet. With the game tied we started to settle in for nail-biting close game.

And then Hammer absolutely ruined Rene Bourque.

We'll set aside the fact that Niklas Hjalmarsson may have left his feet to make the hit (haven't seen a good enough replay of it yet) because this was the breaking point in this game. Nigel Dawes came to defend Bourque (who didn't really skate again after the hit) and was given 2 minutes for roughing. Shockingly, the Blackhawks scored on that power play too and didn't look back. Even Dustin Byfuglien decided it was just about time for him to do something again to keep himself from getting benched and had a nice takeaway and goal. Don't expect to see him again for at least 6 more weeks. After Hammer's hit the Flames wilted and died - We didn't see anything close to the game we were expecting.

How good were the Hawks in the second period? They finally fucking scored on a 5 on 3... that's how good. They were something like 0 for 5 with the two extra men but had continually been shut down until tonight. The Hawks exploded for the most goals of any period this year, got their first player with a multi-goal game (VERSTEEG!), were 80% on the power play, and finished with 13 players getting at least a single point... There's just about nothing poor to say about the men of four feathers in this game. Everything went as well as you could hope.

Well - I guess Seabrook could have made Dion Phaneuf bleed. That would have completed the night. In case you needed any more evidence that this frankenstein is one of the biggest shitbirds in the league, look no further than picking a fight with someone while wearing a visor. Even the zebras called bullshit on that move and gave him a phantom 2 minutes for roughing. So VERSTEEG! followed it up by scoring his second of the night.

Oh, and as is being pointed out - Hossa is almost ready to make the Blackhawks even more dangerous.

Other Thoughts:

The Flames ought to be ashamed for leaving Brouwer alone on the crease for so long. It's one thing to ignore a player while the puck is being cycled around the zone but I think Troy got three shots off before netting the final one without so much as being breathed on by a Flames player.
Seabrook was a force all over the ice tonight.
Has Colin Fraser ever won a fight? Dude, you're a center and I think we've seen the end of the Ebbett experiment - I think your spot is safe at least until Dave Bolland comes back.
This was the first game of the year where the Hawks were outshot but still won. They also lost the face off battle (EDIT: Just kidding - they actually won 53% of the faceoffs, I misread)

Player Of The Game:

Fuck.. how do you choose? Duncan Keith had three assists and was the usual monster in the Hawks end. Patrick Kane had a goal and an assist on his 21st birthday (first carbomb is on me, kid). Kris Versteeg had 2 goals on the power play. Patrick Sharp added two points. Hammer changed the tempo of the game with a huge hit on a player I'm quickly growing to hate (and added an assist). And of course Cristobal Huet had a brilliant game making big stops to keep the Hawks in it when it was close and stayed focused when it got out of control - this was also his best SV% (.964) in a non-shutout game.

So we're going to let you pick. Time for the first poll in a while.

Poll

Who should the Player of The Game be?

Cristobal Huet - .964SV %

214 votes

Patrick Kane - 1G, 1A

60 votes

Kris Versteeg - 2G

97 votes

Duncan Keith - 3A

136 votes

Niklas Hjalmarsson - 1A, 2 Hits (both on Bourque)

196 votes

Someone else

5 votes

708 votes | Poll has closed

10 Things To Do While Waiting For Vancouver To Play Again

Yankee Canuck — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:10:12 -0000

10. Fondly relive the magic and the legend that was Mikko Jokela's time with Vancouver.

9. Go to the Province or the Sun and see if you can find the most inane, off-base comment from the past week or two. For instance, here's a thoughtful submission courtesy of "FireGillis":

Gillis' big mistake this summer was handing the worst contract in NHL HISTORY to the italian.

(ed note: As an Italian I am proud to say - we're finally #1 at something)

8. Pick a player from the existing roster, or a member of management, and why he should play which character in Star Wars (episodes IV-VI, don't bother with the others). And suffice it to say Mike Gillis gets to be the emperor. Princess Leia? Probably best to keep that one to yourself.

7. Figure out why Sami Salo isn't smiling here. Or explain why Mattias' game trumps that of Sami's.

6. Help Mike Gillis find another aging Swedish diva to chase. Any name will do, from Carl Abrahamsson to Lars-Erik Esbjörs to Eilert Määttä to even Ulf Thors. The more diacritic marks over vowels the better. Explain why he'd be a good member for the top six. Show your work.

5. Three words: Pavol Demitra Operation. Fun for ~~the whole family~~ probably no one.

4. "Dump and chase" is a boring phrase. Help make AV feel better about his offensive strategery by coming up with another name. Make it sound impressive, like "Offensive Thrust" or "Aggressive Vision". How about "It Never Works"...wait, not that.

