Are The Blackhawks A Dynasty?
Scotty Bowman, a man with 14 Stanley Cup rings, might know a thing or two about dynasties.
Of course they are you knuckleheads. I’ve joked since the Blackhawks beat Boston in 2013 that they were a dynasty. Anybody with a brain knew they weren’t a dynasty with only two Stanley Cups, but now they’ve earned the distinction. Never missed the playoffs, five trips to the Western Conference Finals, a President’s Trophy, and THREE STANLEY CUPS. If you don’t think that’s a dynasty in 2015 then you need dynasty lessons. The NHL post 2005 is designed to prevent teams like from having sustained success. And it’s worked. The Hawks have had to trade away Byfuglien, Ladd, Campbell, Leddy, Bolland, Niemi, Brouwer, Frolik and a ton of young guys who are thriving other places like Pirri, Hayes, and Ben Smith. That group right there is good enough to form the core of a playoff team. Yet the Hawks just keep winning. The Islanders of the early 80s had 16 guys that won four Stanley Cups. The Oilers and Canadiens’ dynasties have similar retention rates. If the Hawks were allowed to keep everyone they’d probably be working on their 6th Cup parade right now. So no, they aren’t at the level of those other hockey dynasties(yet), but they meet the minimum threshold right now. The 90s Cowboys, early 2000s Patriots, Shaq-Kobe Lakers, and the Tim Duncan Spurs are all considered dynasties. The Hawks just happen to be in the middle of their dynasty…because Toews is 27, Kane is 26, Keith is 30(and will play forever), Turbo is 20, and their prospect pool is STOCKED. May the dynasty reign for a thousand years. Viva La Hawks.
“We keep growing, we keep maturing, we keep wanting it more and more”–The Captain.
And do you think Barstool would sell Hawks Dynasty shirts if they weren’t a Dynasty?