Hey Paul. In your opinion, what does a player need to show in the AHL or Juniors to prove he is ready for NHL mins?

I’m not as hard as Fatty against the AHL, but my thought is that it’s more about just repetition against the bigger/faster players and less about skill development.

Just curious about your views on it.
- Chunk

Very very few players can make the transition from junior or even college to the NHL. Bedard is one of the best talents to ever come out of junior and he’s struggling, partly because of the lack of talent on the Hawks, partly because he’s strictly a one way player, partly because he’s probably never encountered this much on ice adversity in his life and partly because he’s physically immature. He was going straight to the NHL in part because of the business side of it but there are lots of things he could have learned continuing in junior or in the AHL. Dach had no business starting in the NHL, his game wasn’t ready and he was physically immature. I’m sure finishing junior and some AHL time could have prepared him. And Duncan Keith learning the defensive game in the AHL is well documented. Yes there are many cases of guys making the jump with few problems and it’s hard to prove a certain player should have learned the weak parts of his game in the AHL. But like a plumber, mechanic, doctor, computer programmer, accountant or hundreds of other professions a period of apprenticeship is required, why would a hockey player be different?

Keeping Kurashev with Bedard is a disaster defensively.
- LAHawk

At this point does it matter
Unless Davidson does something to shake up this roster its going to more of the same.

I want Matthew Schaefer …

All these yrs we wanted to see the USHL v the CHL and the US is getting embarrassed 4-nuttin 1/2 way in. ........ Lotta speed in this tilt and Canada looks linked up for being an allstar squad while the US kids are in their 2nd yr together.

And again, Kurashev is Russian. Russian players are known to be allergic to responsible play in their defensive end.

Why is this still so surprising to Blackhawks fans???
- dahawks8819

Kurashev is Swiss.

I want Matthew Schaefer …
- paulr

Do you think that his ceiling is higher than Arty’s? Have not seen him, however from highlights and scouting reports, I like Martone and Misa with the first pick. All things being equal, you draft defense and center, but man, Martone is a beast.

For information only. While Barkov and Kurashev were not born in Russia, their parents are Russian, all four of them.

Do you think that his ceiling is higher than Arty’s? Have not seen him, however from highlights and scouting reports, I like Martone and Misa with the first pick. All things being equal, you draft defense and center, but man, Martone is a beast.
- Angotti

It was more a comment of his goal on an end to end rush. I’ve only seen clips of Arty so I have no idea of the comparison? But Schaefer is very strong offensively and defensively he’s a great skater he’s physical and he just scored that goal. As you and I have agreed, the Hawks have to take the best available, whether it’s Schaefer, Misa, Hagens, Mortone or …. And Spence is another guy to look at should the Hawks pick later in the first round.

Kurashev is Swiss.
- boilermaker100

His parents moved to Switzerland. He is Russian.

His parents moved to Switzerland. He is Russian.
- dahawks8819

Says he was born in Davos, Switzerland. What part of Russia is that?

His parents moved to Switzerland. He is Russian.
- dahawks8819

He was born in Davos Switzerland, so obviously he’s Russian. My Dad was German my Mom was English and I was born in Canada …. Mind telling me what nationality I am?

That's all well and good, and I'm not taking that away from him. He was a mid-first rounder who held his own against adults as a kid. That he is now getting back to what he was supposed to be as a rookie is kind of a red flag (even accepting that development is not linear).

A few weeks ago, I came up with "the Slaggert index". Does a player provide anything more than Landon Slaggert does. I'm using him as the bottom standard of what a hockey player should bring to the table if you want to have a competitive team. He works really hard, battles for pucks and wins a good share of them, and can/will occasionally chip in offense.

If a player is exceptional in one direction or the other above what Slaggert brings that's a benefit to the team. If he is equal or less than, I call that "trade asset". My reasoning is that they have tons and tons of prospects in the system as well as picks coming that they can't ice them all. You pick out the really good ones and use the others to acquire what you don't have.

I'm sure there are flaws in this concept, but it's the best way I can think of to sift through the mountain of players the Hawks have brought into the system recently. Obviously, you don't need to trade all the guys that don't distinguish themselves so you have some depth, but I'm not drawing a line in the sand saying that I'm not trading X because he's still young and I drafted him.

Yeah, two long flights to Frankfurt and back gave me some time to come up with some BS, but I think it has merit.
- Chunk

Before Slaggert there were Entwistle and Johnson. You see what happened to them.

We should just call it what it is... another tank season. Hawks front office made it seem like something else and fooled many of us into having higher expectations. Bertuzzi, when playing well, is a middle 6 forward. TT is a good roll player. Neither are going to carry the team or have any substantial impact on number of games won.

In my book, Bertuzzi and TT are not huge upgrades from Tyler Johnson as far as offense production. Kurashev has regressed (or returned back to the norm). 17 goals and 31 points in 67 games for Johnson last year. Call that a wash with Bertuzzi.

So TT is the real only upgrade on offense and Kurashev is not going to sniff 50 pts this year so any value added from TT is essentially wiped out by Kurashev's lack of production.

Not a whole lot of difference between this years team and last year's team. Still going to be a top 5 pick.
- bhawks2241

In other words, we should finally be over the Bickell/TT trade.

He was born in Davos Switzerland, so obviously he’s Russian. My Dad was German my Mom was English and I was born in Canada …. Mind telling me what nationality I am?
- paulr

Sounds like you're a mutt.

