Within the next year, Sharp and Seabrook can probably carpool to O'Hare.
Or fly around the country meeting with every single team that they could possibly "take their talents to".

NBA

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And the masses rejoiced.

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Elections have consequences.

Seabrook and Sharp are goners. Hjalmarsson took a hometown discount to play for a winner, which is more than can be said for the vanishing captain. Versteeg is gone next year if he's not gone this summer. Bickell could be gone as well pending the development/acquisition of a cheaper power forward.

Hossa is bound to the Hawks for the duration of his contract because every year that he stays would mean a larger recapture penalty if he retires before the contract ends. In lieu of retirement, he'll spend any remaining years on long-term injured reserve rather than not take free money and saddle the Hawks with dead cap space.

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They really should move them now. Sharp's value if he has much will only go down if he plays like he did this year. I still wonder about injury there. Seabrook has what 2 years left? They are going to say goodbye anyway, why not see what they can get?



He might be your best value for trading though. I think Keith took a bit of a discount when he signed too.

How do you feel about Toews? They have to get what they can, I think he could have gotten more on the open market but it is still a lot for the team to take on X2. The situation is a good one to be in but sucks at the same time for the Blackhawks.

So the vitriol is only for Toews , Curious? Kane signed the same deal. I know this kinda sucks for the team but what should they have taken? Obviously the Hawks came up with a number they thought they were worth and they both agreed. Price of doing business and being good. Draft picks are going to have hit .

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

Toews is a great player, but he ranks below Crosby, Malkin, Ovechkin, Tavares, Stamkos, and Kopitar (possibly Getzlaf, too), so it feels a little wrong for him to profit so immensely as an individual from team achievements. Yes, he won two Stanley Cups and those guys (except Kopitar, who will get huge money) didn't, but we have to remember that his second Cup run involved Suter and Zetterberg turning him into a complete non-entity.

Kane is also making a ton of money for a guy who's never cracked 30 goals. This whole thing has always been a team effort. That's why the Hawks have four conference finals and two Cups in six years while the Penguins have just two and one, but now Toews and Kane are being paid like Crosby and Malkin, and now our teams will resemble theirs. Unfortunately, Toews and Kane are no Crosby and Malkin.

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Man theres not a guy on that list except maybe Crosby that most people would take rather than Toews.

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

Kopitar and Toews are basically the same player, but one won't bitch about money all the time. With that last part in mind, plenty of owners would take Kopitar.

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CH Shut the FUCK up.

You really want to see the Hawks without Toews and Kane?

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

I never said that. That was never an option. I wish they didn't demand so much money and hamstring their team for years.

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Patrick Sharp @10PSharp ·
I wonder if Toews has smiled yet?

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

That is funny.

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Elections have consequences.

No but they've closed the Hawks window for at least 3 years after this season. Given their salaries I expect Hart production on a yearly basis. So far neither has been in the conversation at year end.

Kane had an MVP pace for a while this year before he and the rest of the team called it a season at New Year's.

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deflected shot in overtime of game 7 in the conference finals away from in all probability winning a second consecutive Cup but they called it a season 6 months before that .If only they had Ovechkin instead of Toews.

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

Are you denying that they took half the year off? I mean, it worked for them this time, but they took half the year off.

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Yeah, I'm not sure why CH always - ALWAYS - takes such a drastic and negative viewpoint on things.
Whether it's a reaction to one regular season game, or a contract signing, or a trade - everything is always doom and gloom.

They were one shot away from the SC Finals. Again. And nobody would say they played up to their potential.



People have GOT to remember where this organization came from. Whether you're old enough to have lived it or not - this team is a premier team for at least the next 9 years......I'm pretty ok with that.

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I've been positive. I think the Richards signing was good. I think they're the favorite for a Stanley Cup this season. But bad shit's coming when Toews and Kane account for a third of your salary and can't come close to accounting for commensurate production, and no, you can't keep fudging it on "intangible leadership" when Henrik Zetterberg's elbows turn you into a ghost.

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You said this, sort of, after standing on the edge of a cliff for 24 hours because they WEREN'T SIGNING ANYBODY WHILE EVERYBODY ELSE IN THE DIVISION GOT BETTER!!!!!!!

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Okay, tell me that the rest of the division didn't get better.

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Some of them did.
My point is you reacted to........nevermind. We need viewpoints from both sides of the aisle. I'll try my best to take the positive.

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Well, obviously Nashville and Winnipeg didn't do shit, but we were never worried about them in the first place. Colorado got a little better. Minnesota added Vanek and stands to see the most internal growth. St. Louis and Dallas got a lot better. I think the Blackhawks can win this division if they care to, but it won't be easy. Second or third is most likely with the Blues winning the division and blowing it in the first round again. Colorado will probably finish fifth.

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Premier is a stretch. The beginning of their contracts they won't suck but probably won't be Cup contenders.

I have faith that Bowman will have big contributors on ELCs. He has drafted well, outside of 2010, which has yielded a tweener in Nordstrom and shit else, pending Stephen Johns's arrival. Pirri and Olsen were busts, but those were the last of the Tallon picks. But if you don't think 2016 will be a setback year on par with 2011, you're deluding yourself.

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Who is the Blue's goalie?

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Elections have consequences.

Hoffy

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Brian Elliott and Jake Allen. Elliott always seems ready to regress to the mean, but has put up two outstanding seasons with the Blues. Even if he falters, Allen is supposed to be pretty good, one of their few legitimate prospects.

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It seems I have trust in the Bowman brain trust to keep getting lower priced young talent to keep this going with his two anchor stars. As Sharp, Seabrook go away over time and Hossa long term retires or whatever we have to simply keep the Saad, Teuvo and Ben Smith types coming. They did it in Detroit for nearly 20 years.

Of course at some point we may get a coach change if Q does not work with the young talent.

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Elections have consequences.

Did we forget that ovechkin doesn't even try to play defense? I'll take Toews lower offensive production with the greater defensive effort every and all day.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

I think an argument can be made for Crosby or Kopitar, but I'd still take Toews over everybody on his list.