Duncan Keith

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Long-term outlook for Blackhawks: salary cap, prospects, and more

By James O'BrienMar 27, 2020, 2:54 PM EDT

Pending Free Agents

Corey Crawford (UFA)
Drake Caggiula (RFA)
Dominik Kubalik (RFA)
Dylan Strome (RFA)
Malcolm Subban (RFA)
Slater Koekkoek (RFA)
Matthew Highmore (RFA)

The Core

Both at age 31 with matching $10.5 million cap hits through 2022-23, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews remain the headliners of the Blackhawks’ core.

While Toews in particular isn’t what he once was, the biggest problem is shaky support.

Duncan Keith is far removed from his prime at age 36, yet his contract ($5.54 through 2022-23) lingers. Quite a bit of this structure has broken down, to the point that it would be preferable for both Brent Seabrook and Andrew Shaw to stay planted on LTIR.

Credit Stan Bowman with trying to improve a shabby defense. Unfortunately, Bowman whiffed with Olli Maatta, Connor Murphy, and Calvin De Haan to varying degrees. Those three contracts stay on the books through 2021-22.

To Bowman’s credit, he’s experienced significant successes finding forward talent, sometimes off the beaten path. While the Blackhawks galaxy-brained themselves out of Artemi Panarin, they locked up Alex DeBrincat to a team-friendly extension.

One key question remains: can the Blackhawks find the cash to re-sign Corey Crawford? Actually, that folds into other questions. Being that Crawford is 35, should they?

Also, will Dominik Kubalik and/or Dylan Strome become core members, or stay in limbo with “bridge” deals. Can Alex Nylander cement himself? The supporting cast continues to go through auditions as if they’re in Chicago’s Broadway.

Long-Term Needs for Blackhawks

The Blackhawks face plenty of long-term needs.

Still, sometimes the biggest needs go deeper than “scoring depth” and “some actual, above-average NHL defensemen.” The Blackhawks organization needs to let go of the past, even if it means some extra suffering in the present. Otherwise, the future could be plagued by half-measures.

It would be understandable if the Blackhawks struck a short-term deal with Corey Crawford. He quietly put together a surprisingly strong 2019-20, particularly down the stretch.

Yet, how many times should Chicago really go to that nostalgia well? (To say nothing of how tough it might be to fit Crawford under the cap, as Mark Lazerus discussed here [sub required].)

This team needs more difference-makers. Adam Boqvist and other prospects figure to boost the competence of Chicago’s crummy defense, but how much?

Ultimately, the Blackhawks need to add “blue chip” talent, and hope that Boqvist, Kirby Dach, and others fall in that category. By trying to enjoy the best of both worlds of competing while getting some young talent, Chicago risks falling short of both marks. They’ve seemingly accrued good-but-not-great talent, and were moderately competitive but not legitimate contenders.

Pull off the Band-Aid already.

Long-Term Strengths for Blackhawks

As mentioned with Panarin and DeBrincat, the Blackhawks have shown some ability to unearth talent even when they didn’t have no-brainer picks like they did with Kane and Toews. (Panarin was a Euro free agent, DeBrincat went 39th overall in 2016). Dominik Kubalik looks like he could be the latest hidden gem.

Such successes have been a bit of a double-edged sword, as referenced in the long-term needs section. By finding ways to be semi-competitive, the Blackhawks have sometimes added good where a “tank” season may have provided great.

Still, there’s decent talent to work with. DeBrincat, Strome, Kubalik, and maybe Nylander can help on offense. Dach’s development is crucial.

Boqvist ranks as vital on defense, too, but he’s not alone. In ranking Chicago’s prospect pool 12th overall (sub required), The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler frequently listed defensemen. Wheeler highlighted Ian Mitchell almost as much as Boqvist, so help could be coming there. Wheeler’s Athletic colleague Corey Pronman placed Chicago’s under-23 core at a respectable 13th, so it’s not as if there’s nothing beyond Kane and Toews.

Lately, “almost” has been in painful supply for Chicago. An optimist might squint and see how things could break the Blackhawks’ way, but improving this long-term outlook will require more long-term thinking.

MORE BLACKHAWKS:
• 2019-20 season summary
• Surprises and disappointments

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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.

