It’s free agency madness that’s taking over the NHL world today and for a lot of teams that means getting into crazy bidding wars for players that you might not expect to see a lot of bids on. Offers will be bandied about and figures will be exchanged all around and we’re sure there’s going to be more than a few guys that end up making a ton of money leaving us to scratch our heads about what we’ve done with our lives.
One team that’s been in that position once before where they left the world staggered by the money they handed out is Chicago. Think back to past deals that saw them give Brian Campbell an eight-year $57 million deal and Marian Hossa a 12-year, $63 million free agent contract. Those deals set the NHL world on fire for both their length and dollar amounts. We’ve already gotten a taste for some of that madness already (right Buffalo?) but the Blackhawks aren’t eager to dip in like that this time around.
Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times gets the word from Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman that going wild in this year’s free agency market isn’t something they’re eager to do as they’d rather find a certain kind of player.As Bowman sees it, the Hawks have enough top-caliber skill with Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa and Dave Bolland up front and Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook on the blue line. So as far as free agents, think in terms of Maxime Talbot instead of Richards.
“We’re looking for a certain style of player,” Bowman said. “If you’re looking for a No. 1 center or that kind of player, maybe [the free-agent class] is not as strong. That’s debatable. But we haven’t been focusing on that because we’re comfortable with the players we have in those roles. We’re trying to get a different kind of player into our mix here. It’s a good group for that.”
That’s not to say he won’t try to sign players capable of being among the top six forwards.
“A player that can play in your top six doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to make huge dollars,” Bowman said. “There are certain players that we have in mind that we think could play with our top guys.”
Certain players like Talbot or Carolina’s Erik Cole might be the brand of player Bowman is talking about. After scoring 26 goals last year and being one of the more clutch guys in the league, Cole has the sort of talent where he could blend in beautifully on Chicago’s second line. The price, however, has to be right. The Hawks showed already that they’re willing to pony up nicely for a guy that will fit in with them well as they gave defenseman Steve Montador a sweet deal for four years and $11 million. That might be coughing up a lot for a player of his caliber, but it’s the going rate this offseason.
As for who else might end up on their radar along with guys like Talbot and Cole, Phoenix’s Vernon Fiddler is another interesting person to watch as they might look to secure that third line centerman to help establish Dave Bolland as their full time second line center. Either Fiddler or Talbot would fit that description well, but they won’t be cheap and that’s where the pitfalls of this year’s free agent market come in. Crazy money will be thrown around, but don’t expect Chicago to be market breakers any more than they already have been.