Blackhawks GM Bowman says team can compete for playoff spot next season

Chicago Blackhawks fans dreaming of their team adding a top-six forward or high-end defenseman for next season are going to have to settle for some cold, stark reality: It's probably not going to happen.

The team you saw at the end of last season — along with a healthy Corey Crawford and a few tweaks here and there — is the one that will attempt to erase that ugly campaign from your minds and bring playoff hockey back to Chicago.

That was the message sent by general manager Stan Bowman as the team continued its development camp Tuesday at MB Ice Arena.

“Most of the major moves (around the league) have been made,” Bowman said. “I've still had some talks with teams and some agents, but nothing is really close to happening.”

So while it's certainly possible Bowman pulls the trigger on a major deal (perhaps involving Brandon Saad or Artem Anisimov), it's more likely he uses his recently newfound cap space to secure up-and-coming stars like Nick Schmaltz or to go after bigger-name free agents in future seasons.

According to capfriendly.com, the Hawks are about $5.5 million below the cap thanks to the trade that sent Marian Hossa, Vinnie Hinostroza and Jordan Oesterle to Arizona last week. Bowman talked about the move for the first time Tuesday, leading off by saying how tough it was to move Hossa, even though the future Hall of Famer will never play again.

“It's probably appropriate to start by saying Marian is going to go down as one of the greatest Blackhawks ever,” Bowman said. “He's a tremendous person, first and foremost. …

“Obviously, it was a difficult trade from a sentimental perspective. … But on the practical matter, it was becoming challenging to try to operate with that contract here.”

While it might surprise some that Bowman is comfortable going into next season with the roster constructed as is, he feels a playoff-caliber team is intact.

Of course, it starts and ends with a healthy Crawford. If the Hawks' goaltender can't play 55-65 games, another long summer — and possibly the firing of Bowman and coach Joel Quenneville — can't be ruled out.

Bowman said he ran into Crawford on Monday and talked to him “for a while.” The GM said there's no changes to the goalie's condition and that he's “going to be training hard, preparing for camp.”

The Hawks aren't monitoring Crawford — or anyone else, for that matter — during the off-season, but they do have a program for each player to follow.

“Corey's been away for a bit,” Bowman said. “When we do see him it's good to check in and see how he's doing. I think he's going to spend more of his time in the next few weeks here in Chicago, so that'll be good.”

After Crawford, Bowman continued to preach that all the Hawks need is their young, up-and-coming stars to take another step and players such as Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Saad to rebound after disappointing seasons.

He believes every single one of the veterans is motivated to prove to the city of Chicago, their coaches, management and to each other that they can make the Hawks a force to be reckoned with again.

“When you've been there and you've been able to reach the ultimate (goal), you know how great that feeling is,” Bowman said. “And you know when you're not there, it's not a fun time.

“I think we've got a very excited group to get back to the playoffs. We're not looking at the past. We've done that — we've done our assessments.

“Now we're excited, we're looking forward and we're hopeful for the next year.”