Where We Stand

CHICAGO, IL -- It's hard to say for certain what's going to happen over the next few months. The trade deadline is just under two weeks out, playoffs start mid-April, the Cup is awarded in early June, the Vegas draft is in late June, and the general draft is right after that. The next few months are going to be crazy, that's for sure.

So, where do the Blackhawks fit into all of this? Well, I'd say they're right in the thick of it.

In order to talk about all that needs to be said, we need to go in order, and probably in different blog posts. Which means we should probably start with the trade deadline.

WHO'S HEADING OUT

There have been a lot of names thrown around with regards to who's staying in Chicago, who's going, and who's coming (back?). In regards to who makes for trade bait, the Hawks actually have a nice handful of potential trade chips.

Scott Darling
Look, I don't want to lose Darling. He's been great this season, filling in when Corey Crawford was out while he recovered from his appendix surgery. He's been great since Crawford has returned, too, helping the team churn out some pretty good wins and racking up a .927 save percentage this season over twenty games. His record isn't bad either-- at 13-5-2, he's doing quite well, and that makes for some pretty lucrative trade bait. Darling becomes an unrestricted free agent in the summer, which makes him good for a team that's looking to up their goaltending and get into the playoffs (Dallas Stars, anyone?). He's said often that he doesn't want to leave Chicago, his hometown, but if he can be the number one goalie somewhere else and take more money, why shouldn't he? It'll be interesting to see what happens with him either at the deadline or over the summer.

Marcus Kruger
Again, I don't think losing Kruger would be the best plan of action. I'd love to keep him, given his incredible penalty-killing skills and willingness to go right up to the net. At a $3.083 million a year per CapFriendly, he might be a bit harder to move around, but I wouldn't take him off the trading block just yet. He might make a nice package deal with some of the Rockford kids (especially defensemen, which I'll get to in a moment)--but likely no draft picks for this year's draft, since it's in Chicago and the Hawks will likely capitalize on those picks if they can. He's only racked up eleven points this season (2-9--11), but at +6 and certainly a force to be reckoned with on the penalty kill, I don't think I'd be surprised if he left Chicago.

Trevor van Riemsdyk, Erik Gustavsson, Viktor Svedberg, Ville Pokka, Gustav Forsling, etc. The Hawks seem to have a surplus of young defensemen in both Rockford and Chicago. These young guys might make for great trading chips, especially because they're young and likely won't cost much for other teams to pick up for the rest of the season. Plus, there are definitely some teams in the league that need some help on the defensive end, and none of these guys are terrible options. Van Riemsdyk will likely head to Vegas if he stays through the end of the season, so the Hawks need to keep that in mind as well going into the offseason.

Andrew Desjardins and Jordin Tootoo
I can't say either of these guys has really impressed me this season, which is disappointing. Desjardins and Tootoo are both important players, of course, but they just don't seem to produce as much as maybe Joel Quenneville or Stan Bowman would like for them to. They aren't bad, though, and for teams looking for a little more strength on their bottom-six, these two are pretty good options, and for that reason, I could see them heading out of Chicago at the deadline.

Brian Campbell and Michal Rozsival
An finally, as two unrestricted free agents next season, it's hard to tell what the Hawks will do with these two defensemen. I've liked Campbell this season, just because he's not afraid to play offensively if he needs to, and definitely adds weight to the team. Rozsival seems to be deadweight most nights, and with his recent bout on the IR that kept him out for seven games, the Hawks have been 5-2 without him. I think it's probably time for him to retire or for the Hawks to cut ties altogether.

WHO'S COMING IN

There are so many players on the trading block across the league right now, and the Hawks have only a few major weaknesses. The first issue to address? Toews needs good, consistent linemates. He's said it himself, that it's tough when your linemates are a constant cycle and rarely the same night-to-night. There are some pretty nice players out there who could fill the spots nicely.

