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Nice debate on adding to the center position with elite YOUNG talent (all the guys you listed are too old Wizard) and paying big for it with The Cossack or Rinzel. Guess the brainiacs call this a thought exercise but thinking about if you value a 1C or #1 Dman more. I think my default position was always a 1C is the most valuable but with the modern Dman being big, huge. and can skate it up and pot 75 pts while playing huge minutes vs the opponents best makes it a much more interesting question.
I ain’t in any hurry to move Rinzel or Artie but I do think, hope, KD expects to do something really big for elite forward talent besides signing a Kaprisov type.
And Lou, if the club has a productive 2 way Frondell and a McTavish type in 3 yrs you move Bedard to wing. Unleash that kid from centerman responsibilities and tell him use 90% of your oxygen creating scoring chances.
And Maloney, this damn thing isn’t posting my posts. My hope is the Hawks’ Bennett is Spellacy. Big dude, has true speed and some skill in his hands and his hero is Tom Wilson. Kid has a chance to be useful like few can.
Rico,
I respect your hockey knowledge and your opinion, however I do not agree with moving a RD with top pair probability for a middle six center. Both Artie and Rinzel have that type of talent, and while I’d love for the Hawks to acquire McTavish, I’m not willing to pay that price. Bedard, Nazar, Frondell, Vlasic, and the two aforementioned Dmen are part of the future core, I’d have to be blown away to trade any of those six and I would add Knight to this list as well. Who’s to say Frondell won’t turn into a McTavish, he has the same type of skill set and is actually a better skater.Hey, Lou…….. i think you under value McTavish and by a good bit. He’s not a middle 6 C, look at the numbers, his floor is 2C IMO. Lou, he was drafted in 2021 and played his 18/19 yr old draft +1 season in the OHL and 9 games with the Ducks then his 19-20-21 yr old seasons with the Ducks. In those 3 yrs he put up 43 in 80 as a 19 yr old rookie, 42 in 64 and last yr and 52 in 76 as a 21 yr old!! At 220 lbs. A centerman in the Bigs. That sound like a middle 6er?.
And as great as Rinzel looks and as great Lev’s traits are they have 27 NHL games between them while McTavish has 229 NHL games playing center as a 220lb 19-20-21 yr old who’s scored at a .61 clip. …. Anything we attribute to Lev and Rinzel today is pure projection but with McTavish we have a 230 NHL game sample size.
And before I forget, I meant to post this in every McTavish post, how do you see Bennett? A middle 6er? What would you give for a blood and guts mother humpin bastard like Bennett for all sorts of reasons and boxes checked? …… Remember now, his high pts for a season is 51!!!
I’m not beating the table for McT but I kinda am. Or at least I’m all for swapping out elite D prospect (system strength, for elite forward prospect (system weakness but less so with the Frondell add) and it just so happenes McTavish fits every box of what I’d love em to add. ……….. I guess for another blog is resource allocation? In 5 yrs if Rinzel and Artie reach their ceilings will it cost 40 mil per to pay em? And if so is that proper asset allocation?
I really didn’t expect many folks that were for moving Artie or Rinzel for McTavish. That’s a big ask from a fan base… Rinzel especially is showing he just might be a real difference making, minute eating, big, mobile RS Dman who might be a legit #1 PP guy. And Artie shows flashes of elite traits. His rise as far as going from one level to the next in 3 straight yrs is meteoric. ….. And remember Rinzel was drafted in 2022 and Artie was drafted in 2024. Artie is young for his draft yr, Rinzel is 18 months older than him… IMO Artie is farther away from his ceiling than Rinzel is. Long long way to go but Rinzel looks like the goods. Both Dmen check loads of boxes.
Artie jumped from level to level every yr. Go go go. Highest level possible every time. In a hurry…….. Now, I watched Rinzel play at WTL on an Olympic sheet his draft yr. Probably 10-15 times, not just for him but IMO Waterloo has the best arena, atmosphere, game production and PBP in all of the lil ole USHL. Love that joint. Kid really was raw and could skate it up but man he gave up a lotta odd mans against taking chances at the attack blueline and his defensive in zone play was scary. Lost, didn’t move his feet, low work rate, didn’t us his size. My favorite thing about Rinzel, outa his whole career, was his decision to stay at WTL of the USHL the yr after he was drafted. He had a spot at U of MN waiting but he stayed in the USHL
That tells me so much about a jr player/kid. Most want to speed up the process and move up but Rinzel knew he needed much more work before college hockey and he stayed and got that work with an old cornerstone organIzation that that has developed for 30-40 yrs. Tells me a kid gets it whether he’s a 3rd overall or 4th rounder. Some kids really get, and are truly bought into, a process and one way to see that as a fan is when they themselves understand they’re not sound and ready for the next level… I think the perception is, and I agree, that NCAA kids bend that way more than jrs players.
