Heading into the summer, it was assumed that a few more players from the 2010 Stanley Cup-winning Chicago Blackhawks would be gone. And what happened was just that.
The Hawks traded all of Troy Brouwer, Tomas Kopecky (who was a free agent), and Brian Campbell over the summer, loading up on draft picks and hoping to replace each of them with cheaper veterans.
While the team has been doing just fine without the likes of Brouwer and Kopecky in the lineup, on most nights, they have been unable to replace the presence of Campbell on a blue line that has been struggling throughout the year, but especially lately.
The Hawks sent Campbell to the Florida Panthers in exchange for forward Rostislav Olesz. It was a move purely motivated by money, as Soupy carries a cap hit over $7 million, while Olesz’s hit is roughly half of that. The financial side of the deal worked, as the Hawks have one of the best salary cap situations in the league.
With the benefit of hindsight, it’s pretty ...
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