Speaking before the NHL Draft on Friday night, Chicago Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville sounded an awful lot like general manager Stan Bowman did on Thursday.
Quenneville told the assembled media that Crawford was progressing and would be ready to go by the time training camp arrives in September.
Quenneville on Crawford: “Reports are he’s doing well. A lot of guys are training in Chicago, and we expect him soon. I think he’s going to be fine going into camp.”
— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) June 22, 2018
Q said Corey Crawford is making progress and should be fine for training camp. He hasn’t been on the ice yet, but Q expects him to come to Chicago to join the other Blackhawks in town “soon.”
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) June 22, 2018
The only update that comes from Quenneville’s comments is that Crawford is not in Chicago. Of course, there’s been no word on where Crawford has been since he last appeared at a team practice in February. And his status for next season remains the biggest question mark for the team going forward.
Quenneville provided a more concrete update on captain Jonathan Toews, who missed the final weeks of the regular season with another undisclosed injury. Quenneville said the captain was “totally healthy” and was already working out in preparation for the upcoming 2018-19 NHL season.
He also fielded questions about some of the Hawks younger players who thrived during the Rockford IceHogs run to the conference finals in the Calder Cup Playoffs, including John Hayden, Andreas Martinsen and Victor Ejdsell:
Quenneville mentioned Hayden, Martinsen and Ejdsell as players who impressed him with the IceHogs during the playoffs. He was especially excited to see Ejdsell at training camp.
— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) June 22, 2018
And he also heaped praise on Chicago’s 2017 first-round pick:
Q on Jokiharju: “He’s one of those kids that finds a way. He’s pretty excited about coming into camp and trying to make our hockey team. He’ll make that decision for us as well. He’s certainly somebody looking forward to see his progression from last year which is pretty good.”
— Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) June 22, 2018