Except for a couple of hours of sleep followed by a meeting with coaches, a session with the media and, for captain Jonathan Toews, a call from President Barack Obama, it has been a raging party for the Blackhawks Jersey since they captured their third Stanley Cup in six seasons.
Few can begrudge the Hawks for letting off steam after a season coach Joel Quenneville described Wednesday as "a grind," but soon reality is going to return in the form of saying goodbye to some teammates.
"When you go through special moments like this you don't want anybody to part ways," a raspy-voiced Toews said at the United Center. "There's something great about this team and we want things to stay the way they are right now but unfortunately that's not the reality. We all kind of understand what might play out this summer."
"Might" is a hopeful word but "will" would be more accurate. There is no question general manager Stan Bowman is going to have to make some moves to the clear space under the NHL's salary cap for next season. Bowman has to deal with dual $10.5 million cap hits for Toews and running mate Patrick Kane Jersey and expected raises for restricted free agents Brandon Saad and Marcus Kruger, among other items on his agenda.
That means decisions are coming — and soon with the NHL draft scheduled for next weekend — as Bowman will attempt to build a roster for the 2015-16 season below a salary cap that is expected to be around $71 million.
"There are going to be some changes, but that's the same thing for every team," Bowman said. "Nobody brings back the same exact team. There are a lot of things we haven't quite locked down yet. We're going to do our best to keep the guys that we can."
Stanley Cup tracker: Interactive map of the trophy and celebration
Stanley Cup tracker: Interactive map of the trophy and celebration
Losing teammates because of cap issues is nothing new, especially for those who were with the Hawks during runs to the Cup in 2010 and '13.
"It's inevitable, right?" Kane said. "You're never going to have the same team two years in a row, so the team always changes. It's part of the business, part of the game, and it's always sad to see faces leave the team. Hopefully, there is not too much damage this summer."
While Bowman is adept at manipulating the books, the challenge is that the Hawks have 14 players signed for next season taking up around $64 million in cap space. That means a roster upheaval is lurking and bringing back any combination of unrestricted free agents Johnny Oduya, Antoine Vermette, Andrew Desjardins, Michal Rozsival, Brad Richards and Daniel Carcillo would appear difficult.
Then there is the likelihood of significant trades and players with large contracts not named Toews, Kane, Marian Hossa, Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Brent Seabrook, could be in play.
Names being bantered about most frequently to be sent packing are Patrick Sharp and his $5.9 million cap hit, Bryan Bickell ($4 million), Kris Versteeg ($2.2 million) and even starting goaltender Corey Crawford ($6 million).
"Right now, I'm not really thinking about it," Sharp said. "People know what's going to happen with the salary cap. It's the third time we've gone through it. That's the tough part of pro sports, no question. It feels a lot better when you win a championship and there's turnover in the locker room. We'll see what happens, we'll cross that bridge."
Said Bickell: "It's part of the business. There are a lot of friends and a lot of people who get moved … but it's out of my control. Whatever it is that happens, I want to stay. It's a good spot to be."
While he's not likely to be dealt and Bowman has sung his praises, Crawford said, "it crosses your mind.
"We want to keep everyone here. It's a great group and a pretty good team. You almost don't want to think about it because obviously some moves are going to have to be made. It's tough, man, it's tough. You play so long with these guys and get to know them so well and it's always hard when you see somebody leave."
And if his phone rang with news of a trade?
"It would definitely suck," Crawford said. "It would be a bad feeling to have to leave. You just kind of want to forget about it unless it happens."
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