Who Would Make An All Time Blackhawks Squad?
This time of year is tough for us hockey fans. Pre-season games are so close, yet so far at the same time. And while Blackhawks certainly have nothing to look forward to in terms of the Blackhawks this upcoming season, pretty safe to say we're all ready for hockey to be back.
During this time of year, social media can be an interesting ground for hockey fans. You never know what kind of questions or hypothetical scenarios you will run into on Twitter that will really stop and make you think. Just so happened to come across one of those the other day:
For most Blackhawks fans, the names worthy of being on this list is probably not that long (at least it shouldn't be). There's only a few names at each position that you could make a legit argument for. Here is who I have on the Blackhawks all-time team:
3 Forwards: Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, Patrick Kane
2 Defensemen: Duncan Keith, Chris Chelios
Goalie: Corey Crawford
When it came to the forwards, the two easy ones for me were Mikita and Kane. Mikita is still regarded by some Blackhawk fans as the greatest to ever put on the Chicago sweater. And people still consider Patrick Kane to be one the best, if not the best, american born player in the history of the sport. The third spot for me came down to Toews or Hull. And for me, it all came down to how important they were to their team. That is not to be taken as Toews isn't an important piece to his teams success, because that is not the case at all. I just think there is a better argument to Bobby Hull being the MOST important piece to the success of the Blackhawks in his era.
For defense, I think we can all agree that Keith is a no doubter. To see how much of an impact he had while here, just go look at his first game back this past season when he was with the oilers. The Blackhawks faithful can't thank him enough for what he has done. Chelios (even with with the differences he had with Blackhawks fans towards the end of his career) had to be put on this list simply for his accomplishments during that time. The Blackhawks weren't the best during that time, yet he still managed to win two Norris trophies as well as a multiple time All-Star.
At goalie, there were really only two options. Tony Esposito or Corey Crawford. For me, it's Corey Crawford. For one reason and one reason only. The era that Crawford played in was way harder to play in net than Esposito. Yes, Crawford played with more protective gear, but the on-ice skill levels then and now are just not comparable. On top of that, Crawford has the two cup wins as well. Easy choice for me.
Disagree with my choices? Let me know on Twitter @mike__wilson11
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