"D!" "Fence!"

So the title defense starts tonight... were you even aware? Hard to believe that it's time for hockey again, especially given how late last season went. Throw in the fact that the baseball playoffs just started, that football is only at the quarter post, and that it's pretty warm here in Chicago, and I'm just not feeling very NHL-ie right now.

Some day I'll bore you with my theory on how the hockey season should be timed (think Stanley Cup Playoffs filling the "Dead Zone" every night), but for now the NHL powers that be somehow think it makes sense to be discreet as possible when kicking off your season. You know, might as well start playing when the sporting world's attention couldn't be more diverted from you.

For the Hawks, this might actually be a good thing. As much confidence as I have in them (if I was forced to bet everything I had on just one NHL team to win it all, no question it'd be the Hawks, and that's not because I'm a homer), there's no question the Hawks are gonna need a bit of time to get everything working as they want it. There are just too many new faces, too many unproven assets, to think that there won't be growing pains, probably significant ones.

So maybe it's best that the city and our sports commentators will be distracted by the Bears O Line, another Boozer injury, and baseball teams that don't suck to hammer the Hawks for problems that are guaranteed to happen... but not guaranteed to last. I've got faith in this squad, faith in the moves that were made, faith in the overall approach to building and retaining a contending squad that this front office is following.

See, my cleverly crafted post title has two meanings. First, it represents the start of our title defense - that's a damn exciting thing to be a part of something we need to remind ourselves about. When you start doubting this squad, just remember that at the end of the day, everyone else has been shown beatable - these Hawks have yet to be.

Second, I wanted to highlight the specific reason I think WAY too much is being made of the Hawks off-season talent exodus. Simply put, the Hawks did not lose a whole lot of what made them one of the best defensive teams in the NHL and at the end of the day, in hockey just like all sports, defense is what wins championships.

Cliche, but so incredibly true. Look across every sport and you'll see the same thing - teams w/ no offense but a great defense able to win titles, while high octane offenses w/o any D always fall short. And equally as convincing - teams with great offenses only taking home the title once they finally were able to upgrade their D (think Rams, Colts, and Saints in the NFL, or the Yankees finally getting some SPs last year in baseball).

So I'm just blown away by the universal belief (based on all of the predictions I've seen) that the Hawks will not win the Cup this year. Sure, the Hawks lost a 20-, two 17-, a 10-, and two 7-goal scorers from last season. But they still have their Top 5 goal scorers and just as important, their top 7 assist men.

Yes, Versteeg, Buff, and Ladd all were valuable offensive pieces that could score and create a lot more than most role players. But not only is the majority of the Hawks high-powered O still intact, the incredible amount of talent that is there should allow the incoming role players to quickly become productive players in the opponents' end.

However, even if these youngsters don't make up for all the lost scoring (and I think they'll be close, but definitely still short), this Hawks team can still be just as good because their defense is largely intact or improved. Not just their blueliners, but their key defensive forwards and their goaltending.

Your Top 4 defenseman - all back, all still in their prime or possibly getting better (I think both the Hammer and Seabrook still have upside, scary given how good they are). Your three two-way centerman - all back, with Bolland following up a real playoff coming out party that had to establish him as one of the better shut-down pivotmen in the league.

On top of that, it's distinctly possible the Hawks have upgraded the most important single position to defense - the goalie. Niemi played solidly down the stretch and through the playoffs, gave the Hawks some big games and big stops when they needed it, and in all was the kind of goalie you can win a Cup with (an obvious statement now, but still the best way to describe him). But Niemi wasn't going to carry you to any Cups (as the Sharks will learn, if their defensive work doesn't drastically improve) and in my opinion did nothing more behind a stellar Blackhawks defensive scheme than maybe 15 or even 20 other NHL goalies could have done.

In his place, the Hawks got a guy in Turco who showed, prior to his two-year hiatus, that he could be a real beast in the playoffs, carrying a middling Dallas team to the Western Conference Finals. Back in the day he thrived in the defense-first system that former Stars coach Ken Hitchcock utilized, posting some of the best season totals out of a goalie of the last few decades. And while I think a tad bit too much is being made of it, going from the basically stickless Niemi to one of the league's top puck-handling keepers is gonna help this team on both ends.

So with three great centerman and four stud defensive blueliners back, as well as a possible upgrade in goal, doesn't it seem a bit stupid that all of the national "experts" jumped off the Hawks' bandwagon so quickly? Can't you see this squad playing the same lockdown D that carried them to one of the league's best regular season marks and then, of course, the Cup, given the great majority of the same outstanding defensive pieces?

No question Madden, Versteeg, Ladd, and Sopel, even Buff, Frasier, and Eager were contributors on the defensive end that will be missed. But are you really worried that they aren't replaceable, at least defensively? The Hawks 4th line might not have the same offensive spark it had in the past, the third line might not be the same defacto scoring line it was last year. (I say might - who knows, as the Hawks do have a lot of nice young talent that might just surprise).

But defensively, doesn't it seem plausible that the athletic, hard-working, playing-for-their-hockey lives group of youngsters the Hawks have will be real assets? Especially given JQ's demand of such? Especially given the way two of your biggest stars and leaders - Toews and Hossa - kill themselves in their own end? Especially given the fact that these new guys won't be in roles demanding much more of them than to be complimentary pieces that do all the little things?


Here's how I see it - the Hawks will stumble a bit out of the gate as the players all learn to skate with so many guys they've never shared ice time with. They'll have some troubles early without Campbell's 20-25 minutes a night for the first month or so. They'll run into some issues juggling around the youngsters, figuring out which ones are keepers and whom should play where.

But along the way they'll still be winning at a decent clip, just because they are so talented and because the NHL features a lot of teams that are very beatable. And then they'll get Campbell back, just as they've finally learned what they've got in all these new faces, finally settled on some semblance of regular lines that work top to bottom. Sure, an injury or two might crop up to slow them down, but again, the core will be enough to overcome whatever happens, just like last year (Hossa, Bolland, and KJohnsson all missing significant time).

The Hawks will enter the playoffs as a top seed, or maybe just as a #5, but still dangerous and favored by a lot of pundits. They'll scuffle a bit in the first round, as once again the newbies have to figure out what playoff hockey entails and JQ has to respond by getting the right lines set for the postseason's unique style of play.

But again, the sheer talent combined with their outstanding system will be enough for these Hawks to triumph in what is a very winnable NHL. Detroit? Always dangerous, but getting old in spots and with an unaccomplished goalie. San Jose and Vancouver? Has all that much changed for a pair of teams shown wanting year after year, both in talent and heart? Washington? Remember the title of this post. New Jersey? How many times does Brodeur after to fail when it matters for people to accept he's just not that good anymore? Pittsburgh and Philly? Probably the two teams I fear the most, but definitely both beatable if the Hawks can be what I think they will be.

So to borrow from the world of sports' greatest homer announcer - "Sit back, relax and strap it down" because the Hawks first title defense in almost 50 years is about to begin... and I'm betting it's gonna be a successful one that you're gonna want to be a part of.