04-14-2006, 10:12 PM
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First Line Centre
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Kalispell
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Hawks 2005-06 Season Review
The Hawks Season Review
What went wrong??
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Looking back at the season record, things turned sour for the Hawks when we traded Marty St Louis for Zdeno Chara. At the time management felt that more defense was needed, and Chara would more than fill the empty shoes of a hulking presence on the blue line.
WRONG!
The entire team fell apart when the big man entered the room. No chemistry, no scoring, no defense, no nothing. The albatross choked the team, and they never recovered, even when Chara was sent packing. Perhaps one could blame the loss of the mighty midget Marty for the disruption of the ship, but management prefers to lay the blame at the feet of the giant Chara instead. He was poison.
Net Woes!
Goaltending was another dead bird hanging around the necks of every Hawk player. With no less than 8 different goalies suiting up for Chicago, the team was never able to get stability in net. Nik Khabibulin was to be the savior of the Hawks, but suffered an injury shortly after arriving. He played one spectacular game and that was it. Ed Belfour played up to his nickname MedHead. Raycroft was underrated and young. Esche was good, we should have kept him. Graham played well for the Caps, but he watched too many tapes of MedHead when he arrived in Chicago.
Trades GONE WRONG!
Then there were a few other trades besides goalies and Chara we wish we had not made. We made them believing that the players would be who they were for the entire season. But players morphed, and we scratched out heads wondering what the heck we had been thinking.
TEAM AWARDS
The Annual Blackhawks Red Skate Awards were made at a beer drinking bash at the country club recently.
Stan Mikita Award 
Leading Scorer--Daniel Alfredsson
Daniel scored 86 points in 86 games. The Hawks feel Daniel has just found his groove, and will score even more next season.
Darryl Sutter Award—
Leadership-- Markus Naslund
Markus spent a lot of time this season trying to get back to Chicago. He loves the city and the team. His efforts to make himself a Hawk over and over again ( the phone calls, emails, flowers) exemplify his commitment to Blackhawk hockey.
Bobby Hull Award 
Most Improved--Martin Erat
OK he wasn’t a Hawk at the end of the season last year, but the management really really regretted trading Martin, so back he came!
Chiko Maki Award
Best Defensive Forward---Martin Erat
With 59 points and a whopping plus 18, Martin Erat is the Bob Gainey of the Hawks
'Taffy' Abel Award 
Best Defenseman --Jaroslav Spacek
You heard it here first! Spacek is a damn fine decfenseman!!
Keith Magnuson Award
Enforcer-- Paul Martin
Paul kept the opposition in line. Either that or he is just a clumsy oaf.
Max Bentley Award 
MVP-- Jason Arnott-
When they said “bring it” Jason brought it! He showed up to play everygame, he created space, he scored, he prevented goals, he did it all, game in and game out. He even sang in the shower.
Doc Romness Award 
Coaches' Award--Chris Neil
The player who distinguishes himself as the most gentlemanly player, both on and off the ice, while demonstrating outstanding performance skills, pride and determination.
Cully Dahlstron Award 
Rookie of the Year Jussi Jokinen-
What can we say about Jussi that we haven’t already said? Nothing, you have heard all, Jussi is nearly a god in the game of hockey. Just wait until the CPHL goes with the shootout!
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While Paul Martin played with his fists. 