For some reason, the Blackhawks seem to be stockpiling the roster with not-well-known defensemen that I've never heard of, and probably no one else has either. Today, by perusing Doug Janik's NHLPA.com page, we can now see that he is now a member of the Blackhawks and will be making $500,000 this season. Janik is a defenseman who has spent the last couple of seasons playing in a total of 136 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning. He has 15 career points and has a career plus/minus of -13.

This is another guy who shouldn't and likely will not play with the 'Hawks barring multiple injuries. Apparently they are just trying to get players who can fill the team out in Rockford.

UPDATE: The Hawks' official site now has the news of the signings of Aaron Johnson and Janik, as well as the announcement of Colin Fraser re-signing for 1 year.

The Hawks' official website has announced the pre-season schedule for this year:

The 2008-09 Blackhawks will open the preseason with three straight home games, beginning with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday, Sept. 23, followed by the Minnesota Wild on Friday, Sept. 26, and versus the Dallas Stars on Sunday, Sept. 28.

The team will then hit the road for four consecutive games on Monday, Sept. 29 (at Columbus), Tuesday, Sept. 30 (at Minnesota), Thursday, Oct. 2 (at Dallas) and Friday, Oct. 3 (at Colorado).

The Blackhawks will then return home for preseason finale on Sunday, Oct. 5, when they host Colorado.

So, that October 5th game is indeed pre-season, so it looks like the season is going to start a little later than usual during the week following the 5th. Now we must wait just over two months before the first hockey action of the year -- start the countdown.

Eklund from HockeyBuzz.com is giving us some rumors about the Hawks possibly dealing with the Senators, and maybe the Lightning as well:

Only in this weird state of Leaf rebuilding could such a deal be even discussed in church vestibules, however there is word the Sens are still very interested in Kubina today. They had a strong interest in McCabe as well, but that possibility has faded completely I am told.

UPDATE 1:01: However another source is telling me that the Sens and Hawks are close on a deal

And later:

Tampa is still in discussions with Nashville and Chicago I am hearing regarding a d-man. One source said the Lightning are trying to figure a package for Seabrook.

Wow, I really don't think I would be too happy if the Hawks dealt Seabrook. I can't see anyone on the Tampa Bay roster that I would seriously consider taking in return for Brent. He's become a huge part of this team's young core and is turning into what I think will be a great young defenseman and getting rid of him seems to be counter-productive. My guess is that Dale Tallon would be looking for Martin St. Louis in return, who is a good offensive player, but I really wouldn't even want him for Seabrook. The Hawks should hang on to him unless they get a deal that blows them away.

We'll see what the Hawks are trying to get done with the Senators. There were rumors that they were maybe looking into Chris Neil, a tough winger who could fill the enforcer role for this team.

Ticketmaster seems to be showing the Blackhawks' pre-season home schedule before it has been announced this year. Looking at their Hawks page, it shows the following home games:

September 23rd vs. Blue Jackets - 7:30 PM CST
September 26th vs. Wild - 7:30 PM CST
September 28th vs. Stars - 6:00 PM CST
October 5th vs. Avalanche - no time listed

The last one confuses me, however. A pre-season game as late as October 5th? Usually the regular season begins around the 3rd or 4th on most seasons, I'm trying to remember a pre-season game as late as then but not coming up with anything. Perhaps that is the home opener? Only time will tell.

According to the NHLPA website, the Blackhawks have signed defenseman Aaron Johnson to a contract. Looks like he has spent some time with the Blue Jackets and Islanders in limited time in the NHL. I would think this will likely just be a depth move, helping to stock up some players in Rockford, he may be a guy who comes up to the big club in case of injury.

From the Hawks' official site:

The Chicago Blackhawks announced today the team has signed free agent defenseman Matt Walker (6-3, 213) to a one-year contract.

As I said when it was first reported, this is a good little signing because I like the size that Walker will bring to this blue-line, and he is a tough customer, that's for sure. Not afraid to drop the gloves with anyone really. He might not have the skill to be anything more than a #6 defenseman at best, but Denis Savard can plug him in to certain match-ups where a little tenacity is needed.

Also from the official site, it's been announced that the press conference to introduce Brian Campbell as a Blackhawk will be tomorrow afternoon at 2 PM Chicago time. I'd imagine Comcast Sports Net will be covering that one live.

It looks like the outdoor game between the Blackhawks and Red Wings that has been rumored for a while is almost officially going to happen at this point, according to an article from the Detroit Free Press:

Michael Russo of the Star-Tribune in Minneapolis-St. Paul reports that the Red Wings will play the Blackhawks in the next NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field, home of the Cubs.

"The outdoor game has been in the works for some time but finally approved last week when NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman met with the Blackhawks, Cubs and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley," Russo writes.

Good to hear. I was very intrigued when the rumors of this first began, it seems like a really cool idea, something the Hawks would never have done 10-15 years ago, but John McDonough knows what kind of attention and good press this could bring to the Blackhawks and got the wheels in motion. This game is going to be one hot ticket whenever it happens, which I believe was supposed to be New Year's Eve or New Year's Day when it was discussed before. It should be interesting to see the details come out on this game.

Apparently there has been some talk within the past couple days about Martin Havlat possibly being on the trading block. I have heard that the Canucks are looking for a scorer and have some interest in getting Havlat for the right price, according to some rumors on the internet.

I don't see Havlat having a lot of value right now considering the health issues he has gone through for the past two seasons, and I think the Hawks need to hang on to him unless they get a significant offensive player in return, which I do not see happening. I'd love to see what Havlat can do if he stays healthy all year, but that seems unlikely.

This isn't official, as I haven't found it anywhere else yet, but Andy Strickland of HockeyBuzz.com reports:

Chicago signs former Blues D-man Matt Walker to a 1 yr. deal.

From looking at Walker's stats and the scouting on him, it looks like Walker would bring some toughness and depth to the blue-line. Not a tremendous addition, but he's got good size and would give us a physical player. Not a bad signing if it is true.

Thanks to reader eternale1 for pointing this out:

Chicago Blackhawks defenseman James Wisniewski tore his anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during training and will have surgery. The team said Thursday he should be able to return during next season.

The 24-year-old Wisniewski played 68 games last season and had seven goals and 19 assists.

At least it doesn't sound extremely serious, but I worry about when he will be able to return. Does this mean he won't be ready for the start of the season? Ugh, the injuries are already starting.