Chicago Blackhawks: New CBA extension is great news for Hawks

The Chicago Blackhawks are hoping to bring some young guys in while their legends ride off into the sunset.

The Chicago Blackhawks have some legendary players on their team right now. They aren’t all in their prime anymore but it is hard to see many players having as much of an impact that they have had in a very long time. With that said, we want to see those guys ride off into the sunset with the new guys taking the torch from them. That is why the new collective bargaining agreement extension is a very good thing for the National Hockey League and this roster specifically.

The Blackhawks are going to see Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Jonathan Toews, and Brent Seabrook all retire during the 2020s. It might be earlier for some than others but it will happen eventually. That is why passing the torch to guys like Adam Boqvist, Ian Mitchell, Kirby Dach, and Alex DeBrincat is very important.

If there was a lockout right smack in the middle of it, there would be some very tough headlines for this team. For one, and perhaps the most important, it could slow down the development of some of the young guys. There are young guys here already and more on the way via their prospect pool and upcoming drafts. Hockey being delayed or canceled for a long period of time would be bad for some of these guys. It is bad enough that they had to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The other reason it would be awful is the fact that it would take away some time of watching the legends sail off. Guys like Kane, Toews, and Keith are going to decline eventually but they are always going to be fun to watch because of the memories they bring to the table. We want to watch them play as long as we possibly can.

With this, we also learned a few other things. August 1st is going to be the day that the “return to play” plan begins. COVID-19 needs to cooperate for that to happen but the bubbles in Edmonton and Toronto could help that. We also learned that there is a good chance that there is going to be Olympic participation during this in 2022 and 2026. We don’t know which Blackhawks players will be Olympians by that time but it is exciting nonetheless.

This is the kind of news that all hockey fans needed after a rough couple of weeks following the “return to play” plan. All fans of this game should be happy as long as they are able to handle things in a safe and secure matter. We are almost there, keep that mask on in public!