Offseason starts early for the Blackhawks 2018-07-12 Chicago Blackhawks general manager Thomas Gidlow began the offseason with a sour taste in his mouth. After exit interviews with players and staff, it was apparent why. “We all knew what we had, but we just couldn’t get there,” he quipped. Each player interviewed knew the expectations coming in. It wasn’t enough to just be better than the abysmal 2016-17 club that was dead last in the EHE. It wasn’t enough to just make the playoffs. Each person was expected to contribute to a better culture. A winning culture. “On the whole, we made big strides,” said Jonathan Toews, the Blackhawks captain who is expected to sign a long-term deal this offseason to remain with the club for many years to come. “All year we faced adversity and changes to the team. It was great seeing the organization active in trying to improve so much on the fly.” “But we know we didn’t get the job done like we wanted to. So, we’re going to come into this next season with a little more edge and a little more pain.” Quoting Toby Keith’s “Whiskey Girl” notwithstanding, Chicago has already begun reshaping their club early into the offseason. Gidlow has made seven deals; not quite the turnover from over 30 last offseason, but still a sizeable amount. IN: Nick Bjugstad, Jimmy Vesey, Brett Pesce, Andrew Cogliano, Marc Staal, Jason Pominville OUT: Jonathan Marchessault, Luke Glendening, Brayden McNabb, Erik Gustafsson, Mike Condon, Markus Nutivaara The onus for Gidlow’s approach has been defense first, which faltered down the stretch and into the playoffs. With Matt Niskanen, Brent Seabrook, Paul Martin, and Kevin Klein all becoming unrestricted free agents this offseason, Gidlow took the opportunity to get a jump on the UFA period by acquiring Pesce from Vancouver and Staal, the elder brother of Chicago’s Jordan Staal, from New Jersey. Jake Muzzin and Derek Forbort will return, while Casey Nelson and Nick Seeler may compete for a spot in training camp. That leaves two probable holes on the backend, and at least one will be filled by a top defenseman through free agency. “It’s not much of a secret that we’re going to sign a few guys,” says Gidlow. “I’ve made no bones about wanting a top defenseman. There’s a few that are going to be available, and we’ll definitely end up with one of them. Just remains to be seen who it will be.” Defense was also the backbone of the biggest move the Blackhawks made, dealing Marchessault to the Rangers in a seven-player swap. Prospects Lucas Johansen and Dominik Masin were included in that deal precisely to reinforce the backend in the future. It was a somewhat surprising move, as Marchessault seemed ready to jump into the upper echelon of EHE scoring wingers. But moving him at his likely most valuable point did net Gidlow several quality assets, including Bjugstad and Vesey who will instantly step into the top nine forward unit. “Bjugstad is such a versatile guy. He can play on the right side, down the middle. He’s a big body that can skate and produce. Vesey is another big, quality skating guy that can score goals. Both will be given plenty of opportunities to do just that.” Joshua Ho-Sang was also included in the deal. The 22-year old winger spent the entire 2017-18 campaign in the AHL and while he figures to start there this season, will definitely be on the radar for 2019 and beyond. Veterans Cogliano and Pominville were brought in to help fill the gaps left by Zach Parise and Justin Williams, both of whom will be looking elsewhere in free agency. While neither is expected to hit Parise’s 32-goal mark from last season, both Cogliano and Pominville provide steady, veteran leadership and can play anywhere in the lineup. “I think to this point, we may have sacrificed some offense to get better on the backend,” said Gidlow, who’s Hawks led the EHE with a record 298 goals scored last season. “We’re not done in terms of what we need to bring in from free agency, but I think we learned that we’re going to be more successful overall by having a more balanced approach.” Some of that approach includes a new goaltending tandem, as Brian Elliott is headed to free agency while Condon was shipped to New Jersey with two minor leaguers for a 2019 fourth round pick. Chicago has Eric Comrie and Troy Grosenick on the depth chart, but Comrie is still a season or two away from contributing on the big club. That leaves free agency or a trade, and with a plethora of goalies scheduled to hit the open market, it may make more sense to engineer a deal. “Prices have been high for signed goalies so far, but I expect that will change a bit during the Entry Draft, and again after some goalies get signed in free agency,” stated Gidlow. “Either way, we’ll have those positions filled well before training camp.” Pekka Rinne, Henrik Lundqvist, Jonathan Quick, and Ben Bishop lead the names available in the UFA goaltender market. All will likely command significant salaries, something Gidlow doesn’t seem too worried about. “We’re projecting to be $1-$2 million under the salary cap, wherever it ends up. But we’ll be spending close to the allowed maximum, without question.” As for the general outlook of the club after watching Colorado take the Stanley Cup from the comfort of his own home? “Not next year,” Gidlow says with a wry smile. Chip Whitley Blackhawks Beat Reporter
