Chicago Blackhawks: Stan Bowman does only one thing well

Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman has been criticized for the mistakes he has made, but there are aspects of his job that he is really good at.

There have been many critics of Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman. In his time as the general manager, the Blackhawks have won three Stanley Cups. Although he wasn’t the one who setup the foundation and core of the team, he did manage to keep it intact and give the Blackhawks a fighting chance each year.

However, he has made many mistakes. With many questionable contract extensions, Bowman had to include valuable young pieces to clear up space. With the Hawks most likely out of contention for the Stanley Cup this year, it won’t last long, because of the ability Bowman has to draft talent.

Mark Lazerus of The Athletic brought up the point about how Alex Debrincat was a second round pick for the Hawks and is already one of the top goal scorers on the team.

You can call it a steal or a gem, but give credit to Stan Bowman these past few years for drafting extremely well. With the addition of Debrincat and getting a glimpse of the  farm system at the World Cup Juniors not to long ago. Let’s take a look at the previous drafts that Bowman has made according to hockey reference.

2011: Philip Danault, Brandon Saad, Andrew Shaw

2012: Teuvo Teravainen, Vinnie Hinostroza

2013: Ryan Hartman, John Hayden

2014: Nick Schmaltz, Dylan Sikura

2016: Alex Debrincat

2017: Henri Jokiharju, Ian Mitchell, Evan Barrett, Jakub Galvas

2018: Adam Boqvist, Nicolas Beaudin, Philipp Kurashev

Those are some great names that have either helped the Blackhawks win a Stanley Cup or have a bright future with this team. Although many may question this thought by saying that a lot of the picks have yet to play in he NHL. They seemed to have proven their worth during the recent World Cup Juniors play.

Jokiharju, Boqvist, Mitchell, Barratt, Entwistle, Galvas, and  Kurashev all participated in the World Juniors and played extremely well. Jokiharju finished with a gold medal for Team Finland and Evan Barratt cored a game-winning goal for the United States against Slovakia.

The Blackhawks might be struggling to win games, but due to Bowman’s keen eye in the draft, they have a bright future with the core, young prospects, and their goaltender Colin Delia.