Somehow the Hawks must move Anisimov

I simply disagree.

Stone for 8 years is too long.

How about 7 years?

I think the biggest mistake that all hawks fans seem to make lies in their hopes for their defensive prospects.

How do you plan on signing Debrincat next season and then Jokiharju, Boqvist, Mitchell, Krys, and Beaudan down the road

I think 4 is ideal.

Yep. All these Hawk fans think all of them are going to pan out into top 4 NHL D.

Hawks should hope at least 1 (Boqvist) can be a true #1.

This guy gets it ^

Jokihaju also appears to have already panned out to at least be top 4

I 110% agree with you on this. I REALLY WANT everyone to be like how Joki is panning out, but It's really kinda ignorant to assume they ALL will be like Joki. Joki was the 8th Dman drafted in his year...are 7 other teams really that bad at finding talent? No. Not every single prospect is going to work out...heck Chad Krys may just decide to leave due to the log jam of Dmen!

Agree.

What I would do is take it slowly and not "Panik"...get it... A Compliance Buyout is looming...that's ~$7M when Seabrook gets bought out....Probably where Debrincat gets compensated. Seattle is looming...that's BOTH a chance to shed cap, but also indicates another large increase in cap. I'll take these 1 by 1. Debrincat is the hardest to work out, but mentioned earlier. OR you bridge him. Joki has money due when AA and SAAD are done. Maybe we don't extend them? Boqvist hasn't started his 3 year clock. The world changes in 3 years. Chad Krys may never play for the Blackhawks! I hope Stan Signs Ian Mitchell after this season is over, but again 3+ years down the road. Beaudin who knows. You're assuming every single one of these prospects are going to be game changers...AND IF THEY ARE...Freaking Awesome!!! You trade a few away for lottery picks!

The new CBA is in 2020 and will likely carry a compliance buyout which would be used on Seabs. Furthermore, you have the Seattle expansion draft in 2020 in addition to a large cap increase that will come with it. Hawks will have zero problem signing Debrincat. Boqvist is 3.5 years away, Mitchell, Krys and Beaudin would be 4.5 years away. Lots can happen. Beyond that Saad will be done as well as AA.

I know Ward has played good this season, but I really want to see Delia and Forsberg next year fight over the starting job next season.

Here's where you are right; no not all will work out. Here's where you are wrong; between Boqvist, Jokiharju, Beaudin, Krys and Mitchell, 3 of those guys based on how they're currently playing will work out. Here's the other thing; Dahlstrom is looking very good, Murphy is coming into his own and Gus has 7 goals in 33 games played....it's not like our next wave isn't looking good. We need 4 solid guys, a 5th when Seabs gets a compliance buyout, and they have plenty of depth to chose from.

The biggest mistake would not understanding the weaknesses we have upfront right now that's putting added pressure on the D and goalie. Kahun, Hayden, Kampf, Perlini, Fortin, Martinsen, Kruger, Sikura are all pretty average bottom 6 pairings....none of the stand out that you can't find elsewhere. Add to in inconsistancies in line mates Kane is dealing with and no consistent 1st line RW and the forward group is just a mess with only Kane, Toews, Debrincat and occationally Saad keeping it from completely falling a part.

Forsberg will never be more then a backup at best. Ward needs to provide experienced depth, Delia can step up. Next in line would be Namilov not Forsberg.

Come on! Forsberg has played 1 season! Give him some time! It's not like he's ever had a decent team in front of him. I like have these discussions with you, but today you're quick to call people "what they are." At least this afternoon. Maybe you had a spicy day? Dahlstrom has played all of 15 career NHL games. 4 games this year. Yes, you're right that in those 4 games he's looked like a solid stay at home option, but still a very small sample size. Perlini for a 5th? Forsberg's played in 1 NHL season. Stan can sign these guys cheap and waive them if needed. Very little to lose.

***EDIT*** not trying to stir or start anything. Apologies if it was taken that way. I do like your analysis on the rosters you post. It's detailed!

Forsberg is 26 going on 27 and Delia is 24. Delia is having clearly a better season in the AHL so he's the next man up and has a higher upside purely due to 2 years younger if nothing else. Forsberg can be a backup in the league but not a #1 goalie. It would be a bad situation, see last year, if the Hawks bring up two AHL goalies full time; they need a vet with them, too much risk otherwise.

Dashlstrom has looked solid in Rockford and he's showing it in the NHL so far. I'm cautiously optimistic. Murphy is looking really good too. Gus is a liability in his own end but in neutral ice or in the offensive zone he's very good, pair him with a stay at home guy and Gus will flourish, he has the ceiling to play on the 1st line if he can reach his potential.

I'd trade Gustafsson instead of Forsling, I've never understood the Forsling hate. He's 22, it takes time to gain consistency. Gustafsson could get the hawks a late first back at the deadline at this point, which could be a huge asset in a couple years. Is the 3rd line really an ideal spot for Strome and DeBrincat? They're doing pretty good this season. Rather not lower their ice time or weaken their confidence.

I wouldn't call it Forsling hate persay, but he was better last year during his stint with Rutta than this year. I REALLY wanted to see him reunited with Rutta...it didnt happen. Oh well. When he played RD with Keith...I would have rather seen Manning or Davidson. He was TERRIBLE. Mental mistakes, BAD BAD passing, leaving both Keith and Crow to dry. I'm ready to say thay he should EXCLUSIVELY play LD. At LD hes been pretty darn solid. Hes worth another contract and more time to develop.

He shouldn't be playing on his off side in the first place really. Most rookies don't do that and the hawks have plenty of veterans that should be doing that instead. He's worth another contract for sure. I've seen Gustafsson make many mistakes too but since he scores he gets more slack. If Gus can net a late 1st I'd deal him in a heartbeat. Let the young kids play and develop.

Gus isn't done developing; there is more upside to Gus even at 26. He has all the tools, he just needs to do better with net play in the defensive zone; do better at lifting sticks off the puck. Otherwise, he's solid. He has the speed, the shot, passing skills, blocked shots, he Fenwick and Corsi scores are actually good. These are natural instincts you can't teach but you can teach better net presence and lifting the stick.

Now, I'm not saying Forsling should go either but to think Forsling is a better option or has better upside then Gus I simply don't agree with thus far with Forsling. I like them both and like Dahlstrom too, which is why I don't Hawks need to bring up Krys or Beaudin next year. Keith, Gus, Dahlstrom and Forsling on the left is solid and will only get better. On the right Murphy is very solid, Jokiharju needs to get better as he has fallen off in the last few weeks, and Seabs isn't going anywhere next season unless Coach Q takes him so Hawks either keep Boqvist in the minors or bring him up to rotate with Jokiharju and Seabs. Carrying 8 defensiveman isn't a bad think for next season. I also think it's unfair to put Jokiharju on the 1st line, there's a learning curve and bouncing him to the juniors tournament is a very good thing for his confidence.

One thing we as fans are not is patient but the Hawks need to commit to this core and stay the course IMO then make decisions in 2020 offseason which rookies are ready; Mitchell, Krys and Beaudin.

I agree with you completely. MOST dmen take longer to develop. Joki is rare. Hopefully Boqvist too. I'm just concerned that if we don't at least sign Ian Mitchell and Chad Krys...then they're going to leave for nothing and that would be bad.

We own the rights on Mitchell and Krys until 2021 I believe.