3. Create another Kyle Wellwood Twitter trending topic. Bonus points if you can weave in lack of scoring, soccer injuries, $1,200,000 and Fudgie the Whale. Gold star if you can actually bring Twitter down so we can say Wellwood forced the Fail Whale on humanity.

2. Using a space gun (or Project Harp which, if you're a conspiracy nut, is a means to control weather), pick only one of the following NHL players to fire into the exosphere: Chris Pronger, Zack Stortini, Steve Ott, Cal Clutterbuck, Sean Avery, Dion Phaneuf or Dustin Byfuglien. And, yes of course, Pierre McGuire is an acceptable substitution.

1. It's only a matter of time before Shane O'Brien slips up to the press about his icetime so help our 7th defenseman with a more colorful script, Mad Libs style. Use his rant from March as practice:

"He said: 'If you're not going to [NOUN], get off the [VERB] [NOUN]...That's all he [ADJECTIVE], and I just went back to the [NOUN]. Nothing [PLURAL NOUN] me right now. It seems [ADVERB] that the more [ADJECTIVE] you are, it seems to be a [ADJECTIVE] thing. I don't [VERB]."

Unfortunately, Trading Ray Whitney Makes Sense

Cory Lavalette — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:07:22 -0000

More photos » by Gerry Broome - AP

Carolina Hurricanes' Tim Gleason, upper left, and Ray Whitney (13) celebrate Whitney's goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the third period an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009. Pittsburgh won 3-2 in a shootout. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

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The Carolina Hurricanes are 11 games into the 2009-10 NHL season, 11 games filled with frustration, penalties, poor play and ... well, more penalties. It's hard to point the finger in any one direction. A combination of offensive ineptitude, special team struggles and untimely defensive errors have all sunk the Canes at different moments in this still-young campaign, with the mistakes coming from all corners of the locker room.

Coach Paul Maurice has tried just about every trick in his repertoire: shuffling lines, repositioning players, focusing on avoiding ill-advised infractions, preaching defense, praying for offense. Nothing is working. So it's time for Jim Rutherford to step in — and boldly. It's time to trade Ray Whitney.

Rutherford has tried subtle tactics to motivate his team, including sending newcomer Stephane Yelle through waivers and calling up Brandon Sutter from Albany. The first was a warning shot to every veteran on the team. The second was a reminder that there are young, hungry players waiting for a chance. Neither seems to have worked. If Rutherford wants to save the season, he needs to make a move that will rock his team the core. Enter Whitney.

There's no denying that Whitney has been one of the players holding up his end of the bargain this season. Like last season, he's atop the Canes scoring leaders with four goals and four assists. He's had several momentum-shifting goals, tallies that mostly failed to get his teammates to rise to the occasion, but nonetheless provided hope. He's been a leader and producer for Carolina. and horribly underrated — look no further than The Hockey News leaving him off the list of the NHL's top-20 left wings, behind inferior players like Ryan Malone (15), Scott Hartnell (16) and fellow underappreciated forward J-P Dumont (20).

But while the Canes have struggled, Whitney has continued to play like a player a decade younger than his 37 years. He skated in his 1,000th NHL regular season game Oct. 21, a milestone few would have expected from a 5-foot-10* winger who filled the scoresheet in juniors but lacked the size to make NHL scouts drool. (*generous listing)

On Sunday, the Canes will honor Whitney's achievement at the RBC Center prior to the team's game against the San Jose Sharks, the team that selected Whitney in the second round — 23rd overall — in 1991. So you give Whitney the honor he deserves. Then you thank him, and send him to Chicago on Monday.

In the final year of his deal, Whitney makes sense for the cash-strapped Blackhawks. With Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith and Patrick Kane all due new deals following this season — and each should get at least $5 million a season, if not significantly more — Chicago needs to prepare for the inevitable: you can't keep everyone.

Departed GM Dave Tallon made several mistakes in assembling this team: he overpaid Brian Campbell, a very good offensive defenseman, giving him No. 1 d-man money for a No. 3 guy; and he screwed up in signing journeyman goalie Crisotal Huet to a four-year, $22.5 million deal to be his No. 1 netminder, a job he has yet to firmly grab a hold of. Then, Offer Sheetgate, with Kris Versteeg and Cam Barker earning big paydays (more than $3 million annually each) because of a paperwork error that would've kept the two emerging stars on the cheap for another season. Sprinkle in the signing of injured Marian Hossa and several other players looking for new contracts after this season, and you have, simply put, a mess.