Anyway, moving an Artie or Rinzel for a difference making top 6 centerman is the cost of doing business IMO. Been chirping about Kaiser since his 10 games in the USHL but him, a 1st rounder and a couple B level prospects ain’t gonna get a McTavish. It’s gonna take probable elite talent going the other way…… IMO everything is lined up for such a move. Loads of draft capital, elite talent ready for the Bigs, ability to trade from a surplus (defense) to add an asset wherever they’re short (elite forward prospects), a 21-22-23 yr old fits the timeline and the elephant in the room of getting Bedard elite talent to play with as he tries to develop some sense of a 200 ft NHL game and find a rythm.
If not now, when?
It’s good to bring in a puck-mover veteran Grzelcyk to compete against the contingent of youngster rearguards. Even if you already have him wrapped & posted, to a Cup contending team looking for insurance depth, Murphy may or may not advance into a late April post-season, but his his salary will not hinder any move, and Matty Grzguys have sequences where they are hemmed in for a minute plus, chasing and outa pelcyk can sub for him fine, IF and only if they have two Korchinski and even Arty on the fence as to where they can improve, in a larger AHL Icehog roles or the parent club situation where they are on the hot seat, a LOT!.
Yep. IMO Hawks were lucky to acquire him. Why he’s available after his best pts season ever, think it was 40 pts, but we’ll find out if it’s his game or he fell thru the cracks soon enough…………. My minds eye wanders to having a pair, maybe 2 pairs, of 23 and under D pairings in Game 50 and the Hawks hemmed in for a minute or more with the Dmen out of position and chasing.
Gryz is a professional Dman with experience and mobility. Helpful and useful player to have on a roster like the Hawks’. Stability………
Oh wow, it’s gotta be a shock for you and your wife, Dots. Bet half the time you don’t know what to do with yourself. You guys are living the dream!! Well deserved………..
Maybe KD is waiting for a Kaprisov to be a FA and give him 20 mil per with term. We all talk about adding a Hossa and when that is the time right. McTavish checks a lotta the same boxes as Hossa but he’s 22 AND a centerman. ……. KD is so laser focused he may seem conservative but his first draft day says otherwise. We’ll see but there has to be a time for him to do something really big.
Actually Rico the wife and I are finally empty nesters so life is good. Done a lot of traveling since being free for almost 2 years now.
I’m going to a lot more games this year to watch the kiddies play. Figure i need something to do on the weekends.
You’re right about gming not being easy, i personally hope that they don’t move either dman, i can see a future where those 2 are big part of us winning in the near future.
Oh wow, it’s gotta be a shock for you and your wife. Bet half the time you don’t know what to do with yourself. You guys are living the dream!! Well deserved………..
Maybe KD is waiting for a Kaprisov to be a FA and give him 20 mil per with term. We all talk about adding a Hossa and when that is the time right. McTavish checks a lotta the same boxes as Hossa but he’s 22 AND a centerman. ……. KD is so laser focused he may seem conservative but his first draft day says otherwise. We’ll see but there has to be a time for him to do something really big.
I agree with a lot of what you say but i wouldn’t give up a Rinzel or Arty, maybe an Allan or Kaiser I’m selfish that way. It’s so hard to get players with the ability and size and position of those 2.
Id rather take my chances on the plethora of forwards in the system. Just because the Ducks are bad at negotiating in no way we should do them any favors.
Offer Crevier and a draft pick for McTavish’s rights then keep Grizz for 7th d-man. The plethora of forwards you speak of are still mostly in juniors/college. McTavish is already a solid NHLer paying for a boner of a franchise. Also brings some sandpaper that this 23-man roster lacks especially the forwards group.
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Hey Dots, hope all is well in the Dots household. I know you foster kids so your place is always jumpin and no two days are the same. Hope all is well, Dots.
You know what my problem is if indeed the Hawks went after McTavish? The Hawks have pretty much every possible asset in the system to acquire a McTavish and I don’t think anything less than a Rinzel or Artie would do it. If that’s the case my problem is which one, The Cossack or Rinzel? Yea, Rinzel is profiling as everything KD hoped he’d he’d be. A RS Dman, a strong skater, 1st pairing guy who might be a premium #1 PP guy with great size and he seems to get it between the ears.