Sounds like you're a mutt.
- rpeters01

Please … I prefer the term Mongrel.

Before Slaggert there were Entwistle and Johnson. You see what happened to them.
- rpeters01

If Slaggert can stay on his feet and score a few goals, he’ll have them both beat.

I want Matthew Schaefer …
- paulr

Nice player for sure but I'm still hopin Misa is on the board when the Hawks draft..... Canada looked really good. Just tons of speed and this crazy talented squad plays hungry. Puck hounds and they ain't scared to use lotsa energy in the D and neutral zones.

Really fun for the fan but it's just too bad the US couldn't make it a better game.

I want Matthew Schaefer …
- paulr

With Arty, Rinzel plus KK will turn out pretty good - and Kaiser will be pretty good on a second or third pair - don’t imagine that Schaeffer is who KD wants to draft

How many new faces on the roster next season?
We could really use what they bring-

For sure: Nazar, Savoie, Slaggert
?: Dach, 2025 #1, Moore, Greene
??: A Thompson, Lardis

Thus is only the forwards and by season end wouldn’t be unreasonable each has appeared

Darkhorse: Ludzindki, Hayes

How many new faces on the roster next season?
We could really use what they bring-

For sure: Nazar, Savoie, Slaggert
?: Dach, 2025 #1, Moore, Greene
??: A Thompson, Lardis

Thus is only the forwards and by season end wouldn’t be unreasonable each has appeared

Darkhorse: Ludzindki, Hayes
- jhawk59

Some of us can remember The Rolling Stones Faces album from circa 1978. It had the cut out picture of faces like whatever it was three or four rows, columns

It was a famous album particularly after a lawsuit and future album cover had blanks for the pictures

Well if it was a matrix and the faces changed after doing some mathematical add and subtractions

But instead of The Rolling Stones
Update 2025/2026 The Blackhawks roster
All the new faces

Late add: think of a matrix or this way as well: The Hollywood Squares long running game show with its matrices (because the stars who answered the questions was an ongoing changing cast of faces) To those who don’t know about the show, it was a tall frame building front with no wall in front, just an open air front with a podium or piece of furniture with the stars of Hollywood each having their own frame like a three or four story building. They had to answer the question, true or false and could give a false narrative. Paul Lynde the comedian was a staple on the show with his wise cracks

Before Slaggert there were Entwistle and Johnson. You see what happened to them.
- rpeters01

Slagged actually comes up with pucks though.

Very very few players can make the transition from junior or even college to the NHL. Bedard is one of the best talents to ever come out of junior and he’s struggling, partly because of the lack of talent on the Hawks, partly because he’s strictly a one way player, partly because he’s probably never encountered this much on ice adversity in his life and partly because he’s physically immature. He was going straight to the NHL in part because of the business side of it but there are lots of things he could have learned continuing in junior or in the AHL. Dach had no business starting in the NHL, his game wasn’t ready and he was physically immature. I’m sure finishing junior and some AHL time could have prepared him. And Duncan Keith learning the defensive game in the AHL is well documented. Yes there are many cases of guys making the jump with few problems and it’s hard to prove a certain player should have learned the weak parts of his game in the AHL. But like a plumber, mechanic, doctor, computer programmer, accountant or hundreds of other professions a period of apprenticeship is required, why would a hockey player be different?
- paulr

Sure, not doubting any of that, but what do you think they need to show in the AHL to prove they are ready for the NHL?

How many new faces on the roster next season?
We could really use what they bring-

For sure: Nazar, Savoie, Slaggert
?: Dach, 2025 #1, Moore, Greene
??: A Thompson, Lardis

Thus is only the forwards and by season end wouldn’t be unreasonable each has appeared

Darkhorse: Ludzindki, Hayes
- jhawk59

Nazar has the best chance. Spaghetti has a good chance, but likely needs a strong camp. Savoie is a favorite, but likely is a bit of a longshot. Honestly, if he plays as well as he did this year and shows other improvements, I wouldn’t rule out Spellacy.

He was born in Davos Switzerland, so obviously he’s Russian. My Dad was German my Mom was English and I was born in Canada …. Mind telling me what nationality I am?
- paulr

You are half English, and half German.

The only real Americans are the American Indian, contrary to what MAGA white people say......

Everyone else are descendants from migrants. Hmmm, irony

Some of us can remember The Rolling Stones Faces album from circa 1978. It had the cut out picture of faces like whatever it was three or four rows, columns

It was a famous album particularly after a lawsuit and future album cover had blanks for the pictures

Well if it was a matrix and the faces changed after doing some mathematical add and subtractions

But instead of The Rolling Stones
Update 2025/2026 The Blackhawks roster
All the new faces

Late add: think of a matrix or this way as well: The Hollywood Squares long running game show with its matrices (because the stars who answered the questions was an ongoing changing cast of faces) To those who don’t know about the show, it was a tall frame building front with no wall in front, just an open air front with a podium or piece of furniture with the stars of Hollywood each having their own frame like a three or four story building. They had to answer the question, true or false and could give a false narrative. Paul Lynde the comedian was a staple on the show with his wise cracks
- jhawk59

There were four hosts of The Hollywood Squares. The host I recall well is Gary Marshall. He had a son with a different last name who toiled briefly for the Chicago Cubs played first base I believe. Challenge if you know who the ballplayer’s name is. Cmon’ Steve Rain and 6628 you can remember this. Oh you too Wiz