Blackhawks remain in playoff race with 6-2 win against Sharks

By Scott CharlesMar 11, 2020, 11:25 PM EDT

The Chicago Blackhawks are trying to make one last push for the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

They ended a two-game skid with a 6-2 win against the San Jose Sharks Wednesday. Patrick Kane scored twice, and Alex DeBrincat dished out three assists and the Blackhawks moved to within six points of the Western Conference wild card. Rookie forward Dominik Kubalik notched his 30^th of the season in addition.

Evander Kane and Timo Meier scored in the Sharks’ fourth straight loss.

Blackhawks power play connects

Chicago’s power play ranks near the bottom of the NHL in terms of efficiency. However, they snapped an 0-14 streak against the Sharks’ No. 1 penalty-killing unit and scored twice in the victory.

Kane opened the scoring for the Sharks with a power-play goal of his own, but the Blackhawks answered in the second period with back to back goals on the man advantage.

Duncan Keith scored his third of the season at 4:33 of the second period to even the score at 1-1. The Blackhawks alternate captain slung a wrist shot from the blueline that sailed past the glove of Aaron Dell. Kirby Dach provided a screen to distract the Sharks goaltender.

DeBrincat recorded the second of his three assists with a pretty cross-ice pass to Kane at 16:33 of the middle frame. Kane split the defenders and darted toward the back post before finishing the beautiful feed.

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Scott Charles is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottMCharles.

NHL Fantasy Hockey: Fiala, Danault among this week’s top adds

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By Ryan DadounMar 2, 2020, 8:00 AM EST

Welcome to our weekly Adds/Drops column, where I focus on highlighting players you should consider grabbing or be concerned about in fantasy leagues. As always, the goal here isn’t to recommend 10 players you must add and five players that need to be dropped. Context is everything and the context of each league is different. What this is instead is a guideline so that if you’re looking to make a change, you have potential players to target and if you see players I’ve suggested to drop, you can evaluate your potential alternates.

Players Worth Adding

Kevin Fiala, Wild – LW/RW: Fiala had nine goals and 28 points in his first 46 contests, which was pretty impressive given that he was averaging just 14:33 minutes per game. His role has increased lately though with him averaging 17:09 minutes over his last 13 games. He’s excelled during that span with 10 goals and 19 points. I don’t expect him to maintain that above point-per-game pace, but there’s still a great chance of him finishing the campaign on a high note.

Duncan Keith, Blackhawks – D: Keith isn’t the offensive force he once was. In fact, this is on track to be one of the worst seasons of his career in terms of points-per-game. To be fair, part of the reason that’s the case is because he’s set the bar so high throughout his career that his current two goals and 22 points in 56 contests pales in comparison. Those aren’t standout numbers for a defenseman in most fantasy leagues, but it’s still noteworthy contributions. The main reason why he’s being highlighted here though is because of how hot he’s been lately. With a goal and seven points in his last six contests, this would be the time to take a chance on him.

Kailer Yamamoto, Oilers – RW: When it was announced on Feb. 25th that Yamamoto sustained an ankle injury, he was listed as week-to-week. A fair number of fantasy owners likely dropped him when the extent of his injury was revealed, but in the end it looks like he’ll miss significantly less time than anticipated. In fact, he might even make his return tonight. If he’s healthy then he’s a great addition to any team. He has nine goals and 21 points in 21 games.

Jordan Eberle, Islanders – RW: Eberle had a petty mediocre start to the campaign, scoring three goals and 17 points in 31 contests. He found his rhythm though and hasn’t looked back. Over his last 23 games, he’s scored 12 goals and 20 points. He’s had a couple small rough patches, but on the whole, he’s been an excellent contributor for nearly two months now. He’s a solid pickup for the rest of the season.

Dominik Kubalik, Blackhawks – LW/RW: Kubalik had an incredible run of 13 goals and 19 points in 15 contests from Dec. 19-Jan. 19. He slowed down after that with just a goal over his next seven contests, but he’s bounced back in a big way with seven goals and 11 points in his last eight games. At this point, he’s got 29 goals and 44 points in 63 games, which makes him by far the league leader in goals among rookies.

Mikael Backlund, Flames – C/RW: Backlund has been one of the leagues’ top players recently, scoring nine goals and 19 points in his last 13 games. He’s been a reliable secondary scorer for years, surpassing the 40-point milestone for five consecutive seasons, including this one. That’s not good enough to hold onto him at all times, but when he’s this hot, there’s potential upside if you roll the dice on him.

