Ep. 135: Dimitri Filipovic on the state of the Blackhawks

On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Dimitri Filipovic from Yahoo, ESPN and The Hockey PDOcast joins Pat Boyle, Slavko Bekovic and Charlie Roumeliotis to discuss the state of the Blackhawks. How far away are they from contending? Filipovic also talks about the Blackhawks' defensive struggles, what they can do to turn it around, how they should spend their money this summer and which NHL prospects jump out at No. 3 overall. 1:00 - How far are the Blackhawks from contenting? 1:45 – Did the Blackhawks miss a golden chance in this year’s playoffs? 3:45 – Are the Avalanche an example for the Blackhawks to follow? 4:50 – How badly do the Hawks need a top-4 defenseman? 6:15 – How good (really) is Erik Gustafsson? 8:30 – Evaluating the Blackhawks’ defensive personnel 10:15 – Is this defensive system right for the Blackhawks? 13:45 – What franchise are the Blackhawks modeling? 15:00 – Did the Hawks wait too long to move on from Quenneville? 16:20 – Going worst-to-first like the Islanders 18:20 – Blackhawks need to beef up 20:20 – Building the Blackhawks with a Bruins outline 22:00 – The need for more secondary scoring 22:50 – Finding the right line for Patrick Kane 24:50 – Draft prospects that the Blackhawks should consider at No. 3 28:50 – Could Artemi Panarin stay in Columbus? 30:20 – Spending on top-end players or filling multiple needs 32:10 – Extensions for Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome 33:35 – Should Kane have been a Hart finalist?