Background: The Hawks completed their first season under new ownership and the results were mixed. Although the team made the postseason for the first time in two years, ownership was not happy with the team's performance especially that of stars Sharp, Little, and Hamonic who were all shipped off as a consequence of the team's early playoff exit.
The new owner has shown he's not afraid to pull the trigger on a deal (traded captain Toews, bluechipper Jack Campbell and stars Keith, Stafford, Grabner, Korprovski, Burns, all last year) or purge players from the roster he felt were underperforming (bought out a slew of players including Brian Campbell, Martin, Hjalmarsson, Kulemin, Bolland, Matt Greene).
This year: Chicago looks to continue building on a core of young guns in Brassard, Gallagher, McDonald, Dillon, Irwin, Redmond and cornerstone Carey Price. Cap space was cleared during the off-season to allow for more deals and free agent signings, something the new owner missed out on in 2012. Expect more blockbusters throughout the year from this active team.
Strengths: Ownership with deep pockets
Savvy management team
Available cap
Star goalie about to enter his prime
Weaknesses:Few FNHL ready prospects in the pipeline
Few high draft picks
Left Wing
Center
Needs: LW's (currently has none)
Depth at Center
Prospect goalie
Future Outlook:How Chicago performs in the coming years will depend on the team's ability to stock their Baltimore Ravens minor league team with talented prospects. Nevertheless you can expect Chicago to be hyper active on all front to assemble a competitive franchise.
Blackhawks will be a contender again in 2013-14 with new stars to be added to the roster via Free Agency and the trade market. There's plenty of excitement and optimism brewing in the windy city.
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