Chicago Blackhawks coach Jeremey Colliton Key to Dylan Sikura’s NHL Success

The Chicago Blackhawks AHL prospects have had a history of struggling upon their arrival in the NHL. Jeremy Colliton could be a key factor in easing that transition period.

Often times, it really does look like Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman has no idea what he’s doing. Too many of his efforts result in nothing but a big swing-and-a-miss.

When he connects, though, he isn’t just hitting singles. No, Bowman’s MO as a GM is much more Todd Frazier or Jim Thome-esqe. He doesn’t hit for average, he’s swinging for the fences every time he steps up to the plate.

More often than not, it results in a poor free agent signing or a trade which eventually comes back to bite the Hawks.

That said, when Stan does get it right he knocks it out of the park.

Despite Bowman’s hit-and-miss history, Jeremy Colliton just might be the next to join his track record of home runs, whether his record reflects it or not.

The Chicago Blackhawks are more than one Russian-super-star-whose-name-resembles-a-bread-company away from truly contending for a Stanley Cup again. They’ll have enough cap space to make a significant splash in free agency this summer, but they’ll need the majority of their reinforcements to come from within.

This, my friends, is where Jeremy Colliton comes in.

One of Colliton’s strong suits is his ability to develop players and get the most out of them. For example, through 46 games last season David Kampf put up just 11 points in a very minor role.

Through 33 this year, Kampf has taken on a lot larger role and put up 12 points (3 G, 9 A) and an addition minute and a half more of average time on ice.

Under Colliton in the last 7 games, Kampf has played as much as 18:00 minutes and over 15:00 in 6 of 7. He’s been noticeably better under Colliton than he was under coach Joel Quenneville.

Additionally, because he is using the same system he ran in the AHL, the transition for AHL players coming up to the NHL has been significantly easier under Colliton than it was under Q.

Carl Dahlstrom, for example, told WGN during the first intermission of the Winnipeg Jets game that the move to the NHL has been smoother for him this season in comparison to last year because there isn’t a new system to learn. Rather, he’s focused on playing his game.

This could be huge in the development of Dylan Sikura.