Chicago Blackhawks Niklas Hjalmarsson Turns 30 Today

What Hjalmarsson brings to the Chicago Blackhawks. 

I still love to shout his name, but I have come to respect Hjammer for the player he’s become.  He’s best known as a defensive defenseman, but he’s developed an offensive upside to his game as well.  He has excellent passing skills, good stick and gap placement on his opponents, and he reads the game very well.

But Hjalmarsson’s bread and butter is his willingness to stand in front of the puck and block shots.  It’s standard fare in pretty much every game.  Hjammer gets hit by a puck, and struggles off the ice in obvious pain.  He hangs his head on the bench, regroups, then hops over the boards again for his next shift, like nothing ever happened.  This is so common, it’s become a running joke among all the beat writers.

Hjalmarsson ranked sixth overall in the NHL this past season in this category, with 181 blocked shots.  This is also a career high for him.  One of his most famous blocked shots was when he took a puck to the throat in Game 2 of the 2014 playoff series against the Minnesota Wild.  He wasn’t allowed to talk for two weeks, but he didn’t miss a shift, or the next game.

No one is going to question Hjalmarsson’s toughness.  But how long can a 30-year old keep doing what he does, and still be at his best?  That’s a very good question.  Considering Brian Campbell is 38-years old, Keith is 33, and Seabrook is 32, Hjalmarsson doesn’t seem all that old in comparison.  But the abuse he takes on the ice could catch up with him sooner rather than later.

For now, Hjammer seems to be in the prime of his career.  Unlike some of his teammates who have no movement clauses in their contract, Hjalmarsson has a limited no-movement clause, making it easier for the Hawks to trade him.  This leads some to believe he could be trade bait for Chicago to gain some salary cap space.

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I personally think this would be a stupid idea.  Hjalmarsson has played on the first defensive pairing with Keith for the last few seasons.  Before that, he headed up the second pairing.  His defensive responsibility allows more offensive-minded defensemen to jump into the play and make things happen.  And besides, who would block all those shots?!  In my opinion, Hjalmarsson is irreplaceable for the Chicago Blackhawks right now.

I know I’ve established above that Hjammer isn’t known for his goal scoring, but I can’t resist showing one of his goals anyway.  This one was during the first round of the 2015 playoffs, when the Chicago Blackhawks were down 3-0 in Game 1 to the Nashville Predators.   Finally, the Hawks got on the board with this tally from Hjalmarsson.

It’s hard to see from this video, but Hjammer throws his stick down in jubilation after his goal.  The Chicago Blackhawks went on to win that game in double overtime, 4-3.  And it all got started with Hjalmarsson.

Next: How Bowman Has Mismanaged The Salary Cap

Happy Birthday Hjammer!  May your 30’s be as good to you as your 20’s!  How about another Cup?!