Nikita Gusev, Devils – LW/RW: Gusev’s first campaign in the NHL has been something of a mixed bag, but it’s been more positive than negative, with him scoring 12 goals and 42 points in 62 games. That’s still not quite good enough to hold onto him at all times in standard leagues, but there have been various points in the season where he would have been worth owning. Right now, for example, he’s doing rather well with two goals and nine points in his last six games.

Phillip Danault, Canadiens – C: Danault endured a prolonged rough patch from Dec. 29-Feb. 18 where he scored just two goals and 10 points in the span of 24 contests, but he finally seems to have thawed. He’s on a three-game point streak, scoring a goal and four points in his last three contests. He had a great first half of the season with 10 goals and 30 points in 38 games and now that his cold stretch is behind him, he could have a strong finish to the campaign as well.

Chris Tierney, Senators – C: The Senators were heavy sellers on the trade market and Tierney is among those who got a bigger role as a result. He went from averaging 16:54 minutes through 62 games to 20:36 minutes in his last four contests. He’s registered five assists over that recent four-game span and if the Senators keep leaning on him that heavily then he should be solid for what’s left of the season.

Alex Stalock, Wild – G: This has been a pretty rough season for Devan Dubnyk, who has a 11-15-2 record, 3.34 GAA, and .892 save percentage in 29 contests. It seems the result of that is that Stalock en route to finish the campaign as the de facto starter. Stalock got his fourth straight start on Sunday and while his latest effort wasn’t great, he’s still been the Wild’s better option this season with a 18-10-4 record, 2.64 GAA, and .909 save percentage in 35 games. If you’re hurting for starts, Stalock might your best bet among the likely free agents.

Players You May Want To Drop

Steven Stamkos, Lightning – C/LW/RW: Stamkos is still owned in 83% of Yahoo leagues and unfortunately he shouldn’t be occupied in any single season leagues at this point. He’s expected to miss the next six-to-eight weeks due to a core muscle injury, which basically means he won’t be back before the end of the regular season. In fact, he might end up missing the first round as well, which dampens his value in playoff leagues as well. If you’re in a keeper league though, Stamkos should bounce right back in 2020-21, so he’s an easy one to keep.

Henrik Lundqvist, Rangers – G: Lundqvist is owned in 45% of leagues, which is surprisingly high under the circumstances. Although he will always be a big part of the Rangers history, the team seems to have largely moved on from him. He went nearly a month between starts before he finally got the nod on Sunday. He didn’t do anything to force the Rangers to play him more either, stopping just 21 of 26 shots in a 5-3 loss to the Flyers. It wouldn’t be shocking if he only had just one more start with the Rangers this season and then was bought out or otherwise moved over the summer.

Evgenii Dadonov, Panthers – LW/RW: Dadonov is owned in 73% of Yahoo leagues, but there are probably a fair number of them where there’s better options out there. He has 25 goals and 46 points in 66 contests this season, which isn’t bad, but he hasn’t done much lately. He has just two goals and five points in his last 15 contests.

Ilya Kovalchuk, Capitals – LW/RW: Those who were hoping that Kovalchuk would be sparked by the trade to the Capitals have been left largely disappointed. He has just an assist in his first three games with Washington, which isn’t terribly surprising given that he’s averaged 15:14 minutes over that span. He has been a streaky player since coming back from the KHL and with his more limited role with Washington, he’s not worth owning in most leagues.

Nick Suzuki, Canadiens – C/RW: Suzuki had a fantastic run from Jan. 27-Feb. 18, scoring four goals and 13 points in 12 contests. Since then though, he’s gone five straight games without a point. He’s having a solid season, but isn’t quite good enough to hold onto in standard leagues at all times, so for most owners it makes sense to drop him now that he’s cooled off.

If you’re looking for fantasy hockey information, Rotoworld is a great resource. You can check the player news for the latest information on any player and insight into their fantasy outlook.

Every week Michael Finewax looks ahead at the schedule and offers team-by-team notes in The Week Ahead. I have a weekly Fantasy Nuggets column where I basically talk about whatever’s captured my attention that week. Gus Katsaros does an Analytics columns if you want to get into detailed statistical analysis. If you’re interested in rookies and prospects, there’s a weekly column on that written by McKeen’s Hockey.

Blues beat Blackhawks in a 6-5 barn burner

By James O'BrienFeb 25, 2020, 10:55 PM EST

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What’s the best way to summarize the Blues finding a way to beat the Blackhawks 6-5 on Tuesday? Maybe we should just make the “fanning self” hand motion and call it a night?

