So what did you do on your Friday night? I watched some Ancient Aliens, considered the potential arbitration scenarios for Philipp Kurashev, and went for a nice walk before watching the US Women’s National Team dominate Vietnam in their first World Cup match. My oldest son, being a fan of the futbol, was watching a certain MLS game in Miami. Leo Messi made his first appearance for his new club, and did what legitimate GOATs do: he walked it off. Messi scored the game-winner in extra time. The hype surrounding his appearance got me excited for what the first game of Connor Bedard‘s career will look like when he makes his home Blackhawks debut at the United Center — even in the preseason. I can’t wait.
As I noted in my bullets on Friday morning, last night saw a special ceremony for two all-time favorite Chicago Blackhawks. Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook were inducted, together, into the British Columbia Hockey Hall of Fame. I got a peak at the displays honoring their careers and shared it on Twitter. Right next to each other — as it should be.
Keith and Seabrook weren’t the only guys associated with the Blackhawks organization to receive significant recognition this week. On Thursday night, Rockford IceHogs president of hockey operations and general manager Mark Bernard was honored with the Thomas Ebright Award in recognition of career contributions to the AHL. Bernard has been with the IceHogs organization since 2008 and was instrumental in the Blackhawks buying the team in 2021. Congrats Mark!
In case you missed it, this week a conversation over cocktails and cigars led to a couple pieces here on the site. Which skaters had the best numbers against the Blackhawks historically? And which goaltenders dominated the Hawks most in their careers? A few of the names might surprise you.
The Blackhawks shared some new headshots of players in the organization. What fascinates me about these four photos is Frank Nazar III has not signed his entry-level contract — yet. Kevin Korchinski, Ethan Del Mastro and Colton Dach have, and we’ll likely see Dach and Del Mastro in Rockford to start the coming season. Things that make you go hmm…
The Seattle Kraken got a deal done with Vince Dunn to keep him in Seattle for the next four years. Dunn has really taken advantage of his opportunity in Seattle; he’s coming off a terrific season. I like the term on the deal, even if the dollars are slightly higher than I expected. Good for both sides!
Finally, have we reached the “Who’s on first?” part of the Cubs’ season. They’re apparently planning to start reliever Michael Fulmer — who threw 15 pitches on Friday afternoon — as an opener today. Huh?
