It's commonly accepted that the defending Stanley Cup champion is the team to beat going into the upcoming season. In the case of the Chicago Blackhawks, their championship was the perfect storm of cap-friendly contracts and maturing talent. Had they failed against the Philadelphia Flyers — or worse, against the Nashville Predators — we'd all be talking about what a disaster the Hawks are. Instead, they're the systematic dismantling of a champion.
It's a harsh reality, but it doesn't take away the 2010 Stanley Cup from Hawks fans. The fact that everyone saw these cap headaches coming certainly doesn't make the trading of key Cup-run players such as Dustin Byfuglien any easier.
Consider this: by matching the San Jose Sharks' RFA contract of four years, $14 million to Niklas Hjalmarsson, the Blackhawks are about $100,000 under the cap with players left to sign, including goaltender Antti Niemi (as of press time). Even if the Hawks bury Cristobal Huet's contract in the minors, there's still little room to work. In other words, another trade will have to happen.
As it stands, the Blackhawks have essentially lost much of their secondary scoring (Byfuglien, Kris Versteeg, Andrew Ladd) and one of their primary penalty killers (Brent Sopel). Something else has to give, which rips apart much of the vaunted depth of the 'Hawks.
Suddenly, the Western Conference is now a lot more wide open, as the Blackhawks get weaker, while other teams address their needs. Last year, the Blackhawks and Sharks were a tier above the competition. Right now, it's not so much.
A look over the border shows that the Vancouver Canucks made a splash to beef up their defense by acquiring Dan Hamhuis and Keith Ballard following a hit-and-miss performance by goalie Roberto Luongo. In fact, their blueline is so stacked that someone like Kevin Bieksa will probably be dealt to bring in additional scoring depth.
Vancouver's first-round opponent, the Los Angeles Kings, are actively pursuing scoring depth. As of press time, the Kings are currently meeting star winger Ilya Kovalchuk for face-to-face talks. There's no doubt that the Kings are in the market for a scoring winger, but the true growth of the Kings comes from within. Drew Doughty, Jack Johnson, Jonathan Quick, and Anze Kopitar will all be a year older and better. Should the Kings get Kovalchuk or another scoring winger, they'll be in a neck-and-neck battle with the San Jose Sharks for the Pacific Division.
Even the second-tier teams are showing progress. The Predators are in a similar stage as the Kings, where young blueline studs Ryan Suter and Shea Weber are just hitting their stride. Up front, the Predators suffered from an awful power play, and they adjusted by essentially swapping aging Jason Arnott for speedster Matthew Lombardi. This also opens up a spot for talented prospect Colin Wilson to step up. The Phoenix Coyotes brought in scoring veteran Ray Whitney and have a bunch of young talent led by Kyle Turris and Viktor Tikhonov just waiting for another crack at the NHL.
As for the old standbys? The San Jose Sharks have lost some talent, but not to the same extent as the Blackhawks. Goaltender Evgeni Nabokov is now playing in the Russian KHL, and his job will go to the platoon of young Thomas Greiss and Finnish goaltender Antero Niittymaki. Some might call that a lateral move, as Nabokov offered up inconsistent play from time to time. However, the most important part of San Jose's offseason was retaining Patrick Marleau. At the same time, young veterans like Joe Pavelski, Devin Setoguchi, and Marc-Edouard Vlasic continue their maturation process.
And let's not forget Chicago's old rivals, the Detroit Red Wings. While the Wings haven't made any significant moves during the offseason, it's difficult to count out any offense led by Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk. Also, rookie goaltender Jimmy Howard now comes with a year of NHL experience. Barring a sophomore jinx, the Wings should be able to compete at the same high level as before.
What does this mean for the Western Conference? While the Hawks have young stars up and down their lineup, players like Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith are essentially playing at their peak output right now. Chicago's shedding much of its depth while their key players aren't on a pace to mature towards stardom because they're already there. Can Antti Niemi repeat his performance in net? Remember, Niemi doesn't even have a full NHL season under his belt, as Cristobal Huet was tagged as the starter when the season opened.
In short, the Hawks have lost a lot. Some teams added a lot while other teams have young players hitting their stride. The result is a Western Conference where there will likely be very little separating the very top and the eighth seed — perhaps even the 10th seed.
And remember, it's only mid-July. There's still plenty of time for the other teams to further tweak their rosters. The only real certainty is that the Chicago Blackhawks won't be adding more talent into the fold.
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