And Artie still has a lotta wild horse that needs to be coached out of him but I believe the majority of scouts would say today that Artie has the higher ceiling between the two. The kids physical traits say he can be a man beast. The kinda player there are few answers for, if any. But, and I always felt this way back to the USHL it’s fair to question his IQ to an extent. His reads seem good, and will get better with NHL ice time, but he hasn’t shown he could be elite on that account.
I don’t wanna lose either player but a chance to have McT and Frondell as my #1 and #2 centermen for a decade is rare. KD is from the school of building from the back up and be strong down the middle and to target big Dmen and centermen. I thought despite appearing to favor speed/skill KD favors big centerman in a big way. He drafts Misiak, Boisvert, Spellacy, Frondell and gives a big sound centerman in Dickinson term… I believe the Hawks think Desnoyers and Hagens have higher offensive upside than Frondell but KD wanted that big solid and sound 2 may centerman with great size. He passed on two pretty damn good centerman with skill and offensive upside for the money in the bank blood and guts 55 pt centerman.
We all know he ain’t scared to do something big by that first draft, especially moving Dcat, and we know he likes big blood and guts centerman, and we know he has the assets to acquire most any player in the Bigs, and we know that Verbeek has a problem of some degree with McTavish. I personally believe there ain’t a day that goes by that KD isn’t looking for an opportunity to acquire a McTavish type and the timing of the rebuild is right to add young elite talent, especially centerman.
I’d pull the trigger but am damn glad I don’t have to be the one to say whether Rinzel of Artie is the one to dangle. …… GMing ain’t easy and I guess it ain’t supposed to be… You gonna give the phenom help? Pull the trigger.
If you haven’t noticed there has been a spam attack on the main Chicago Blackhawks forum page. There are literally pages and pages full of bogus topics. I mentioned it to Frenchy in the comments section of his blog this morning. Hopefully, he can contact site administration and get things fixed.
As these spam forum topics are generated, our General Comments forum could get lost down the pages and make it difficult to find. When new comments are posted here it will go back to the top of page 1, but it eventually will fall down the list. Maybe when you visit here you can bookmark this comments page (currently we’re on page 19) to bring it up more quickly the next time, instead of “leafing” through the pages looking for this forum.
nice job giving Frenchy a heads up…….. And you’re right that spam bot is AI and has the ability to mess things up and as you say, in a big way.. For our USHL message board I was told unless I get good software that is constantly updated we’d be vulnerable. So I did and coughed the 400 bucks. Then you need a tech guy to come in and fix things a few times a yr and do the updates. Cost me 100 bucks every time this dude visited and he felt sorry for me and worked dirt cheap.
The place is still wonky. Sometimes the spell check works sometimes not. Same with posts, there are times it doesn’t take and that sucks out loud. That means there are bugs in the software and that means calling the tech guy/webmaster and dig into your wallet. … If not the funk gets worse.
Point is it takes time and money to run a place. I hope the managers of this site know this cuz obviously thru ignorance or malfeasance this joint is under attack. Guys like Meltzer have to know this…… I like the joint but I’m here for Frenchy. I came up spades clicking this link you posted cuz a blogger who scouted the USHL and juniors and cut up film is a dream for me to read. I think Frenchy is gonna end up behind a paywall somewhere so I’m gonna enjoy him while I can.
Lotta the good bloggers from HB are here. This place has a lotta potential.
Hey, Mr. Ricochet. Did you mean Yute?
I’m a bit too far west in the Midwest to speak like that, but ye man most times I see the word youth I think of that pronunciation. … What a movie that was and although I wasn’t a yute anymore I still didn’t know jack. Been in love with Marissa Tormei ever since. Yowsa……..
All i know is in glad KD and the Blackhawks aren’t like Verbeek and ducks owners. This is the 2nd forward who hit RFA contract for that team and the negotiations are not going well at all. Not even practicing with them. Would not mind seeing McTavish in a Blackhawks sweater
Hope this takes. .. Been waiting to post this and think it’s a great topic for Frenchy to post on. Should KD trade for McTavish? A for real trade where a Rinzel or Levshunov goes the other way.
Most said yr after yr that KD should draft the BPA, no matter the position. He’s gone off the board with some late 1sts but for the most part he’s taken BPA and as a result his pipeline is full of excellent D prospects. We all also said when the time comes KD can trade from strength. Very good logic and a fine way to build IMO.
