Hawks' Cheveldayoff ready to handle what comes his way

Kevin Cheveldayoff was leaving a practice rink in Atlanta, fulfilling his duties as general manager of the Chicago Wolves, when his phone rang.

On the other end was Wolves chairman Don Levin telling him Blackhawks president John McDonough had called and asked for permission to speak with him about the vacant assistant GM position.

Eventually the job was offered to Cheveldayoff and the Hawks had themselves one of the finest young executives in pro hockey.

While Cheveldayoff always hoped an opportunity in the NHL would come along (he had interviewed two years earlier to be the GM in Phoenix), he was not actively looking to leave the Wolves when the Hawks came calling.

Cheveldayoff's record in more than a decade with the Wolves, winning four championships and helping build perhaps minor hockey's model franchise, spoke for itself.

"It wasn't a resume being sent, it wasn't calling up a buddy for a job, and at the end of the day that's how I wanted it to be," Cheveldayoff said.

Leaving the Wolves wasn't easy. In fact, when the Hawks announced the 39-year-old Cheveldayoff was coming across town, Levin said it felt like he was losing a son.

"The relationship I have with Don Levin goes beyond an employee-owner type of relationship," Cheveldayoff said. "We were together for 12 years and had a lot of ups and down. He knew that at some point an opportunity to get to the National Hockey League level was going to happen, but you can't script where or when or what.

"There was never a day that I was there with him that I ever looked at anything beyond the running of the Wolves. It's hard to put into words the times we spent together. Everyone remembers the championships, and certainly those are the good times, but it's how you deal with someone during the rough times, when it's not so much fun, that's the true measure of the relationship.

"I'd like to think that when (Levin) rested his head on his pillow at the end of the day, he knew that every single day I took care of the franchise as best that could be taken care of."

Cheveldayoff's duties as GM Stan Bowman's right hand man will be varied. He will do some pro and amateur scouting, deal with contracts and agents, and represent Bowman whenever the GM is away from the club.

"It's truly an assistant to Stan, in concert with him," Cheveldayoff said. "It's something that will just keep on getting defined and redefined as we keep on moving forward. You're a sounding board, you're a scout, you're a liaison with agents, you're a liaison with ownership - you're all those things wrapped into one."

The Hawks couldn't have hired anyone more familiar with the club. Cheveldayoff was a scouting regular in the press box last season and watched the Hawks become an elite team and one of the biggest stories in town.

"I got the opportunity to watch them a lot last season and I got to be a fan during the playoffs," Cheveldayoff said. "All my neighbors grew up in Chicago and talked about the Blackhawks all the time. I'm a transplanted native now because I've been here for 12 years and got to watch the franchise from an arms-length distance.

"To have an opportunity to work for not only an Original Six franchise, but for a franchise in what I'll call my hometown, is amazing."