The Chicago Blackhawks appeared down and out, trailing three games to one and having just lost two straight at home to the St. Louis Blues. This was a team that has played 72 post-season games in four years after a Stanley Cup in 2013, a trip to the Western Conference Final in 2014 and another two-month battle to win Lord Stanley’s Cup last spring. However, they do what good teams do, and they fought back to tie the series, forcing a Game 7. It was all for not as the Blues were able to win a gut-wrenching Game 7 at home 3-2. Six of the seven games were decided by one goal, and Brent Seabrook and Andrew Ladd each had a shot go off both goal posts during two separate losses in the series.
“When you don’t win you second-guess what you could have done differently yourself,” a disgruntled Jonathan Toews said after the loss. “I had my chances. Like in times in the past, I kept telling myself there was going to be an important time I would find a way to score a big one. I was telling myself right down to the last draw.”
Rookie Artemi Panarin and Patrick Kane led the team with seven points, but that is where the production stopped. Corey Crawford was very solid between the pipes throughout the series, posting a 2.56 GAA and always able to keep his team in the game.
Out of Luck
It is very tough to win a Stanley Cup once, let alone win back-to-back in this day and age. With the salary cap, teams are forced to make tough decisions every year. One might look at the fact that the Central was an incredibly tough division this year, in which the Blackhawks finished with a modest 103 points but third in the division. The 103 points would have been enough to have won the Pacific Division, but with the Dallas Stars finishing with 109 and the Blues with 107, the Blackhawks were forced to play Game 7 at the Scottrade Centre. The defending champions gave it their best shot in the final minutes of Game 7 against the Blues, but just like in 2011 and in 2014, the Blackhawks failed in their attempt to win back-to-back Stanley Cups. Here’s how the defending champions have faired the following year since the salary cap was instituted following the 2004-05 lockout:
- 2007 – Carolina Hurricanes: Missed playoffs, finished 11th in East.
- 2008 – Anaheim Ducks: Lost in first round to Stars, 4-2.
- 2009 – Detroit Red Wings: Lost in Stanley Cup Final to Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-3.
- 2010 – Penguins: Lost in second round to Montreal Canadiens, 4-3.
- 2011 – Blackhawks: Lost in first round to Vancouver Canucks, 4-3.
- 2012 – Boston Bruins: Lost in first round to Washington Capitals, 4-3.
- 2013 – Los Angeles Kings: Lost in West Final to Blackhawks, 4-1.
- 2014 – Blackhawks: Lost in West Final to Kings, 4-3.
- 2015 – Kings: Missed playoffs, finished 9th in West.
- 2016 – Blackhawks: Lost in first round to Blues, 4-3.
It’s the quickest exit for the Blackhawks since they dropped their first playoff series in 2012. They wound up utilizing that rest and came back stronger than ever to win the Stanley Cup the following year. One of the reasons for the struggle was that the Blackhawks did not have the depth they had in the past. The losses of Patrick Sharp, Brandon Saad, Johnny Oduya, Brad Richards and Antoine Vermette were too much to overcome. General Manager Stan Bowman went out and got reinforcements in hopes of making another long playoff run by adding Ladd from the Winnipeg Jets and Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann from the Canadiens. The trio combined for 2 goals and 3 points with the latter two playing just 4 of the 7 games.
The extra time off for the Blackhawks biggest stars will help, but any hope of significant improvement likely rests with the development of its younger players. Defenseman and rookie Trevor van Riemsdyk played in 82 games this season and led the team with 155 blocks. While the Blackhawks should be able to contend for another title next season with most of its talented core is signed to long-term deals, it is also going to have to say goodbye to several players because of its ongoing wrestling match with the salary cap. They have over $65 million tied up to up to 17 players and do not have a pick in either the 1st or 2nd round of the NHL draft. Despite the changes, the core will remain the same with: Kane, coming off his first career scoring title, Toews, Duncan Keith, Seabrook and Niklas Hjalmarsson, barring any trades of course. Marian Hossa is 37 years old and only in his eighth year of a 12-year contract. The lack of depth will surely be a thing that Bowman will have to address and to provide more support for the Blackhawks on offense in order to make a deep run in the post-season next year.
