The light at the end of the tunnel would appear to be visible for the Chicago Blackhawks, and last night’s game between them and Vancouver has gotten me to thinking: Are the Blackhawks the first original six team to grasp the new NHL?
Of course, the Detroit Red Wings would beg to differ. They’ve been easily the most consistent team in the league since the lockout, and when compared to other o-6ers they look like deities. While the Canadiens, Leafs, and Rangers have been mediocre and the Hawks and Bruins have been terrible, the Wings have dominated their opposition, and have regularly been amongst the top four teams in the league, both during and after the regular season.
Still, the argument that the Red Wings have made the transition is a cyclical one. Really, they were a dominant team before the lockout. They never had to adapt to a new system much; Rather, they simply continued in their previous course. I may be willing to make a case that the Red Wings were part of the New NHL long before it was ever dreamed up, but they certainly never had to transform their style of management. Draft, sign, win. It’s a tried and true method, and though it remains a mystery how the Wings have managed to stay atop without a top-10 draft pick in ages, it certainly doesn’t demand change on their part.
Chicago, on the other hand, was DOA. They got to the Lockout having suffered through a decade of despair, and were in no shape to tackle the past, let alone the present. The lack of fans in the city, the lack of talent on the team, and the lack of spirit within the management all led to what was hockey’s biggest graveyard.
And so, instead of trying to make peace with the past or win in the present, the Hawks capitalized on the new league to create a new face for themselves.
They are young, talented, and exciting to watch. They’ve attracted more fans since they began using the television, and they hope to make like the Penguins and swim, if not fly!
Though teams like St. Louis and Pittsburgh both made good on the new Cap era to move to younguns as their base, the Original Six still generally pray that their vets will carry them. The Canadiens, admittedly, are looking like they have some good young talent, but it’s mostly middle-of-the-road, as opposed to superplayers like Crosby, Malkin, Johnson, Toews, or Kane.And the rest, barring Detroit, could certainly stand to finish in the basement for a few years in order to gain some ground on those star-clad “newbies.”
The fact that Chicago is the most innovative of the O-6 is striking, but perhaps not surprising, as they were also the least competent throughout the 90s. Survival instincts kicked in, and though it took them a decade, they have perhaps reached a point which will yield them more than their fellow oldies combined!
1 Comment
December 11, 2007 at 11:51 am
I must agree, Chicago seems to be an exciting team once again. They have so much talent on display and they are playing like a team. They are last year’s Pittsburgh Penguins. They look to be a real threat for the next 10 years. Good on them!
I was planning on writing an entry in my blog about the Blackhawks in the next couple of days.