This was a wild one from the start, with Brayden Schenn scoring 33 seconds in. Maybe that opening goal implied that this would be an easy one for the Blues, but that was far from the truth. Regardless, St. Louis has won all three of its games against Chicago this season. This marks five straight wins for the Blues overall.

The mark of a good — and versatile — team is to win in multiple ways. Even so, Craig Berube’s facial expression in the moment captured by Getty Images probably captured his mood for much of the night:

*(Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)*

The Blackhawks roared back after falling behind early, flipping a 1-0 deficit to a 3-1 lead. Jonathan Toews found ways to make subtle picks during those first goals, setting the stage for Duncan Keith to break a 40-game goalless streak, and reach 100 for his career.

Wild get games wildest during the third period

Chicago scored two power-play goals during that stretch, and three overall on Tuesday.

Maybe it was just that kind of night, really, as the Blackhawks went 3-for-4 while St. Louis managed two on four power-play chances.

The seesaw really wobbled during the third period, in particular. Ryan O’Reilly made it 3-3, then Zach Sanford continued his blazing streak to make it 4-3 16 seconds later. That Blues lead only lasted for 1:13 before Matthew Highmore tied it up.

Brandon Saad regained Chicago’s lead three minutes later only for (catches breath for a moment) Justin Faulk to tie it up again 1:12 later.

The above two paragraphs describe a span of five goals during less than six minutes of game time.

A bit more than four minutes after Faulk tied it up, Sanford scored the game-winner for St. Louis on the power play. Phew.

The end result is that the Blues strengthened their Central Division lead, while the Blackhawks saw their playoff hopes fade even more with a regulation loss. Many likely expected the two teams to reach this sort of destination on Tuesday, but the journey was quite unexpected.

Jordan Binnington, Corey Crawford, and Berube certainly don’t want to navigate such a bumpy road most nights, that’s for sure.

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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.

Kreider, Panarin push Rangers past Blackhawks

By Scott CharlesFeb 19, 2020, 11:26 PM EST

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The New York Rangers don’t want to see key pieces sold off at the NHL Trade Deadline in the coming days.

The Blueshirts have seen impact players such as Ryan McDonagh, Mats Zuccarello, Rick Nash and others shown the door this time of year the past two seasons and hope their 6-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks Wednesday can change Jeff Gorton’s mind.

Chris Kreider had three points and Artemi Panarin recorded his 30^th goal of the season in the Rangers’ fourth victory in the previous five games.

“We got to make the GM’s job tough and wins like this will do that,” Ryan Strome told Bryan Boucher on NBCSN following the game.

Dominik Kubalik scored twice and Drake Caggiula added another, but the Blackhawks fell for the second consecutive game and for the seventh time in the last eight games.

Value of Rangers assets keeps increasing

Kreider is the top rental available and the Rangers’ front office hopes a bidding war develops over the next few days. The speedy power forward converted a slick breakaway midway through the third period which turned into the eventual game-winner.

NHL insider Bob McKenzie reported on the pregame show that five teams were interested in Kreider’s services. The Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche, New York Islanders, St. Louis Blues and Washington Capitals have expressed interest, according to McKenzie.

In addition to Kreider, the Rangers have several other commodities that could intrigue playoff contenders. Ryan Strome netted his career high 51^st point, Pavel Buchnevich scored, and Tony DeAngelo returned to the lineup.

“Honestly, we have been doing a pretty good job,” Strome said when asked about the potential movement. “We have got some guys that have been around and some young guys that are probably a little bit oblivious. That probably helps a little bit.”

The playoffs are a longshot for New York this season, but the question they need to answer internally is, how far away from the postseason are they?

Keith’s milestone assist

The alternate captain has been the foundation of the Chicago Blackhawks defense since arriving in the NHL for the 2005-06 season.

In the second period against the Rangers, Keith delivered a beautiful no-look, cross-ice pass to set up Kubalik’s game-tying goal. It was Keith’s 500^th career assist.

Keith became the seventh player in franchise history to reach that accomplishment and joined Doug Wilson as the only defensemen in that group.

The 36-year-old was rightfully included in the 100 Greatest Players in NHL History announced during the League’s centennial celebration and continues to ensure that his No. 2 will float in the rafters with his three Stanley Cup championship banners at the United Center.