Leafs aren't trading Nylander

As a Hawks fan I wouldn't want that either. You know the Hawks are trying to alter their identity a bit. Shaw's an important piece of that. William Nylander goes the opposite way. Not saying he's a terrible player. I don't think his contract is very good which is another (different) factor, but keep Shaw. Move Gus for prospects/picks. This will also makes it harder for Stan to sign people next year.

Actually it might be pretty fair trade considering on ice value, needs, and term of players. But as exo2769 noted above...another 3.1m Nylander's cap hit over Shaw, makes more cap issues next season.

No doubt, but keep in mind Crow isn't going to be back and Delia will take his spot as Lehner's backup. Maatta, Murphy and or De Haan get traded and Gus isn't going to get re-signed. With Boqvist, Mitchell, Beaudin, Gilbert, Holm, etc. the Hawks are very deep with defensive prospects. We can count on at least 2 making the team next year. Another scenario is Saad may get moved. All in all, the Hawks could make it work with the cap.

That said, I'm spitballing here and looking at team needs. I don't love losing Shaw as he brings energy to the ice every game, but as much as I hate to admit it, the Hawks have Caggs who plays a very similar role. Gus is moveable given the depth of ELC's Hawks have on defense that can fill Gus's role, specifically Boqvist. The Hawks are definitely in need of a top 6 winger and I think the exponential factor of having both Nylanders playing together could bring the best out of both of them thus solving 2 out of 4 top 6 winger positions. I think for Toronto, obviously D is a need and believe Gus's game fits their style of play to a 'T'. Shaw would also bring a energy pest dynamic Toronto lost with Kadri, not to mention he grew up a Leafs fan.

I think the trade works for both teams needs. It's a big risk for Chicago to take on Nylander's contract though. If Nylander is only putting up 45 to 50 points a game and scoring 20 goals that would be bad of course which is why there is risk, but playing with his Brother and centered by a big bodied net front guy like Dach, could allow both Nylanders to open up the ice together and reach their potential.

I’m just curious because, exo, your definitely not the first to say this, but what is the team trying to change its identity to? I only ask because I have no idea what they’re trying to be anymore.

Sure. Colliton and Bowman have been vocal about being "harder to play against". Right now they're not head and shoulders more talented than other teams. (Not to sound condescending to other teams, but that's how you win 3 cups in 5 years. You're just better.) So getting more physical is a key part of their plan. The link below has a blurb about this too. Per Tyler Cameron...Last year the Hawks averaged 16.5 hits per game. This year through 4 games is was 33 hits per game. That's definitely more hitting and consistent with what Stan and co were looking to do. A different argument is whether this is the right direction.

https://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=102078&blogger_id=253

That’s fair. That’s a good description too. However, am I correct in assuming that this only because Colliton is coach? Furthermore, is it fair to say they want this style because the blues won the cup? The reason I ask questions like these is because Chicago used to make their own style, not copy it. I miss those days. The days when we used to be who we were and not follow others, much less our arch rival of all teams! I get being tougher to play against, but why can’t being a faster team be the way that we got tougher?

I’m just brainstorming of course. At first I was happy with colliton’s hiring, but now I’m scared this team wants to be tougher and less exciting. It sucks knowing this is may be the future of the team, cuz we used to be the most exciting team in the league, but now we are copycats. It’s depressing.

I don't honestly know the answer to that question. Euro Hockey (Colliton's only real background that I'm aware of) isn't typically MORE physical. It's larger ice, more a speed game, and typically LESS physical.

My belief is that Stan is trying to acknowledge 2 things here. A.) The Hawks were super NON-aggressive. So it needed to be addressed even if it were a little. but what's even more important to me is B.) Change doesn't happen overnight. The league transition from physical to speed isn't as far along as people say. It's not just the Blues, but also...Who did they play? BOS is also very physical. Who won it the year before? WAS is very physical. Ovi/Tom Wilson/John Carlson gets about 150 hits a year. Brooks Oprik might be a 3 wheel Jewel Osco shopping cart, but he hits. Point being...We can't have 12 Patrick Kane's for forwards....even if it's Hart winning Patrick Kane. Players have specific jobs to do. 12 Patrick Kanes would lead to a historically bad PK...even compared to the Hawks already historically bad PK.

As far as Hawks in the past. Even when the Hawks were winning they still had big bodies that could move. Brower, Ladd, Kopecky, Hossa, Sharp...they're all about 200 lbs each. And even bigger with Ben Eager and Big Buf (Buf was fast too). THAT'S when we can say we "sure we have less hits...it's because we're controlling the puck" Last year we needed to admit to ourselves we had less hits NOT because we were controlling the puck, but more so because we just didn't want to hit anyone else.

Okay, let me say first, if the hawks long term plan is to make something in the vein of 2010 team, I’m all for it. It was the perfect blend of speed and physicality. It was a joy to watch. However, given Q’s coaching style and hockey tactics, I doubt it’ll ever happen. Colliton is way too defensive and it bugs the hell out of me.

Now, having said that, I went to the game last night and have thoughts. Number one, if Stan’s plan is to get us more physical, don’t do it because of the blues. They are, BY FAR, the anomaly, not the trend. They were, for lack of a better term, a team of Destiny last year. As for the Caps, people always think that team was defensive or all physical. The caps, in point of fact, were ridiculously fast! They’d set up their 1-4 trap, turn the puck over, and have the puck in the net before you knew you made a mistake. Yes they hit, but they definitely played more modern than people give them credit for. The bruins, absolutely plenty of speed when it counts. The blues, not so much.

Which brings me to last night. Last night, the team was doing very well. I have no idea well here the top six went, granted, but defensively we did very well (PK included). However, the biggest difference last night for us our lack of speed. Jesus our lack of speed! The amount of chances we missed last night because we couldn’t outskate anyone was ridiculous. Hell, it took a fluke bounce off the golden boy for his first goal to get on the board. If you wanna lack of speed btw, everyone enjoy Dach, this 2C/3C is forced to be our future 1C and he can’t outskate derek engellanyd. In other words, this kid was invisible save for his lucky first goal. Did absolutely nothing in our own zone.

Honestly, I just think we both see a different NHL at this point. The hawks won’t be a playoff team until they get faster again and o do think the change from physical to speed is bigger than most people think. Kirby Dach is already scaring the hell out of because he looks like he doesn’t know where to go half the time, and when he does, he’s too slow to get there. We need to draft some better skaters though, that much was clear last night.

I can see where you're coming from. I didn't fully mean that speed wasn't important I just meant that we can't yet fully sacrifice size in order to get that speed. Vegas is one of the fastest teams out there. We do tend to have different points of view, BUT that's NOT a bad thing! I thought Kirby was fine. Used him body well. Had good Hockey IQ. If it wasn't for Flower having a GREAT save (I think) he'd have a secondary assist on Kane's shot too. As a side note...Marc Andre Fleury stood on his head last night! Lehner was also quite good. Agreed that Dach's goal was a fluke goal, but being in the right place at the right time (to me) is part of Hockey IQ. He missed a few clearing chances. He didn't appear to be very fast either. Both of those take time though. Yes, even the speed will take time. High schoolers just not fully developed yet.