Former Blackhawk Shaw: 'I'll miss Chicago dearly'

Two days after the Blackhawks' season ended in St. Louis after one round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, I asked Andrew Shaw the following question:

"How difficult is it to balance out what you think you deserve (contract wise), and maybe taking a bit less to be with an organization that has a chance to win a title every year?"

The restricted free agent gave an answer that seemed to indicate he'd take a bit less to stay with the Hawks and in a city that he made his home for five years.

"Look where I've made it, and look where I came from," Shaw said. "I've overachieved from what I thought I was going to get out of life. It's pretty exciting to be this fortunate."

Saturday morning, in a conference call with reporters, I reminded Shaw - now a Montreal Canadien after the Blackhawks traded him for a pair of second-round picks Friday - of that question and asked him how close he was to re-signing with the Hawks.

"I think we were pretty close to making a deal, but obviously they have cap issues and it's tough to get around," Shaw said. "This time of year with free agency coming, the draft coming - it was tough. I thought we were close.

"I love being in Chicago, obviously. It's a second home to me. A lot of great memories there. ... Had a lot of friends and family in that city, so I'm going to miss it dearly."

Exactly how close Shaw and his agent, Pat Brisson, were to agreeing to a new deal with the Hawks remained unclear as Brisson did not respond to repeated requests for comment Friday and Saturday.

As much as Shaw will miss the Windy City, he also said he's really looking forward to a fresh start in Montreal.

"When it's all said and done, I'm excited. I'm happy. I want to be a part of this," said Shaw, a native of Belleville, Ontario. "I'm three hours from home, which is pretty big for me and my family. It should be a fun year."

Montreal's general manager is Marc Bergevin, who was the Hawks' assistant GM in 2011 when the team took Shaw in the fifth round. Bergevin signed Shaw to his entry-level deal, which gives Shaw confidence that the relationship they have will help as they negotiate terms of a new contract.

"He's always liked my play," Shaw said. "I don't know if he likes the rat in me or the work ethic. But he's always enjoyed watching me play, and he's made sure I've known that over the years.

"He went out on a limb and brought me into the NHL ... and I've kind of run with it. I owe him a lot, so I'm excited to be teamed up with him again and look forward to having success with him as well."

Montreal got off to an 18-4-2 start last season before crumbling out of the playoff picture when goalie Carey Price went down with an injury that cost him the rest of the season. The Canadiens finished 38-38-6, but clearly have the talent to be one of the top teams in the East when Price is healthy.

Montreal hasn't won a Stanley Cup since 1993, a drought Shaw hopes to end in the near future.

"It'd be awesome to bring the Cup back to Montreal," Shaw said. "I know the city would probably have a riot if that happened. It'd be fun to be a part of. We're going to work as best as we can to achieve that goal."

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