With a slew of new faces, the Blackhawks are doing their best to move on without Kane
As we left the Blackhawks locker room after morning skate Thursday, equipment manager Troy Parchman was almost apologetic that Patrick Kane's stall had been overtaken by David Gust.
"Not what I wanted to do," said Parchman, who has been in his role since 1994. "We just have too many players."
Indeed, the expectation was we'd see an empty space where Kane used to sit.
So while Gust's nameplate and '37' was odd, it was just the first jarring sight in what is sure to be a jarring time for everyone associated with the organization.
Kane was dealt to the Rangers on Tuesday in exchange for two draft picks and two low-level defensemen.
Moving on won't be easy for the Hawks, who made yet another move Thursday by sending Max Domi to the Dallas Stars. The trade deadline is Friday at 2 p.m.
"It just sucks to lose guys, especially like (Kane)," said defenseman Connor Murphy. "The impact he's made (is) kind of hard to put into words what he means to the city and the organization. I imagine it's going to be hard for fans coming back and not seeing him or Tazer (Jonathan Toews) on the ice right now.
"Those are things that (we) can't control ... so we've just got to control what we can in how we play."
Domi spoke with Kane after the trade was finalized but wanted to keep their conversation private. The two became fast friends this season and really gelled on the ice during their final weeks together.
Kane had 7 goals in his final four games with the Hawks, while Domi had 4 goals and 10 assists in his last eight games.
"That was a dream come for me to play with your favorite player growing up," Domi said. "I was fortunate. Learned a lot. ...
"Forget about putting the puck in the back of the net in a game and all that stuff; that's just cookies and brownie points. The real meat and potatoes is what you learn from day to day - watching him in the gym, watching him getting ready before a game and before practice (and) just how he handles himself really. ...
"That's something I'll remember for the rest of my life for sure."
The Hawks' roster looks nothing like it did two weeks ago, with Jack Johnson (Colorado), Sam Lafferty and Jake McCabe (both Toronto) also departing via trade.
The top remaining players include defensemen Seth Jones and Connor Murphy, forwards Domi, Johnson, Andreas Athanasiou, Taylor Raddysh and Philipp Kurashev, and goalies Petr Mrazek and Alex Stalock. Jonathan Toews remains out with an illness.
A slew of new faces are now attempting to fit in, which is a big reason Richardson told players to mingle after their 4-1 loss at Arizona on Tuesday.
"This team has been a team all year long and really close," Richardson said. "(So) get together ... and hang out for a while. Watch the sports updates, have a beer and relax and get to know the new team that's here.
"Our work ethic and togetherness all year has kept us together, and we want to make sure we continue to do that, even though it's a bit of a different looking group."
Kane's excited:
Patrick Kane met the New York media for the first time Thursday morning as he prepared to make his Rangers debut against Alex DeBrincat and the Ottawa Senators at Madison Square Garden.
"It's never really real until it happens and then once it happens it starts getting very real," Kane said. "I'm just excited for the experience, the opportunity, the chance to play with a different organization, different players.
"Just excited about it all."
Toews update:
Hawks coach Luke Richardson said that Toews is around the team again but is not skating. Toews released a statement on February 19, saying he is dealing with symptoms from long COVID and Chronic Immune Response Syndrome.
It is not known if Toews will play again this season.
"He's working out," Richardson said. "But I don't know what the next step is."
Reichel returns:
The Hawks recalled forward Lukas Reichel from Rockford on Thursday and inserted him into the lineup for their game against Dallas at the United Center. It was just Reichel's fifth NHL game this season. He has 17 goals and 29 assists in 51 games for the IceHogs.
Luke Richardson isn't sure how long Reichel will remain.
"The plan has been for him all year to have some stints up here but to go down and to be the guy down there," Richardson said. "At some point, he'll probably play playoff games in Rockford and that's a huge experience for guys at the pro level. ... That'll just bring even more to his game when he comes here next year for training camp."