Chicago Blackhawks Morning Links- Change Of Plans

Good morning Chicago Blackhawks fans! After weeks of talking about Will Butcher, it appears that the Chicago Blackhawks have no interest in courting the free agent. 

The Chicago Blackhawks have a serious issue on their blue line, when Michal Rozsival is slated preseason to be one of the top 6 defenseman or a rookie in Jan Rutta.

This is a team with Stanley Cup aspirations, but with that kind of defense while missing Niklas Hjalmarsson, is a team that will have to outscore their opponents on a nightly basis which isn’t a lock anymore without Artemi Panarin on Patrick Kane‘s wing.

All of this makes the news that the Hawks aren’t trying to sign Will Butcher a bit strange, unless they had already scouted him a lot and thought he had Drew LeBlanc kind of talent while being a former Hobey Baker Award winner.

More from Blackhawks News

• Blackhawks vs Flames: Date, Time, Lineup, Betting Odds, More
• Three Takeaways from the Blackhawks’ Win vs Vancouver
• Blackhawks: Why Derek King is the Right Coach moving forward
• Marc-Andre Fleury Carries the Blackhawks to a 4-2 Win vs Seattle
• Instant Reaction: Blackhawks top Kraken for first time in history

If not, I don’t understand why they aren’t trying to sign the recent free agent.  Depth at the blue line is a serious concern especially when the top 2 defenseman are in their 30’s, and the rest of them are huge question marks when the season kicks off.

The one player that everyone does seem to be turning the corner on is Connor Murphy. I’m not sure why, it could be his enthusiasm at the Blackhawks convention or fans just researched his stats which weren’t too bad for a very bad team.

If you ask anyone the Blackhawks biggest weakness entering the season, I’m pretty sure everyone says it’s the defense! So why not Butcher?

Here are some morning links to start your Friday morning!

I didn’t know flash mobs still existed, but here is a video of a Chicago Blackhawks flash mob from Daley plaza (Blackhawks)

Remember that one time when Ben Smith was a Blackhawks hero (Second City)

Brent Seabrook must step up this season which may be too late in his career if you ask me (FanRag)

Here is a very scary place, into the mind of Joel Quenneville (Hockey Buzz)

Jonathan Tavares says there really isn’t any rush to get an extension done (Sportsday)

Is Jack Eichel the most underrated young star in the NHL (Sporting News)

What if the Arizona Coyotes never moved to Glendale (Puck Daddy)