It’s the Blackhawks’ bye week, so let’s get to a few reader questions.
Who do you think the Blackhawks target at the NHL trade deadline?
This was a popular question, asked by many, which makes sense since the trade deadline is just two weeks away. Teams are still trying to decide if they’re going to be buyers or sellers. Two weeks is enough of a time to get on a hot streak — or cold streak — that can turn a team’s playoff prospects around. Only a few teams, like the Avalanche and Coyotes, are truly out of it. So the answer to the question is: I don’t know. Helpful, I know. The Hawks have had many conversations about a lot of different players and it’s still early in the process. They’ve inquired about Gabriel Landeskog, as NHL.com first reported, and a Patrick Sharp return is a possibility if the Stars continue to fall out of contention and the price is right.
General manager Stan Bowman has said he isn’t looking to make a big splash this year at the deadline the way he did two years ago to acquire Antoine Vermette and last season with Andrew Ladd. That could just be posturing, but I tend to believe Bowman. I don’t think the Hawks need to make a big deal. Winning the trade deadline doesn’t always mean winning the Stanley Cup. Sometimes it’s the smaller moves you make that can impact your team better than a big name. Andrew Desjardins played a huge role in helping the Hawks win the Cup two seasons ago while Richard Panik was an outcast of the Maple Leafs the Hawks took a flyer on who is playing on the top line over a year later. I don’t expect Bowman to just stand pat, but I’m not convinced a big move is in the cards the way it was in previous seasons. Of course, that can all change over the next two weeks.
Do you think Scott Darling has had enough starts since Corey Crawford came back? Didn’t Q suggest more were coming? — @cliffdeutsch
Photos of Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford.
Photos of Blackhawks goalie Scott Darling.
He did when Crawford came back from his appendectomy, but Darling has started just three games over the last month. The Hawks didn’t have many back-to-back games on the schedule in January and so far this month. However, the schedule gets really busy in March. After a four-day break from March 5-8, the Hawks don’t have more than one off day between games the rest of the season. I suspect Darling will get some work outside of the two back-to-backs the Hawks have during that stretch. And if the Hawks wrap up a playoff spot early, look for Darling to spell Crawford more regularly over the last week or two. Crawford isn’t going to want to completely shut it down — goaltenders like to keep in a rhythm and not get too rusty — but he should be able to get some extra rest.
Do you think (Alex) DeBrincat will be traded if they need a rental piece this season or next season? — @Vis23089
ct-spt-0925-blackhawks Anthony Souffle / Chicago Tribune
Alex DeBrincat (23) moves the puck behind the net as Alexandre Fortin pressures him during the sold-out Blackhawks training camp festival at the United Center on Sept. 24, 2016.
Alex DeBrincat (23) moves the puck behind the net as Alexandre Fortin pressures him during the sold-out Blackhawks training camp festival at the United Center on Sept. 24, 2016.
(Anthony Souffle / Chicago Tribune)
DeBrincat is the Hawks’ second round pick this last draft who is lighting up the Ontario Junior Hockey League with 47 goals in 46 games as I write this. I don’t think the Hawks will deal DeBrincat this offseason because they think they got got a steal in the draft last season. The only issue is size and strength for the 5-foot-7 DeBrincat. Bowman said DeBrincat has a big summer coming up, one in which he has to improve his strength to be able to play regularly at the NHL level. If you’re the Hawks, it’s hard not to get excited when you see that kind of production and I don’t think they want to give him up for a rental. They’d like to keep him around.
What prospects do you think are most likely to be dangled as trade bait? — @clenhoff25
Again tough to say specifically. Mark McNeill has been out there a few times in trade talks but nobody seems to want to act. The Hawks have a decent number of defensemen in the system, so it’s possible you might see them try to move Viktor Svedberg or Erik Gustafsson, or another one of their younger defensemen in Rockford. The Hawks are thinner on forwards in Rockford, so I see them trying to move a defenseman more if it comes to that.
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