Blackhawks Blog: Day at the Beach

Corey Erdman
2008-06-24 01:07:32

Forgive me for my absence, Blackhawks fans!

The playoffs and the draft present very busy times over at the Sports Forecaster, those which call for me to be chained to my desk and glued to the TV (ouch, right?) for weeks at a time.

But now that I'm free, alive and kickin', let's catch up on a plethora of important news, shall we?

First off, a big congratulations to Patrick Kane on his Calder Trophy victory. It goes without saying the magnitude of this award, and what it means for the Blackhawks franchise as a whole. A presiding theme in my blogs thus far has been the connection between the early-90s 'Hawks and the present day edition, and Kane's victory presents yet another link. The last Chicago player to take home Rookie of the Year honors: Eddie Belfour.

I have absolutely no doubt that the HurriKane (think it'll stick?) will be the franchise player in the Windy City for years to come. Maybe  his goal totals will never be astounding, but Kane is already an elite playmaker at the age of 20. Never will an instance come up where he "isn't meshing well," because quite simply, he makes his linemates better. Already he is one of the most pleasant interviews in the game, always with something witty to say, and always representing the team to a T.

Now, onto the newest member of the tribe, Kyle Beach. GM Dale Tallon, in my opinion, wisely chose the firecracker out of Everett (WHL) 11th overall this past weekend. We've all heard the horror stories about his attitude--how Hockey Canada wanted nothing to do with him. However, as Mr. Kane himself told me during a recent radio interview on Hardcore Sports Radio, attitude is one thing that can be changed. What will remain is his natural scoring talent, laser wrist shot and the will to win. A character like Beach is exactly what the 'Hawks need again--a Jeremy Roenick type, with brash and in-your-face style on the ice. He'll have a great mentor when it comes to agitation in Adam Burish, and hey--maybe Beach can remind him how to score.

A former intern with The Hockey News, Corey Erdman now covers his beloved Blackhawks for THN.com. He also writes for The Sports Forecaster, Sports & Leisure Magazine covering the Rochester Americans, and is a contributor to The Hockey News and Hockey Business News.