Acquiring Whitney could alleviate some of the money problem while improving the Hawks' chance at winning the Stanley Cup this season. First off, he's in the final year of a contract that pays him $3.55 million annually. Second, he's an upgrade at left wing, where ex-Cane Andrew Ladd is the only natural playing in the spot. On top of adding a left wing, the Blackhawks would get an elite passer up front, something they lack outside of Kane. In return, Carolina could get back one of the $3 million-club youngsters (Dave Bolland, Versteeg, Dustin Byfuglien or Cam Barker) or sniper Patrick Sharp, who is set to take up $3.9 million in cap space through 2011-12.

Bolland, frankly, is overpaid. And while Sharp's scoring prowess, Versteeg's creativity, Byfuglien's size would all help the Canes patch up an area of need, it's Barker who would add the most to the Hurricanes.

Barker would add offensive punch to a struggling blueline, and also serve as the long-term replacement for Joe Corvo, whose deal expires following this year. At 6-foot-3 and 213 pounds, Barker has desirable size and isn't afraid to use it. His ability to play the point on the power play — he had six goals and 40 points last season — would allow Eric Staal to return to the front lines with the man advantage and free up fellow point patrolmen Corvo, Joni Pitkanen and Matt Cullen. Plus, Barker' is no slouch in the point shot department himself.

With a $3.083 million cap hit through 2011-12, the Hawks may need to offset more cash, perhaps in the way of recent waiver claim Andrew Ebbett ($500,000 this year). They also will likely want a premium for the talented Barker, who was chosen after only Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin in the 2004 Entry Draft in — you guessed it — Raleigh. A draft pick and/or mid-level prospect (Bryan Rodney? Nick Dodge?) might be enough. Or maybe a swap of Brent Sopel (too pricey at $2 million this season and next, $2.33 million cap hit) for Andrew Alberts ($1.05 million cap hit this year and next) would be desirable to Chicago?

The Canes could then carve out a more significant full-time role for Brandon Sutter or even Zach Boychuk — a player Whitney himself said would take his spot one day — while shaking up the team and adding a valuable piece for now and the future. Chicago would improve their chances at a title this year and, though lose a valuable young asset, clear cap space to re-sign Toews, Kane and Keith.

With Campbell untradeable, Seabrook valuable and Keith irreplaceable, the Hawks simply can't afford to shell out more than $3 million a year to Barker as a No. 4 defenseman. And in Whitney they'd get a winner, a player who knows how to overcome the odds and spur his team to victory.

And the Canes — despite losing an important and admired player and man — might just turn things around.

More From Last Night....

McClure — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:03:42 -0000

More photos » by Charles Rex Arbogast - AP

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Since Sam already provided a nicely succinct recap of last night's game, I'll just move right along to some observations of my own that I took away from it.

Most, if not everyone I spoke to was completely stupefied as to why Dustin Byfuglien received the lone minor during the session of slap-dick in front of the Vancouver net towards the end of the first period. Liberties were being taken on Kane, and Buff sprung forth like the burly protector he's supposed to be to his linemate's defense. Once the scrum ensued, everything was pretty equal, with shots headed both ways. This is not the first time something like this has happened in the NHL, and it had all the markings of the refs letting both sides walk away with a stern talking-to, or take someone from each team with matching minors. Vancouver scored on the resultant power play less than a minute into the second, tying the game at 1, and started to tilt the ice in their favor. Now, I'm in no way blaming this call for a Hawks loss. The way they played, they deserved the outcome they received. But the Hawks caught the business end of a bad call in this scenario.
The Hawks powerplay is in complete disarray right now. Last season they found success in using a hybrid overload-into-an-umbrella-and-back style, which siphoned everything through the playmaker at the half-wall, allowing either Patrick Kane or Martin Havlat to dictate whether the puck was moving high to the blue line for a point shot, low for a stuff attempt, or back-door cross-ice. The latter is where Patrick Sharp found a lot of success, and eventually teams cheated toward this play.

This year, Quenneville seems intent on just working the puck high, blasting slapshots from the point, and creating traffic in front. There's nothing inherently wrong with this style, but the Hawks d-men have exhibited a very poor shooting bias to this point, which completely screws the pooch if you're going to run it that way. This has resulted in a lot of blocked shots by opposing forwards. Five-on-three, the Hawks change little, content to keep the puck on one side of the ice, and trying to get a shot from the middle of the ice at the blue line. This is flawed thinking. On a 5-on-4, a team wants to work a puck vertically- high to low, and low to high- to widen the gap between penalty killing forwards and defensemen, creating seams between them to be able to move the puck toward the middle of the ice for a shot with no shin pads in front of it. During a two man advantage, it's lateral movement, to get the goalie to have to come across his crease to make a save, because the seams will already be there due to a lack of bodies on the ice.

