Roster battles enter critical stage
With two preseason games down and six to go for the Blackhawks, the roster is slowing taking shape.
The most interesting competition is taking place on defense with two or three jobs wide open. A lot is going to depend on if general manager Dale Tallon decides to keep 21 players, two under the roster maximum, because of salary- cap concerns.
It's a good bet the Hawks go with 21 - 22 tops - at least to start the season.
Defense: Brian Campbell, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Brent Sopel are locks with Cam Barker a close fifth unless the Hawks decide to deal him and his $2.83 million cap hit.
That leaves Jordan Hendry, Matt Walker, Keith Carney, Aaron Johnson and Niklas Hjalmarsson fighting it out for possibly two spots.
The experienced Carney is in camp as a tryout for a reason, perhaps as insurance against a deal. Walker's physical ability might give him the advantage over the others.
"We're going to have some tough calls to make, so everybody that's playing has to make an impact every night," coach Denis Savard said.
"We're looking for a fifth and sixth defenseman, so his role is to bring some energy, to be probably our best defensively and be a guy that's going to block some shots and kill penalties."
Forward: Savard on Friday listed his top six as Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Dustin Byfuglien, Martin Havlat and Andrew Ladd in whatever positions one wishes to slot them.
Dave Bolland is the third-line center, and the fourth line is set with Adam Burish at center between Ben Eager and Craig Adams.
That leave two jobs open at wing on the third line and possibly one spare. Troy Brouwer has had a great camp with a goal and an assist in two preseason games and is a front-runner to stick at this point.
"His conditioning is in the top 10, and it shows on the ice," Savard said.
Jack Skille and No. 1 draft pick Kyle Beach are going to be tough to send away because of their upsides, and Kris Versteeg does a lot of things well. Those three have a big week ahead of them.
Igor Makarov's sore knee that has limited his practice time might have taken him out of the picture for now, and there's no more talk from the Hawks about Petri Kontiola possibly being the No. 2 center.
Veteran Kevyn Adams still is an option, though he remains an unsigned tryout. The Hawks may be turning up their efforts to make a deal for a veteran center, with Washington's Michael Nylander still a prime target, according to sources.
Goaltender: This is simple. Cristobal Huet will be here, and he will either split time with Nikolai Khabibulin or get the majority of work with Corey Crawford as the backup.
Khabibulin's $6.75 million salary is a major roadblock to the Hawks trading for a center since they are only about $1.5 million under the NHL's salary cap.
There doesn't appear to be a team out there willing to trade for Khabibulin, but an injury somewhere could change everything.