Patrick Sharp
Listen, he was inevitably going to be on this list. As the trade rumors started swirling around his name, I got more and more excited. Sharp is one of my all-time favorite players, and to see him on a line with Toews again would be incredible and a great start to another Cup run. He's had two issues with concussions this season, but since coming back, he's been on fire, tallying Realistically, I think the Hawks might have to wait until the offseason, when he becomes a restricted free agent, because he's going to have to settle for much less to come home to Chicago. Is he willing to do that just yet? I'm not so sure. But, nonetheless, I could see him returning to Chicago again, and I think he could revitalize that top line.

Patrick Eaves
Another veteran forward that would look very, very nice with Toews. I rather like Eaves, and I think he's an underrated player, actually. However, I think with the Stars looking at potentially not making the playoffs this season (making the inner Stars fan in me very sad), they might make fewer changes to their lineup during the season and just wait out until the offseason. But, they're not totally out of contention yet, so I wouldn't be surprised to see Eaves heading to Chicago before the deadline.

Matt Duchene
I know, I know. You're thinking--"but, Meghan, the cap!!!" I know. The cap sucks, and might make this move trickier than the Hawks are willing to bargain for, but come on. Duchene either on the top line with Toews as a winger or on the third line with Hossa? That would be pretty nice, especially because the two have played on Team Canada together a handful of times. With a cap hit of $6 million a year, though, it would be very, very tight, and Bowman would have to do a lot of shifting and shaking around, which could cause potential problems in the future. I still think Duchene could be on the table, if the Hawks are willing to make the sacrifice necessary to do so.

Gabriel Landeskog
I think an argument for Gabriel Landeskog could be made here, too. He would look very, very nice with Toews on that top line. With a hit of $5.5 million a year, he's going to be another one that would be hard to acquire with so little cap space, but moving one bigger contract out to fit him in might not be a bad idea.

Honorable Mentions: James van Riemsdyk (TOR), Tomas Tatar (DET), Rick Nash (NYR)

The Hawks second issue to address is some stronger defense. The defense hasn't looked terrible as of late, but it definitely needs a little help on the back end.

Kevin Shattenkirk
Believe me, he's not my favorite option. But, he's not a bad one to consider. He's a rough-and-tough kind of defenseman, and I think he might bring some grit to the team--even just for a cup run. His cap hit is only about $4.2 million, so that wouldn't require so much movement on the Hawks' side of things as maybe some of the other players would. While I'm not sure a trade would logistically work out, I wouldn't rule this guy out just yet.

Cam Fowler
I know, young defensemen is what we're trying to stay away from with trades. I know. But, honestly? I'm not opposed to this one. He's a good, solid player, and has obviously been playing well for Anaheim with thirty points (11-19--30) this season already. I like this option, personally, because while he's young, he's twenty-five, and has some experience playing in the NHL, whereas a lot of our younger defensemen don't. Plus, Anaheim is searching for some forwards, which we seem to have a lot of both in Chicago and Rockford.

The options for defensemen are either hush-hush or just very little this season, which is alright. I think Coach Q is alright with the lines the way they are now, and I think the defense is starting to get into more of a groove now. Hopefully that groove can stay.

 WHO'S STAYING

More likely than not, the Blackhawks won't get rid of the core guys--including Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Corey Crawford, Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson, or Marian Hossa. I've heard some of those name swirl around in trade conversations, but I think losing any of them would not be a smart move going into the playoffs. Also likely protected are Artem Anisimov and Artemi Panarin, the two Russians that have dominated the scoring sheets on the line with Patrick Kane.  I've been rather impressed by the rookies this season, and I think Coach Q has, too, so I'd suspect Ryan Hartman, Vinnie Hinostroza, Nick Schmaltz, Tyler Motte, and Tanner Kero will all stay, be it in Rockford or Chicago. Richard Panik and Denis Rasmussen are likely to stay as well, since they've both been putting up good numbers and have been playing the style of hockey the Hawks thrive on.

With all of that being said, though, some of these guys could still leave. I don't think it'd kill the team if any one of them left, but some certainly would leave a bigger dent than others. It'll be interesting to see who the Hawks save, deal, and drop in the next week and a half. Especially because Bowman said he isn't going to make a big deal before the deadline, but he's definitely said that before. I'm not sure I trust it just yet.