I'm not sure if the loss of JHC prompted this change in philosophy, or if Marian Hossa's presence will signal a return to it, but it's certainly worth trying now, because what they're doing simply is not working.
As Killion noted in the preview, I was excited to see Jordan Hendry skate last evening. I liked what he showed two seasons ago, and think he's ideally suited for the third pairing (and is certainly a more reasonably priced option to do so). Part of me also wanted to see how Cam Barker would fare with a partner who could actually move his feet as well; someone who doesn't have the skating stride of a person who desperately needs to take a massive shit. Having a more mobile, heady partner worked for Brian Campbell, why not for Barker? Hendry acquitted himself fine; if not for his newfound presence in the lineup, he would not have been noticeable on the ice, either positively or negatively- which is all you can ask of a #6 defenseman. However, as Sam noted already, it didn't have a positive effect on Cam Barker, which is not good. Cam Barker is turning into a giant, left-handed Andy Delmore- someone who is useful on a powerplay, but is a complete liability at even strength. Something needs to be done on his part, and fast.
This dovetails into my final point, and that is a matter the matter of depth. With both Toews and Seabrook in the locker room during the waning minutes of the game, Quenneville shortened his bench considerably. Not just due to the injuries, but due to substandard play, particularly from the third defensive pairing, and the fourth line. As was just noted, Cam Barker simply cannot be out there with a game on the line, unless it's absolutely necessary. Additionally, as many of you have noted in the comments, this year's 4th line is a far cry from what was arguably the best 4th line in the league last year. Injuries are the culprit in that case, pressing skaters off the waiver wire (Radek Smolenenenananenak, Andrew Ebbett) into duty who frankly have not delivered the nastiness, speed, and relentlessness that Ben Eager and Adam Burish did, which allowed Q to roll all four lines, keeping his top players fresh, as well as creating offense from the 4th line. Tomas Kopecky has yet to provide anything of substance outside of his lone goal in Nashville, and if he ends up taking a trip on the Jack Skille Trail of Tears, that'd be just fine by me, perhaps in favor of Jake Dowell. We keep saying its early, but the Hawks' trumpeted depth is getting pushed right now, and if Toews and Seabrook miss time, and Bolland continues to fight back woes, its going to result in far more dire circumstances than the 11 out of 18 points we're seeing right now.

Just Get The Win

Yankee Canuck — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:37:32 -0000

Hey kid, great job. Have a nice summer.

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Few things are more taxing than having to relive the failures of a previous season's efforts. And as Vancouver fans know...this happens a lot.

Let's start with Mr. Mitchell who the Hawks exploited time and time again in the playoffs. What's his take on seeing Chicago five months later?

"We tried to say we were the tougher team. But all we did was spend a lot of time in the penalty box. We spent a lot of our energy trying to fight guys. While all of their guys just turned a cold shoulder and played hockey...I think, collectively as a group, every one of us got caught up in that...Guys like me have to make sure we tone things down. Because that's what got us into problems."

This is true though it's equally important fellows like Bieksa, SOB, Edler and - yes - Henrik aim to stay out of the box tonight too. If I see another lazy Sedin interference call, I'm putting a chair through the television.

Across the ice the Hawks are coming off a loss to Dallas (wait, didn't we beat them?) in which a deplorable goal given up by Huet helps to explain why Vancouver will be seeing Antti Niemi in net. And joining Huet in the doghouse is Brent Sopel who won't suit up either.

Patrick Sharp is leading Chicago in points (10 pts) but the same names that screwed the Canucks in May are all there and doing fine, including Kane (7 pts), Campbell (7 pts), Vertsteeg (7 pts), and everyone's BFF Dustin Byfuglien (6 pts). Speaking of which, his ass is excited Vancouver is in town. Splendid.

Obviously this is a big game for Luongo, he of the game six meltdown shakes and all. He's looking at it as a shot at redemption which is fair though I'd love to know what defines redemption here. Anyone who has watched the Canucks - especially in the last handful of games - knows it'll take their best game of the year to leave the United Center with the win. Chicago is bigger, more skilled and don't have this pent-up drama from half a year hanging over them. For the Hawks, it's another game

And that's why personal redemption is useless here. If Vancouver wins 9-8 and Huet and Raycroft are in net by the end, so be it. If Buff gets the better of Luongo again but Vancouver eeks out a win in the SO, who cares? With a losing record, the best redemption now is just getting the win. Do the little things right defensively and be smart on special teams. Ignore Brouwer or Bolland or whoever else has their elbows up (Mr. Hordichuk - if you actually play tonight - I'm looking at you). Ignore Chelsea f'ing Dagger. Ignore it all. The past is done and attempts at any sort of personal redemption are probably going to ensure the Canucks return home on Saturday against Toronto still winless on the road.