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Marcus Kruger En Route to Chicago?

Breaking news this morning, as Chris Block has reported via Djurgarden’s team site (with whom Kruger had been playing up until their elimination from the SEL playoffs on Sunday), that Marcus Kruger is expected to be reporting to the Blackhawks as soon as tomorrow for the home game against the Panthers.

Ok, so there’s lots going on here. First, Kruger is a center, with 6G-29A-35P in 52 games in the SEL and a +12 rating. While we can infer all we want about either Bolland’s or Sharp’s injury, it seems as though whether one or both are done, the braintrust of Stan and Q have seen enough of Michael Frolik at center – so much for that versatility that Bowman blew up our asses a month and a half ago. The more likely scenario is that it’s Bolland who’s going to be shut down given that Sharp has been playing wing the majority of the year. This makes things particularly daunting in the playoffs, as it’s been Bolland who’s been tasked with shutting down and generally being irritating to the high-end skill of the opposition, and now the Hawks possess no one at the pivot with those abilities.

With 10 regular season games left, the Hawks are risking vesting Kruger’s entry level contract, but they may not have a choice being as bereft at the center position as a Bolland shut-down would leave them.

While nothing is official yet, both on the injury front or on Kruger being officially called up, there appears to be a lot of smoke here. If anyone has seen Kruger in the SEL or in prospects camp to give us all a report on what the eye test shows, please feel free to share it, as well as any other feelings you have on this in the comments.

Talking Points