Chicago Blackhawks Season Preview: Centers

September 10th, 2010 by TAB BAMFORD Leave a reply »
In the first part of our series previewing the 2010-11 Chicago Blackhawks defense of the Stanley Cup, we’re going to begin by looking down the middle: the centers.

Coming into the new season, one of the few places the Blackhawks have mostly familiar faces on the roster is at center; the only center that left was one-year rental John Madden. While Madden played an important role on last year’s team, especially on special teams, there is no doubt that roles are continuing to evolve with the Blackhawks and his services (and salary) were no longer needed.

Based on their playoff performances, an argument could be made that the Blackhawks’ top three centers are as good as any in the NHL. Certainly the scoring output by Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal is more impressive, but not many have ever accused Malkin of playing defense. Both Jonathan Toews and Dave Bolland showed in the postseason that they’re legitimate Selke Award candidates, playing exceptional defense while still contributing at a high level offensively. (As an aside, if Staal’s foot issues weren’t becoming more complicated, ther ...

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