Hawks add NHL legend Scotty Bowman to front office

The Blackhawks welcomed in another legend Thursday, but this one is anything but ceremonial.

This one is Scotty Bowman, a member of 11 Stanley Cup-winning teams since 1973 - including nine as head coach. This one is the NHL's all-time leader with 1,224 regular-season victories and 223 postseason victories.

And this one is aiming high as he readies for his new role as Senior Adviser, Hockey Operations with the Hawks.

"I can come in here and help this team get to the next level," Bowman said. "I'm looking forward to getting this thing where it should be."

And the Hawks are looking forward to the energetice 74-year-old accomplishing that goal.

"We want to play in front of a full building, we want to be on television, but we want to win, and that's what today represent - winning," said Hawks president John McDonough.

Though it wasn't easy leaving Detroit, the pull of working with his son Stan, the Hawks' assistant general manager, and being around family proved too great for the elder Bowman.

"It's always a tough decision to leave an organization like Detroit," he said. "But (ownership there) understands the situation."

Bowman, who spent the past seven years in Detroit working as a consultant after retiring from coaching, said his focus with the Hawks will be mainly on player development, and that he'll be "another set of eyes for (general manager) Dale (Tallon)."

"He's going to help us get to where we need to go," Tallon said.

Hawks chairman Rocky Wirtz is looking big picture with the signing of Bowman to a three-year contract.

"We don't have a mentor in-house, and that's what he's going to be," Wirtz said. "From coaching to scouting to minor-league affiliates - he'll be a mentor to a lot of people."

For the conspiracy theorists who see Bowman's arrival as a warning sign that Tallon's job might be in jeopardy if the team gets off to a bad start or has a poor season, Wirtz was quick to defend his GM, who is in the final year of his contract.

"It's quite the contrary," he said. "We're just making the team better, plain and simple. We're enhancing our organization, not doing this as a defensive measure.

"It's not a threat; this is just to help us."

Asked if he was happy with the job Tallon is doing, Wirtz answered with a firm "Absolutely."

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=224926">For Stan Bowman, it's 'dream come true' <span class="date">[08/01/08]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=224891">Sassone: Bowman's presence should benefit Tallon and Savard <span class="date">[08/01/08]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=224886">Rozner: Bowman move signals Hawks' policy shift <span class="date">[08/01/08]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>