Searbook expects to be ready for next season but will not go to Edmonton

Twelve days after the Blackhawks reconvened and began preparing to face the Edmonton Oilers, Brent Seabrook finally sat down and conducted a Zoom interview with reporters after practice Friday.

The veteran defenseman was as open, honest and forthright as we've ever seen him during a career that has spanned 15 years with the Hawks.

The No. 1 takeaway is that Seabrook — who will not be accompany his teammates to Edmonton on Sunday — expects to be ready for the 2020-21 season.

And not only that, but the 35-year-old expects to play and to contribute at an extremely high level.

“I want to come back and be not just be a good player for the Blackhawks, but a great player in the league,” said Seabrook, who underwent three surgeries in five weeks early this year. “I'm very capable of doing that.”

Seabrook opened his 19-minute Q&A by telling us he didn't want to talk until “I had some answers” about how he felt on the ice. Seabrook had skated 12 times before camp began, but when the whistle blew for that first drill he said he was “probably the most nervous I've been since I was 18 years old at a training camp.”

The decision to stay in Chicago came during a conversation with GM Stan Bowman on Thursday.

“My understanding of the way the whole thing works is there are 31 players and they all need to be playing,” Seabrook said. “The longer we go in the playoffs, you never know what's going to happen. We could lose 10 guys in the first game, then Brent Seabrook's taking up a spot and can't play.”

Seabrook scored 3 goals, had 1 assist and averaged a career-low 18 minutes, 9 seconds in 32 games this season. He was also a healthy scratch three times, the third one coming against Colorado Dec. 18.

The next afternoon, the Hawks announced Seabrook did not travel to Winnipeg and that he was undergoing further medical evaluation. Eight days later, Seabrook was deemed out for the season, and he would later undergo surgeries on his shoulder and both hips.

“I haven't been able to throw a baseball or a football for a long time,” said Seabrook, who originally injured the shoulder when he was 18. “Sleeping on it has been tough. We did an MRI and there were definitely some issues that Dr. (Michael) Terry could see.

“The alarming thing to me was there were two separate issues (that) he couldn't tell me if they needed to be fixed until he was in my shoulder.”

Once the decision to fix the shoulder was made, Seabrook asked Terry to help alleviate the back pain he'd been experiencing for years. Things got so bad that he was having a difficult time sitting, playing with his kids on the floor and even tying his shoes.

“When he looked at the hips he figured out there was some stuff we could do to alleviate a lot of that pressure and that stress,” Seabrook said.

So how does he feel now?

“I feel incredible,” Seabrook said. “Getting down and helping my kids tie their shoes has been nice; tie my own shoes has been nice. Put on a sock. Things like that.

“I'm very happy with the decisions that I made. Couldn't have asked for a better surgeon and the help he's given me through this. It's been great.”

Now, what about next season? While the Hawks' blue line is getting more crowded, it would obviously benefit them if Seabrook — whose contract carries a massive $6.875 million cap hit until 2023-2024 — could again play at a high level.

While admitting those three healthy scratches stung — and that he doesn't feel they were deserved — Seabrook left no doubt what he expects of himself next season.

“I still think that I'm one of the best defensemen in this locker room, and if given the chance and the opportunities that some guys get then I would definitely be able to live up to those expectations and exceed them,” Seabrook said. “I've done it my whole career.

“A lot of people want to make a lot of my contract and my age, (but) if given the opportunity … you'll get everything I've got. I've got lots left.

“So I'm excited to get healthy and feel the best that I can feel, and I'm looking forward to camp next year.”

Murphy update :Defenseman Connor Murphy said he tweaked his groin last week, but expects to be ready to face Edmonton when the Hawks begin a best-of-five play-in series vs. the Oilers on August 1. Murphy did not practice with the team Friday, but was able to work with a secondary group of players on the Fifth Third Arena's alternate rink.