Desperate Blackhawks Make Their Play
With 18 games to go (after tonight's shellacking of the Hurricane), the Blackhawks enter the last run of the season trailing their likely first round opponent (St. Louis) by four points. Home ice may mean more to the Hawks this year than any year prior given the loss of Patrick Kane until deep into the playoffs.
The Hawks have been sinking lately, however, even prior to the loss of Kane. They failed to pick up two points in six of their last ten (and nine of their last sixteen) heading to the deadline, and suffered some pretty telling losses that exposed a defense that is no longer elite. Coupling the loss of Kane with that fact, things looked pretty bleak for the Hawks.
Recognizing a situation that he hasn't encountered yet as GM, Stan Bowman went bold this trade deadline, shipping out prospects and what will probably be three draft picks (2 second rounds and next year's first) for Antoine Vermette and what appears to be the return of Kimmo Timonen. This is a huge departure from the usually future-thinking Bowman, but the risk could be worth huge dividends for the Hawks.
In Vermette, the Hawks acquire a veteran who can take some of the pressure off the rest of the team for the loss of Kane. Vermette is versitale, and can play forward and center. He's also one of the better players to have on a faceoff, winning 56% of them. He fits perfectly into the Blackhawks puck handling style of play.
Timonen is the riskier acquisition, spending a year off recovering from a non-sports related blot clot. He looked a bit rusty tonight despite blocking two shots, but could end up being a huge boost on defense come playoff time.
This year is a crossroad for the Blackhawks. The reality of Toews' and Kane's salaries next year will force a lot of moves this offseason that will likely leave the team weaker overall. Kudos to Stan Bowman for thinking big this year. If these moves push the Hawks deep enough into the playoffs for Kane to return, the Blackhawks might raise the cup one more time before this summer's rebuild.
