Not that it’s Earth-shattering news, but friend of the program (and probably soon to be re-assigned for doing so) Scott Powers of ESPN Chicago is reporting that Kevin Hayes won’t sign with the Hawks before the August 15th deadline and will hit the open market. Most everyone has known this would be the case since about April when Hayes’s college career at Boston College ended. The Hawks have tried everything they can offer-wise, shrinking the term on his entry-level so he can get to restricted free agency quicker. Some have speculated it’s an ill-feeling after the trade of his brother Jimmy. The more likely one speculated is that Hayes doesn’t see himself cracking the lineup in Chicago immediately, or at least not the top six where he might have to play.
It’s always a weird mix at Prospects Camp. You have the made men of 1st round picks and this year they’ve added the spice of kids already in the organization. You have the mid-level picks who definitely have something to prove before they had back to whatever campus or Canadian backwater to work on their games. And you have the college free agents who very well may never wear a NHL logo on their chest again and are doing their best to make it count.
I don’t know how much you learn from any of it, especially with a team like the Hawks who have a pretty much set top roster and one in Rockford that will have a lot of returnees trying to move up the depth chart. But it can’t hurt to look. So I moseyed down there today to catch the scrimmage. Just some random observations:
It’s always a weird mix at Prospects Camp. You have the made men of 1st round picks and this year they’ve added the spice of kids already in the organization. You have the mid-level picks who definitely have something to prove before they had back to whatever campus or Canadian backwater to work on their games. And you have the college free agents who very well may never wear a NHL logo on their chest again and are doing their best to make it count.
I don’t know how much you learn from any of it, especially with a team like the Hawks who have a pretty much set top roster and one in Rockford that will have a lot of returnees trying to move up the depth chart. But it can’t hurt to look. So I moseyed down there today to catch the scrimmage. Just some random observations:
It didn’t come with the fireworks we thought tonight. We all held out breath when it was reported that Hawks’ and Sharks’ reps were at the NHL table filing a trade, but in the end it just ended up being a swap of picks so the Hawks could move up. Which leads you to believe that Nick Schmaltz was a target of theirs and they went out of their way to get him.
What Schmaltz sounds like is basically a slightly bigger, American version of Teuvo Teravainen, with perhaps more finish. But Schmaltz’s game is definitely pass-first, and everyone raves about his vision and hands. He doesn’t have the size you might like, but is very strong on his skates and squirts out of traffic well.
Schmaltz has a rep for tacking a shift off or even a game off here and there, but I’m not going to dismiss a 17-year-old because his focus might waver at times. We’ll see what he does at North Dakota. He has to work on his defensive game, but who doesn’t at that age? Once again the Hawks have drafted for serious skill, which seems to be a habit of theirs. As we said, past Teuvo and Danault the Hawks looked a little short down the middle in the system. They addressed that tonight.
Tomorrow should be more interesting, as if they’re going to dump Oduya for picks and cap space it will be then.
The Hawks will do other things besides swing some trades this week. They’re also going to pick some kids (unless Stan trades the entire draft for some player because he temporarily switches brains with Mike Ditka. Because that went so well. Lesson, kids: Don’t switch brains with Mike Ditka).
Looking at the Hawks system, they are short on centers. Big shock, I know. But once you get past Teuvo Teravainen, really the only center prospect is Phillip Danault (and who knows if he’s involved in any of these trades). Mark McNeill has been moved to wing, whichever Broadhurst it is that plays center doesn’t project to be an impact player, Tyler Motte is a couple years away, and so on.
They’re better stocked on the blue line. We know Stephen Johns will most likely make the Hawks next year, and behind him there’s Adam Clendening, Klas Dahlbeck, David Rundblad could all make appearances for the Hawks next year. They’re all ready for sure. There’s a couple in a wave behind that as well. But today we’ll focus on the d-men, and tomorrow will look at some forwards. Maybe. Depending on my sobriety level after the US match.
Time for our semi-regular look at the Hawks prospects that are not in Rockford.
As always, we start in Chestnut Hill where Kevin Hayes is the third-leading scorer in all of the NCAA. He’s at 22-29-51 in just 33 games for an Eagles side that is basically running away with Hockey East and will be a prohibitive favorite when the tournament rolls around in April. Now, there’s one huge caveat here in that Hayes skates on a line with college hockey’s leading scorer Johnny Gaudreau (it’s going to be fucking hilarious when Brian Burke trades Gaudreau for a third-line winger because he thinks Gaudreau “is too small to have sandpaper.”). So how much Hayes’s numbers are a by-product of his center and how much he’s responsible for is a debate one could have all day. Still, it’s pretty encouraging. Anyway, Captain Stairwell managed just an assist this past weekend in a double-header with UMass-Lowell. This was after he managed two goals in the Beanpot a couple weeks back.
While everyone else makes futile attempts to figure out why the Hawks suck when the games go over 60 minutes (um, luck?), let’s pass over that debate and check in on how the kids outside the organization at the moment are doing.
Unlike last year, where McNeill and Danault were some of the Hawks most exciting prospects plying their trade in the Canadian hinterlands, this year sees the more intriguing ones roaming the the quads and woods of American college campuses (in one’s case, sometimes in a garbage bag).
We’ll start out east in Chestnut Hill, MA, where Kevin Hayes has put up 35 points in just 22 games with Boston College. This past weekend, Hayes went a little bonkers with two goals and three assists in two games versus Providence and Brown. Hayes does have the sweetheart spot in the BC lineup, as he has been playing with one of the most dynamic players in the NCAA in Johnny Gudreau. But hey, you gotta make something of it when it’s given to you and Hayes has done that. While I only got brief glimpses of Hayes last year, I’ve always thought he was the better pro prospect than his brother Jimmy, as he’s a slightly smoother skater and has better hands. Hayes the Younger won’t be a Hawk next year or anything but should get a good look in Rockford.
His teammate Chris Calnan also scored this weekend, and has seven points on the year playing in the BC bottom six.
Preview: NHL
Crow-Less:Chicago Tribune
TV Money: TSN
That won’t help attendance in the desert: ESPN
Maple Leaf Projections:TSN
This headline explains so many things: Globe and Mail
Organizational round-up Wednesday is what it’s become. Let’s get to it, starting in the juniors up in the hinterlands.
In the Q, Dillon Fournier was a -1 in two games for Rouyn-Noranda. He was also named to the QMJHL team for the Subway Series against Team Russia. For those who don’t know, the Subway Series is six games, two games each from an All-star team of each junior league, against Team Russia. It’s a sort of precursor for Canada to see who will compete for the World Junior roster. From what I’ve seen Fournier won’t be making Team Canada, but I suppose you never know. On the year Fournier is 7-10-17 and +16 in 22 games.
Also in the Q at Victoriaville, Brandon Whitney went 1-1 in two stars, but only gave up four goals total (two in each) on 73 shots. The numbers on the year are still unsightly, at 3.62 GAA and .896 SV%. But the poor kid is seeing over 40 shots per game, so he may be puck-shocked soon.