We also know KD ain’t scared. He showed us that in his very first draft and resistance to adding money and term for a FA forward when he was losing a lotta games. IMO he’s gone from phase to phase of the rebuild with laser focus and determination to stick to the plan. No shortcuts and no speeding up the plan has him in a great position being flush with draft premium draft picks, flush with blue chip prospects especially on defense. .. I also think KD has been laying in wait since he took the job and is now like a jack in the box sitting on a coil ready to burst and jump up.
For a McTavish to become available and then pounce. A kid who I have profiling as some degree of Bennett. A tough gamer who is in every scrum, playing in front of both nets, a player who has the size (220lbs) and demeanor to take every tough minute a season and playoffs have to offer and offer a floor of a 55-60 pt threat (Bennett’s high pts in a season is 51). A player who will impact a game in every zone……. And as a centerman he’s rare, as rare as what a Lev or Rinzel brings.
Huge swing but an add like this gives you, in no particular order, a heavy/big/tough to play against McTavish and Frondell down the middle as your #1 and #2 centerman. That’s not only elite but it’s what gets clubs deep into the playoffs, consistently. ………. I’d do it but the question is will KD do it? McTavish has to be available and the Hawk’s organIzation has to be looking hard at this. …….. Kid is 22 yrs old, 220 lbs, has played 220 NHL games, put up 52 pts last yr and is a centerman who was a 3rd overall pick.
I’d get him as cheaply as I can but would give up a Lev or Rinzel if it took that to add this skilled beast to Frondell down the middle for 10 yrs.
rpete, the club wants to take a step, to get the offense going, to create chances for their young talent. You can’t unlock any of that without some kind of stability in your own end. You can’t be getting hemmed in using 25-30 seconds to get the puck out cuz there is nothing left in the tank for that shift. Or, not being able to steady the structure defensively when the opponent is buzzing and creating chances.
Gryz will bring some stability to a very very young backend and not clog up the pipeline.
I think Mr.G starts the year in Rockford unless Murphy is traded.
More likely Grizz will be released from his PTO with Kaiser onboard to seek employment elsewhere.
AssMan, are you comfortable with just Murphy as your only vet on defense and the rest young or straight up rookies with all having less than 100-150 NHL games with no safety net on the roster or even at RKF? … I think it’s just crazy for a club looking to be more competitive, without some crazy anchor contract vet from outside vesthe system, and a young stud goalie taking the reigns as an NHL starter for the first time in his NHL career.
I love the idea of having a solid vet who can still play on 2 of the 3 D pairings. It gives Blashil some structure every system needs and still leaves 2-3 spots open for whichever kid/prospect plays best and earns a spot. The rest go to RKF and develops.
The Grzelcyk situation comes down to roster construction. If the Blackhawks go with 7 defensemen and 14 forwards, Grzelcyk could find himself as the extra man. But if they carry 8 defensemen and 13 forwards, his experience gives him the edge.
For a veteran like Grzelcyk, sitting out as a healthy scratch isn’t ideal, but it’s part of the job. For a young prospect, however, that role can stall development. They’re better off logging big minutes in Rockford than watching from the press box.
The bigger question lies with Chicago’s top prospects. Players like Artyom Levshunov and Kevin Korchinski can’t just be sheltered on the third pair playing 12 minutes a night. They need to be in the top four, eating 15+ minutes, and seeing time on special teams.
That’s the challenge of a rebuild stacked with young talent — too many prospects ready at once. In the short term, it can create lineup headaches and growing pains. But long term, if managed properly, it’s the kind of problem that turns into a payoff.
Going into the season with 1 deeply experienced Dman in Murphy and the rest of the unit having less than 100 NHL games played ain’t wise. I don’t care how many of your young Dmen are blue chippers or can’t misses they are still just babies at this level. Some will be overwhelmed some will do ok but hit a wall but each one will have some sort of a problem acclimating into the toughest position to do so at this level.
Gryz is a vet and can still play. Been on some good teams, knows his way around the league and has a fine profile to fit with this group. ……. You almost knew KD would add a vet to the backend but he was patient and got a Gryz at no cost.. Depending on camp of course but I see Gryz breaking camp with the club and having a role with this squad… Good fit, IMO. He’ll help keep things from going sideways and Knight, who’s an NHL starter for the first time, will appreciate Gryz a whole lot….
